Often you may want to check if an array is empty in PowerShell.
You can use the following methods to do so:
Method 1: Check if Array is Empty (Return True or False)
$my_array.count -eq 0
This particular example checks if the array named $my_array is empty and returns either True or False as a result.
Method 2: Check if Array is Empty (Return String as Output)
if ($my_array.count -eq 0) {
Write-Host "The array is empty"
} else {
Write-Host "The array is not empty"
}
This particular example checks if the array named $my_array is empty and then uses Write-Host to output a string with custom text as a result.
The following examples shows how to use each method in practice.
Example 1: Check if Array is Empty (Return True or False)
We can use the following syntax to create an array named $my_array with no values and then check if the array is empty:
$my_array = @()
$my_array.count -eq 0
The following screenshot shows how to use this syntax in practice:
This returns True, which tells us that the array named $my_array is indeed empty.
Example 2: Check if Array is Empty (Return String as Output)
We can use the following syntax to create an array named $my_array with no values and then use an if else statement to check if the array is empty, returning custom text as a result:
$my_array = @()
if ($my_array.count -eq 0) {
Write-Host "The array is empty"
} else {
Write-Host "The array is not empty"
}
The following screenshot shows how to use this syntax in practice:
This returns “The array is empty” because the array named $my_array is indeed empty.
Feel free to replace this text with whatever output you would like to display with the Write-Host cmdlet.
Related Tutorials
The following tutorials explain how to perform other common tasks in PowerShell:
PowerShell: How to Check if String is Empty
PowerShell: How to Check if File is Empty
PowerShell: How to Check if Folder Exists
