What is the Difference Between Pop and Shift in Javascript
As a web developer, it’s important to have a clear understanding of the different methods available in JavaScript. In this tutorial, we will be discussing the differences between two commonly used methods, pop and shift.
Pop Method
The pop method is used to remove the last element from an array and returns that element. This method modifies the original array and reduces its length by one.
Here is an example of using the pop method:
let arr = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]; let lastElement = arr.pop(); console.log(lastElement); // Output: "cherry" console.log(arr); // Output: ["apple", "banana"]
In the above example, the pop method removes the last element “cherry” from the arr array and returns it. The updated array arr now contains only the elements “apple” and “banana”.
Shift Method
The shift method is used to remove the first element from an array and returns that element. This method also modifies the original array and reduces its length by one.
Here is an example of using the shift method:
let arr = ["apple", "banana", "cherry"]; let firstElement = arr.shift(); console.log(firstElement); // Output: "apple" console.log(arr); // Output: ["banana", "cherry"]
In the above example, the shift method removes the first element “apple” from the arr array and returns it. The updated array arr now contains only the elements “banana” and “cherry”.
Key Differences
The key difference between the pop and shift methods is that pop removes the last element from the array while shift removes the first element from the array.
Another difference is the return value. The pop method returns the removed element, while the shift method returns the removed element as well.
It’s important to note that both methods modify the original array and reduce its length by one.
In conclusion, the pop and shift methods are both useful when working with arrays in JavaScript. pop removes the last element from an array, while shift removes the first element from an array. Both methods modify the original array and reduce its length by one.
