> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://axiom.co/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

<AgentInstructions>

## Submitting Feedback

If you encounter incorrect, outdated, or confusing documentation on this page, submit feedback:

POST https://axiom.co/docs/feedback

```json
{
  "path": "/apl/scalar-functions/conversion-functions/toarray",
  "feedback": "Description of the issue"
}
```

Only submit feedback when you have something specific and actionable to report.

</AgentInstructions>

# toarray

> This page explains how to use the toarray function in APL.

Use the `toarray` function in APL to convert a dynamic-typed input—such as a bag, property bag, or JSON array—into a regular array. This is helpful when you want to process the elements individually with array functions like `array_length` or `array_index_of`.

You typically use `toarray` when working with semi-structured data, especially after parsing JSON from log fields or external sources. It lets you access and manipulate nested collections using standard array operations.

## For users of other query languages

If you come from other query languages, this section explains how to adjust your existing queries to achieve the same results in APL.

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Splunk SPL users">
    In Splunk, multivalue fields are native, and many SPL commands like `mvexpand`, `mvindex`, and `mvcount` operate directly on them. In APL, dynamic fields can also contain multivalue data, but you need to explicitly convert them to arrays using `toarray` before applying array functions.

    <CodeGroup>
      ```sql Splunk example theme={null}
      ... | eval methods=split("GET,POST,PUT", ",") | mvcount(methods)
      ```

      ```kusto APL equivalent theme={null}
      print methods = dynamic(["GET", "POST", "PUT"])
      | extend method_count = array_length(toarray(methods))
      ```
    </CodeGroup>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="ANSI SQL users">
    ANSI SQL doesn’t support arrays natively. You typically store lists as JSON and use JSON functions to manipulate them. In APL, you can parse JSON into dynamic values and use `toarray` to convert those into arrays for further processing.

    <CodeGroup>
      ```sql SQL example theme={null}
      SELECT JSON_ARRAY_LENGTH('["GET","POST","PUT"]')
      ```

      ```kusto APL equivalent theme={null}
      print methods = dynamic(["GET", "POST", "PUT"])
      | extend method_count = array_length(toarray(methods))
      ```
    </CodeGroup>
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Usage

### Syntax

```kusto theme={null}
toarray(value)
```

### Parameters

| Name  | Type    | Description                              |
| ----- | ------- | ---------------------------------------- |
| value | dynamic | A JSON array, property bag, or bag value |

### Returns

An array containing the elements of the dynamic input. If the input is already an array, the result is identical. If the input is a property bag, it returns an array of values. If the input isn’t coercible to an array, the result is an empty array.

## Example

You want to convert a string to an array because you want to pass the result to a function that accepts arrays, such as `array_concat`.

**Query**

```kusto theme={null}
['otel-demo-traces']
| extend service_list = toarray('123')
| extend json_list = parse_json('["frontend", "cartservice", "checkoutservice"]')
| extend combined_list = array_concat(service_list, json_list)
| project _time, combined_list
```

[Run in Playground](https://play.axiom.co/axiom-play-qf1k/query?initForm=%7B%22apl%22%3A%22%5B'otel-demo-traces'%5D%20%7C%20extend%20service_list%20%3D%20toarray\('123'\)%20%7C%20extend%20json_list%20%3D%20parse_json\('%5B%5C"frontend%5C"%2C%20%5C"cartservice%5C"%2C%20%5C"checkoutservice%5C"%5D'\)%20%7C%20extend%20combined_list%20%3D%20array_concat\(service_list%2C%20json_list\)%20%7C%20project%20_time%2C%20combined_list%22%7D)

**Output**

| \_time           | combined\_list                                         |
| ---------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| Jun 24, 09:28:10 | \["123", "frontend", "cartservice", "checkoutservice"] |
| Jun 24, 09:28:10 | \["123", "frontend", "cartservice", "checkoutservice"] |
| Jun 24, 09:28:10 | \["123", "frontend", "cartservice", "checkoutservice"] |

## List of related functions

* [array\_length](/apl/scalar-functions/array-functions/array-length): Returns the number of elements in an array. Useful before applying `array_extract`.
* [array\_index\_of](/apl/scalar-functions/array-functions/array-index-of): Finds the position of an element in an array, which can help set the `startIndex` for `array_extract`.
* [pack\_array](/apl/scalar-functions/array-functions/pack-array): Use this to combine scalar values into an array. Use `pack_array` when you don’t need named keys and want positional data instead.
* [bag\_keys](/apl/scalar-functions/array-functions/bag-keys): Returns the list of keys in a dynamic dictionary. Use this to inspect or filter contents created by `pack_dictionary`.
* [bag\_pack](/apl/scalar-functions/array-functions/bag-pack): Expands a dictionary into multiple columns. Use it to revert the packing performed by `pack_dictionary`.