Array.prototype.unshift()

The unshift() method adds one or more elements to the beginning of an array and returns the new length of the array.

Syntax

JavaScript
<var>arr</var>.unshift([<var>element1</var>[, ...[, <var>elementN</var>]]])

Parameters

elementN
The elements to add to the front of the array.

Return value

The new length property of the object upon which the method was called.

Description

The unshift method inserts the given values to the beginning of an array-like object.

unshift is intentionally generic; this method can be called or applied to objects resembling arrays. Objects which do not contain a length property reflecting the last in a series of consecutive, zero-based numerical properties may not behave in any meaningful manner.

Examples

JavaScript
var arr = [1, 2];

arr.unshift(0); // result of call is 3, the new array length
// arr is [0, 1, 2]

arr.unshift(-2, -1); // = 5
// arr is [-2, -1, 0, 1, 2]

arr.unshift([-3]);
// arr is [[-3], -2, -1, 0, 1, 2]

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
ECMAScript 3rd Edition (ECMA-262) Standard Initial definition. Implemented in JavaScript 1.2.
ECMAScript 5.1 (ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Array.prototype.unshift' in that specification.
Standard  
ECMAScript 2015 (6th Edition, ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Array.prototype.unshift' in that specification.
Standard  
ECMAScript 2017 Draft (ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Array.prototype.unshift' in that specification.
Draft  

Browser compatibility

Feature Chrome Firefox (Gecko) Internet Explorer Opera Safari
Basic support 1.0 1.0 (1.7 or earlier) 5.5 (Yes) (Yes)
Feature Android Chrome for Android Firefox Mobile (Gecko) IE Mobile Opera Mobile Safari Mobile
Basic support (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) (Yes)

See also

License

© 2016 Mozilla Contributors
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License v2.5 or later.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-us/docs/web/javascript/reference/global_objects/array/unshift

Array JavaScript Method Prototype