Why is using “for…in” with array iteration a bad idea in javascript?

Using for..in loops in JavaScript with array iteration is a bad idea because of the following behavior −

Using normal iteration loops −

Example

let arr = []
arr[4] = 5
for (let i = 0; i < arr.length; i ++) {
   console.log(arr[i])
}

Output

undefined
undefined
undefined
undefined
5

If we had iterated over this array using the for in construct, we'd have gotten −

Example

let arr = []
arr[4] = 5
for (let i in arr) {
   console.log(arr[i])
}

Output

5

Note that the length of the array is 5, but this still iterates over only one value in the array.

This happens because the purpose of the for-in statement is to enumerate over object properties. This statement will go up in the prototype chain, also enumerating over inherited properties, a thing that sometimes is not desired.

Ayush Gupta

e

Updated on: 19-Sep-2019

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