How to Create a Two Dimensional Array in JavaScript

Topic: JavaScript / jQueryPrev|Next

Answer: Create an Array of Arrays

JavaScript does not support two-dimensional associative arrays. However, you can simulate the effect of two dimensional arrays in JavaScript by creating an array of arrays.

Let's take a look at the following example to understand how it basically works:

// Sample array
var arr = [
    ["a", "Apple"],
    ["b", "Banana"],
    ["c", "Cat"],
];

// Accessing array elements
console.log(arr[0][0]); // Prints: a
console.log(arr[0][1]); // Prints: Apple
console.log(arr[1][0]); // Prints: b
console.log(arr[1][1]); // Prints: Banana
console.log(arr[arr.length - 1][0]); // Prints: c
console.log(arr[arr.length - 1][1]); // Prints: Cat

Further, to create such arrays you could do something as shown in the following example:

// Creating an empty array
var arr = [];

// Populating array with values
arr[0] = ["a", "Apple"]; 
arr[1] = ["b", "Banana"]; 
arr[2]= ["c", "Cat"]; 

console.log(arr);

Related FAQ

Here are some more FAQ related to this topic:

• How to append values to an array in JavaScript
• How to add new elements at the beginning of an array in JavaScript
• How to loop through an array in JavaScript