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PHP Array Sum Techniques: Three Methods to Calculate the Total of Array Elements

M66 2025-09-23

PHP Techniques for Calculating the Sum of Array Elements

In PHP, calculating the sum of array elements is a very common operation. Whether you're performing data statistics, accumulation tasks, or handling large arrays, knowing how to calculate the sum of array elements is an essential skill for developers. This article will introduce three common methods for achieving this functionality and provide example code.

Method 1: Using the count() function

The PHP count() function is used to get the number of elements in an array. In some cases, you can combine it with a loop to calculate the array sum. Here is an example of calculating the array sum by looping through the array and accumulating each element's value:

<?php
$numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
$total = 0;
foreach ($numbers as $number) {
    $total += $number;
}
echo "The sum of array elements is: " . $total;
?>

Running the code above will output:

The sum of array elements is: 15

Method 2: Using the array_sum() function

PHP also provides a very convenient function, array_sum(), which directly calculates the sum of array elements. This method is very efficient when handling simple array sums. Here’s an example using the array_sum() function:

<?php
$numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
$total = array_sum($numbers);
echo "The sum of array elements is: " . $total;
?>

Running this code will output:

The sum of array elements is: 15

Method 3: Using Recursion

Another method for calculating the array sum is by using recursion. Recursion allows a function to call itself, which can be used to traverse the array and accumulate the sum. This method is useful for more complex scenarios. Here’s an example of calculating the array sum using recursion:

<?php
function calculate_total($array, $index) {
    if ($index == count($array)) {
        return 0;
    } else {
        return $array[$index] + calculate_total($array, $index + 1);
    }
}
$numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
$total = calculate_total($numbers, 0);
echo "The sum of array elements is: " . $total;
?>

This code also outputs:

The sum of array elements is: 15

Conclusion

Above, we demonstrated three common methods for calculating the sum of array elements in PHP. Whether you choose to use count() with a loop, the array_sum() function, or recursion, each method can help you efficiently compute the sum of an array in different scenarios. By selecting the method that best suits your needs, you can handle array data more efficiently.