The Array.pop() method in vanilla JS

Yesterday, we looked at the Array.shift() method. Today, I wanted to talk about the Array.pop() method. This is another quick one.

The Array.pop() method removes the last item from an array and returns it. The array is modified.

let wizards = ['Gandalf', 'Radagast', 'Merlin'];
let last = wizards.pop();

// logs "Merlin"
console.log(last);

// logs ["Gandalf", "Radagast"]
console.log(wizards);

Here’s a demo.

If you only need to get the last item in the array, you’re probably better off using bracket notation, like this.

let last = wizards[wizards.length - 1];

The Array.pop() method is most useful when you want to actually remove the last item from the original array and modify its length.