How to Access Array Elements in JavaScript: Syntax and Examples

In JavaScript, you access array elements using array[index] where index is the position of the element starting from 0. Use square brackets [] with the index number to get or set the element value.

Syntax

To access an element in an array, use the array name followed by square brackets containing the index number.

• array: The name of your array.
• index: The position of the element, starting at 0 for the first element.

javascript

array[index]

Example

This example shows how to access and print elements from an array of fruits.

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const fruits = ['apple', 'banana', 'cherry'];
console.log(fruits[0]); // first element
console.log(fruits[1]); // second element
console.log(fruits[2]); // third element

Output

apple
banana
cherry

Common Pitfalls

Common mistakes include using an index that is out of range or forgetting that array indexes start at 0.

Accessing array[-1] or array[array.length] returns undefined.

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const numbers = [10, 20, 30];
// Wrong: index out of range
console.log(numbers[3]); // undefined

// Correct: last element index is length - 1
console.log(numbers[numbers.length - 1]); // 30

Output

undefined
30

Quick Reference

Action	Syntax	Description
Access first element	array[0]	Gets the first item in the array
Access last element	array[array.length - 1]	Gets the last item in the array
Set element value	array[index] = value	Changes the element at the given index
Out of range access	array[index]	Returns undefined if index is invalid

Key Takeaways

Use square brackets with zero-based index to access array elements in JavaScript.

Array indexes start at 0, so the first element is at index 0.

Accessing an index outside the array length returns undefined.

Use array.length - 1 to get the last element's index.

You can also assign values to array elements using the same bracket notation.