PHP Array array_diff() Function (With Examples)

In this tutorial, we will learn about the PHP array_diff() function with its usage, syntax, parameters, return value, and examples. By IncludeHelp Last updated : December 31, 2023

PHP array_diff() Function

The array_diff() function is an array function in PHP, it is used to find the differences of two or more arrays.

It compares the values of given arrays and returns the values which are not common in the arrays.

It compares values of the first array with the second array and returns the values which are not present in the second array.

Syntax

The syntax of the array_diff() function:

array_diff(array1, array2, ...) : array

Parameters

The parameters of the array_diff() function:

array1, array2 are the input arrays, two array parameters are required. We can also provide more arrays to compare.

Return Value

The return type of this method is array, it returns an array containing all the entries from array that are not present in any of the other arrays. Keys in the array array are preserved. [Source]

Sample Input/Output

Input:
$arr1 = array("101" => "Amit", "102" => "Abhishek", "103" => "Prem");
$arr2 = array("101" => "Amit", "102" => "Abhishek");

Function call:
array_diff($arr1, $arr2);

Output:
Array
(
    [103] => Prem
)

PHP array_diff() Function Example 1

<?php
$arr1 = array("101" => "Amit", "102" => "Abhishek", "103" => "Prem");
$arr2 = array("101" => "Amit", "102" => "Abhishek");

//finding & printing arrays
$ans = array_diff($arr1, $arr2);
print_r ($ans);
?>

Output

The output of the above example is:

Array
(
    [103] => Prem
)

PHP array_diff() Function Example 2

<?php
$arr1 = array(10, 20, 30, 40, 50);
$arr2 = array(10, 20, 60, 70, 70);
print_r (array_diff($arr1, $arr2));
?>

Output

The output of the above example is:

(
    [2] => 30
    [3] => 40
    [4] => 50
)

To understand the above example, you should have the basic knowledge of the following PHP topics:

PHP array_combine() Function

PHP array_fill() Function