Python Arrays: How to Use and Manipulate Arrays in Python

Nipun Madusanka
4 min readMar 11, 2023

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Photo by Hitesh Choudhary on Unsplash

Python is a powerful programming language that is widely used in various fields such as web development, data science, and artificial intelligence. One of the important features of Python is its ability to handle arrays, which are essential in many programming tasks. In this article, we will explore the basics of arrays in Python and how to use them effectively.

What is an Array?

Arrays are a data structure that allows you to store multiple values in a single variable. In Python, arrays are called lists. You can use lists to store any type of data, such as integers, strings, or even other lists. The main advantage of using lists is that they are flexible and can be easily modified. You can add, remove, or modify elements in a list as needed.

In the first example, we see that we need to use several variables to hold the names of the cars:

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car1 = "Ford"
car2 = "Volvo"
car3 = "BMW"

print(car1)
print(car2)
print(car3)

Access the Elements of an Array

But, in the second example, we declare an array and you can see that all the cars are stored in one array. Indexes are used to access each value of an array. Indexes start at 0. Accordingly, you can see that “Ford” is printed as the 0 index.

The Length of an Array

You can use the len() method to check the number of elements in an array. For example, if we want to know how many cars are in our cars list, we can use the following code:

Looping Array Elements

We can use a loop to access and print the data in an array one time. The for in loop is used for that. For example, if we want to print all the cars in our cars list, we can use the following code:

Adding Array Elements

The append() method is used to add a value to an array. You can see how it is used below:

Removing Array Elements

You can use the pop() method to remove a value from the array. When the index of the value to be removed is given to the pop method, only that value is removed. If no index is given, the value at the end of the array is removed. See the example below:

You can also use the remove() method to remove an element. For example, if we want to remove the "BMW" car from our cars list, we can use the following code:

There are several other methods used in arrays, such as append(), which adds an element at the end of the list, clear(), which removes all the elements from the list, copy(), which returns a copy of the list, count(), which returns the number of elements with the specified value, and extend(), which adds the elements of a list (or any iterable) to the end of the current list.

In conclusion, arrays are an essential feature of Python that allows you to store and manipulate multiple values in a single variable. Understanding how to use arrays effectively can help you write better, more efficient code. With the knowledge and tools provided in this article, you can start using arrays in your Python code today.

Next Article: -Python Lists: A Beginner’s Guide to Storing Data in Python Lists.

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Nipun Madusanka

Learning about new technologies is a passion of mine, and I find it enjoyable. My ultimate goal is to utilize technology in ways that benefit society.