How to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP

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Minahil Noor Feb 02, 2024
PHP PHP Array
  1. Use Type Casting to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP
  2. Use json_encode() and json_decode() Function to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP
How to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP

This article introduces methods to convert an array to an object in PHP.

  • Using type casting
  • Using json_decode() and json_encode() function

Use Type Casting to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP

Typecasting helps in converting the data type of a variable. We can convert an integer to a float, string, etc using typecasting. Now we will use type casting to convert an array to an object in PHP. The correct method to cast an array to an object is as follows:

$variableName = (object)$arrayName;

The program below shows how we can use type casting to convert an array to an object.

<?php 
$array = array("Rose",
                "Lili",
                "",
                "Jasmine",
                "Hibiscus",
                "Tulip",
                "Sun Flower",
                "",
                "Daffodil",
                "Daisy");
                
$object= (object)$array;
echo("The object is \n");
var_dump($object);
?>

Output:

The object is 
object(stdClass)#1 (10) {
  [0]=>
  string(4) "Rose"
  [1]=>
  string(4) "Lili"
  [2]=>
  string(0) ""
  [3]=>
  string(7) "Jasmine"
  [4]=>
  string(8) "Hibiscus"
  [5]=>
  string(5) "Tulip"
  [6]=>
  string(10) "Sun Flower"
  [7]=>
  string(0) ""
  [8]=>
  string(8) "Daffodil"
  [9]=>
  string(5) "Daisy"
}

Use json_encode() and json_decode() Function to Convert an Array to an Object in PHP

We can use json_encode() and json_decode() functions to convert an array to an object in PHP. The json_encode() function will convert the array to a JSON string. Then we will use json_decode() function to convert this string to object.

The correct syntax to use json_encode() function is as follows:

json_encode($variable, $option, $depth)

The function json_encode() accepts three parameters. The detail of its parameters is as follows

Parameters Description
$variable mandatory It is the value that we want to convert to a JSON string.
$option optional It is the bitmask consisting of multiple constants. You can check these constants here.
$depth optional It is the depth, it should be greater than zero.

The correct syntax to use json_decode() function is as follows:

json_decode($jsonString, $assoc, $depth, $options)

The function json_decode() accepts four parameters. The detail of its parameters is as follows

Parameters Description
$jsonString mandatory It is the JSON string that we want to convert to an object.
$assoc optional It is a Boolean variable. If set to TRUE, it returns the object as an associative array.
$depth optional It is the depth, it should be greater than zero.
$options optional It is the bitmask of JSON_OBJECT_AS_ARRAY, JSON_BIGINT_AS_STRING,, JSON_THROW_ON_ERROR.

The program that converts an array to an object using these two functions is as follows:

<?php 
$array = array("Rose","Lili","Jasmine","Hibiscus","Tulip","Sun Flower","Daffodil","Daisy");
$object = json_encode($array);
$object1 = json_decode($object);
echo("The object is:\n");
var_dump($object1);
?>

Output:

The object is:
array(8) {
  [0]=>
  string(4) "Rose"
  [1]=>
  string(4) "Lili"
  [2]=>
  string(7) "Jasmine"
  [3]=>
  string(8) "Hibiscus"
  [4]=>
  string(5) "Tulip"
  [5]=>
  string(10) "Sun Flower"
  [6]=>
  string(8) "Daffodil"
  [7]=>
  string(5) "Daisy"
}

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