ListToArray

Last update:

May 18, 2026

Description

Copies the elements of a list to an array.

Returns

An array

Function syntax

ListToArray(list [, delimiters[, includeEmptyFields[, multiCharacterDelimiter]]])

History

ColdFusion 9: Added the multiCharacterDelimiter parameter.

Parameters

Parameter	Description
list	A list or a variable that contains one.You define a list variable with a cfset statement.
delimiters	A string or a variable that contains one. ColdFusion treats each character in the string as a delimiter. The default value is comma.
includeEmptyFields	A Boolean value specifying whether to create empty array entries if there are two delimiters in a row. false-(Default) ignore empty elements in a list; for example, convert a,,c into an array with only two elements. true-Convert empty elements in a list to empty array entries; for example, convert a,,c into an array with three elements, the second of which is empty.
multiCharacterDelimiter	A Boolean value specifying whether the delimiters parameter specifies a multi-character delimiter. The default is false. If this parameter is true, the delimiters parameter must specify a single delimiter consisting of multiple characters. This parameter enables the ListToArray function to convert a list such as the following to an array of color names: red:\|orange:\|yellow:\|green:\|blue:\|indigo:\|violet.

Usage

ColdFusion, by default, ignores empty list elements; thus, the list "a,b,c,,,d" has four elements.ColdFusion treats each character in the delimiters parameter as a separate delimiter. Therefore, if the parameter is ",+" ColdFusion will break the list at either a comma or a plus sign.If you specify a multiCharacterDelimiter parameter, all list elements must be separated by exactly the specified characters. For example, the following code creates an array with three entries, "red, orange", "yellow, green" and "blue, violet".

<cfset list = "red,orange,&yellow,green,&blue,violet"> 

<cfset arr = listToArray (list, ",&",false,true)>

Example 1

Example 2

<cfscript>

       myList="ten;twenty;thirty;fort;fifty;sixty;;seventy;;;eighty"; // list contains empty elements

       // convert myList to myArray

       myArray=listToArray(myList,";",false,true); // Using includeEmptyFields=false

       // Display array elements

       WriteDump(myArray);

</cfscript>

Example 3

<cfscript>

       myList="ten;twenty;thirty;fort;fifty;sixty;;seventy;;;eighty"; // list contains empty elements

       // convert myList to myArray

       myArray=listToArray(myList,";",true,true); // Using includeEmptyFields=true

       // Display array elements

       WriteDump(myArray);

</cfscript>

Real-world use cases of the ListToArray function

CSV data processing for product imports

An e-commerce company receives daily product updates from suppliers in CSV format. Each product line contains categories, tags, and features that need to be processed individually for database storage and search indexing. How it helps:

Converts CSV strings to structured arrays for systematic processing
Each array element gets proper classification (category, subcategory, features)
Individual features become searchable tags
Validates data integrity during the conversion process

<cfscript>

    writeOutput("<h2>📦 USE CASE 1: CSV Product Data Processing</h2>");

    writeOutput("<h3>Business Context:</h3>");

    writeOutput("<p>An e-commerce company receives daily product updates from suppliers in CSV format. Each product line contains categories, tags, and features that need to be processed individually for database storage and search indexing.</p>");

    // Sample CSV product data from supplier

    productCsvData = "Electronics,Laptops,Gaming Notebooks,High-Performance,RGB Lighting,SSD Storage,16GB RAM";

    writeOutput("<h4>📥 Raw CSV Data:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><code>" & productCsvData & "</code></p>");

    // Convert CSV to array for processing

    productArray = ListToArray(productCsvData, ",", false);

    writeOutput("<h4>🔄 Processing Results:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    writeOutput("<tr><th>Index</th><th>Product Attribute</th><th>Processing Action</th></tr>");

    for (i = 1; i <= arrayLen(productArray); i++) {

        attribute = trim(productArray[i]);

        // Business logic for each attribute type

        if (i == 1) {

            action = "Primary Category Assignment";

            category = attribute;

        } else if (i == 2) {

            action = "Subcategory Classification";

            subcategory = attribute;

        } else {

            action = "Feature Tag for Search Index";

        }

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & i & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & attribute & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & action & "</td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    // Database insertion simulation

    writeOutput("<h4>💾 Database Operations:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><strong>Primary Category:</strong> " & (category ?: "N/A") & "</p>");

    writeOutput("<p><strong>Subcategory:</strong> " & (subcategory ?: "N/A") & "</p>");

    writeOutput("<p><strong>Feature Tags:</strong> " & arrayLen(productArray) - 2 & " tags indexed for search</p>");

    writeOutput("<h4>💼 Business Value:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<ul>");

    writeOutput("<li>Automated processing of 1000+ products daily</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Consistent data structure for search optimization</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Reduced manual data entry errors by 95%</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Faster time-to-market for new products</li>");

    writeOutput("</ul>");

    writeOutput("<hr>");

</cfscript>

User permission and role management

A corporate CRM system serves 500+ employees across multiple departments with varying access requirements. User permissions are stored as comma-separated lists in the database to maintain flexibility while ensuring security compliance. How it works:

Each permission becomes an array element for precise access management
Empty array slots show deactivated permissions for compliance reporting
Real-time permission evaluation without database restructuring
Easy addition/removal of permissions without schema changes

<cfscript>

    writeOutput("<h2>👥 USE CASE 2: User Permissions & Role Management</h2>");

    writeOutput("<h3>Business Context:</h3>");

    writeOutput("<p>A corporate CRM system stores user permissions as comma-separated lists in the database. When users log in, these permissions need to be converted to arrays for role-based access control throughout the application.</p>");

    // Sample user permission data (includes empty elements for inactive roles)

    userPermissions = "read_customers,write_customers,,read_reports,admin_users,,delete_records";

    writeOutput("<h4>📥 Raw Permission String:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><code>" & userPermissions & "</code></p>");

    writeOutput("<p><em>Note: Empty elements represent deactivated permissions</em></p>");

    // Process permissions excluding empty fields (inactive permissions)

    activePermissions = ListToArray(userPermissions, ",", false);

    writeOutput("<h4>✅ Active Permissions Processing:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><strong>includeEmptyFields = false</strong></p>");

    permissionCategories = {

        "read": [],

        "write": [],

        "admin": [],

        "delete": []

    };

    for (permission in activePermissions) {

        cleanPermission = trim(permission);

        // Categorize permissions by type

        if (findNoCase("read_", cleanPermission)) {

            arrayAppend(permissionCategories.read, cleanPermission);

        } else if (findNoCase("write_", cleanPermission)) {

            arrayAppend(permissionCategories.write, cleanPermission);

        } else if (findNoCase("admin_", cleanPermission)) {

            arrayAppend(permissionCategories.admin, cleanPermission);

        } else if (findNoCase("delete_", cleanPermission)) {

            arrayAppend(permissionCategories.delete, cleanPermission);

        }

    }

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    writeOutput("<tr><th>Permission Level</th><th>Granted Permissions</th><th>Count</th></tr>");

    for (level in permissionCategories) {

        permissions = permissionCategories[level];

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td><strong>" & uCase(level) & "</strong></td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & (arrayLen(permissions) > 0 ? arrayToList(permissions, ", ") : "None") & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & arrayLen(permissions) & "</td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    // Now process with empty fields to see all assigned slots

    allPermissionSlots = ListToArray(userPermissions, ",", true);

    writeOutput("<h4>📊 Permission Audit (including empty slots):</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><strong>includeEmptyFields = true</strong> - Shows all permission slots including deactivated ones</p>");

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

   // writeOutput("<tr><th>Slot #</th><th>Permission</th><th>Status</th></tr>");

    for (i = 1; i <= arrayLen(allPermissionSlots); i++) {

        permission = trim(allPermissionSlots[i]);

        status = len(permission) > 0 ? "Active" : "Deactivated";

        statusColor = len(permission) > 0 ? "green" : "red";

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & i & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & (len(permission) > 0 ? permission : "<em>Empty Slot</em>") & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td style='color: " & statusColor & ";'><strong>" & status & "</strong></td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    writeOutput("<h4>💼 Business Value:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<ul>");

    writeOutput("<li>Granular access control for 500+ enterprise users</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Easy permission auditing and compliance reporting</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Flexible role management without database schema changes</li>");

    writeOutput("<li>Reduced security vulnerabilities through systematic access control</li>");

    writeOutput("</ul>");

    writeOutput("<hr>");

</cfscript>

Multi-language content processing

A global eLearning platform serves customers in 50+ countries, requiring content delivery in multiple languages. Course materials, descriptions, and metadata must be maintained efficiently while supporting rapid localization. How it helps:

Single field contains all translations using multi-character delimiters
Real-time content delivery based on user language preferences
Content managers update one field instead of multiple database records
Easy addition of new languages without database schema changes

<cfscript>

    writeOutput("<h2>🌍 USE CASE 3: Multi-Language Content Processing</h2>");

    writeOutput("<h3>Business Context:</h3>");

    writeOutput("<p>A global e-learning platform stores course content in multiple languages separated by multi-character delimiters. This allows content managers to maintain translations in a single field while enabling easy separation for display.</p>");

    // Course content with multi-language translations separated by special delimiter

    courseContent = "Introduction to Programming||Introducción a la Programación||Einführung in die Programmierung||プログラミング入門||프로그래밍 소개";

    writeOutput("<h4>📥 Multi-Language Content String:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><code>" & courseContent & "</code></p>");

    writeOutput("<p><em>Languages: English || Spanish || German || Japanese || Korean</em></p>");

    // Process with multi-character delimiter

    languageArray = ListToArray(courseContent, "||", false, true);

    writeOutput("<h4>🔄 Language Processing Results:</h4>");

    // Language codes mapping

    languageCodes = ["EN", "ES", "DE", "JA", "KO"];

    languageNames = ["English", "Spanish", "German", "Japanese", "Korean"];

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    writeOutput("<tr><th>Language Code</th><th>Language</th><th>Translated Content</th><th>Character Count</th></tr>");

    for (i = 1; i <= arrayLen(languageArray); i++) {

        if (i <= arrayLen(languageCodes)) {

            content = trim(languageArray[i]);

            writeOutput("<tr>");

            writeOutput("<td><strong>" & languageCodes[i] & "</strong></td>");

            writeOutput("<td>" & languageNames[i] & "</td>");

            writeOutput("<td>" & content & "</td>");

            writeOutput("<td>" & len(content) & "</td>");

            writeOutput("</tr>");

        }

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    // Content localization function

    function getLocalizedContent(contentArray, userLanguage) {

        languageMap = {

            "en": 1,

            "es": 2, 

            "de": 3,

            "ja": 4,

            "ko": 5

        };

        languageIndex = languageMap[lCase(userLanguage)] ?: 1;

        if (languageIndex <= arrayLen(contentArray)) {

            return trim(contentArray[languageIndex]);

        }

        return trim(contentArray[1]); // Fallback to English

    }

    // Demonstrate localization for different users

    writeOutput("<h4>🎯 User Localization Examples:</h4>");

    testUsers = [

        {lang: "en", name: "John (USA)"},

        {lang: "es", name: "María (Mexico)"},

        {lang: "de", name: "Hans (Germany)"},

        {lang: "ja", name: "田中 (Japan)"},

        {lang: "ko", name: "김철수 (Korea)"}

    ];

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    writeOutput("<tr><th>User</th><th>Preferred Language</th><th>Localized Content</th></tr>");

    for (user in testUsers) {

        localizedContent = getLocalizedContent(languageArray, user.lang);

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & user.name & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & uCase(user.lang) & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & localizedContent & "</td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

</cfscript>

Survey response analysis

A market research company conducts customer satisfaction surveys for Fortune 500 clients. Multiple-choice questions with checkbox responses need sophisticated analysis to generate actionable business insights and strategic recommendations. How it helps:

Converts checkbox responses to arrays for statistical processing
Identifies most/least important features across customer segments
Handles incomplete responses and empty selections gracefully
Generates priority rankings and business recommendations

<cfscript>

    writeOutput("<h2>📊 USE CASE 4: Survey Response Analysis</h2>");

    writeOutput("<h3>Business Context:</h3>");

    writeOutput("<p>A market research company collects customer feedback through online surveys. Multiple-choice questions with checkboxes are stored as comma-separated lists. Analytics need to process these responses to generate insights and reports.</p>");

    // Sample survey responses for "Which features are most important to you?"

    surveyResponses = [

        "Price,Quality,Customer Service,Warranty",

        "Quality,Design,Brand Reputation,Warranty,",

        "Price,,Customer Service,Fast Delivery,Warranty",

        "Quality,Design,Brand Reputation",

        "Price,Quality,,Fast Delivery,"

    ];

    writeOutput("<h4>📥 Raw Survey Data:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<p><em>Question: Which features are most important to you? (Check all that apply)</em></p>");

    featureCount = {};

    totalResponses = arrayLen(surveyResponses);

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    //writeOutput("<tr><th>Response #</th><th>Raw Data</th><th>Selected Features</th><th>Selection Count</th></tr>");

    for (i = 1; i <= arrayLen(surveyResponses); i++) {

        response = surveyResponses[i];

        // Process response excluding empty fields (unchecked boxes)

        selectedFeatures = ListToArray(response, ",", false);

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & i & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td><code>" & response & "</code></td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & arrayToList(selectedFeatures, ", ") & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & arrayLen(selectedFeatures) & "</td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

        // Count feature frequencies

        for (feature in selectedFeatures) {

            cleanFeature = trim(feature);

            if (len(cleanFeature) > 0) {

                if (!structKeyExists(featureCount, cleanFeature)) {

                    featureCount[cleanFeature] = 0;

                }

                featureCount[cleanFeature]++;

            }

        }

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    // Generate analytics report

    writeOutput("<h4>📈 Feature Popularity Analysis:</h4>");

    // Sort features by popularity

    featureStats = [];

    for (feature in featureCount) {

        count = featureCount[feature];

        percentage = round((count / totalResponses) * 100);

        arrayAppend(featureStats, {

            feature: feature,

            count: count,

            percentage: percentage

        });

    }

    // Sort by count (descending)

    arraySort(featureStats, function(a, b) {

        return b.count - a.count;

    });

    writeOutput("<table border='1' cellpadding='8'>");

    writeOutput("<tr><th>Rank</th><th>Feature</th><th>Responses</th><th>Percentage</th><th>Priority Level</th></tr>");

    for (i = 1; i <= arrayLen(featureStats); i++) {

        stat = featureStats[i];

        // Determine priority level

        if (stat.percentage >= 80) {

            priority = "Critical";

            priorityColor = "red";

        } else if (stat.percentage >= 60) {

            priority = "High";

            priorityColor = "orange";

        } else if (stat.percentage >= 40) {

            priority = "Medium";

            priorityColor = "blue";

        } else {

            priority = "Low";

            priorityColor = "gray";

        }

        writeOutput("<tr>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & i & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td><strong>" & stat.feature & "</strong></td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & stat.count & " / " & totalResponses & "</td>");

        writeOutput("<td>" & stat.percentage & "%</td>");

        writeOutput("<td style='color: " & priorityColor & ";'><strong>" & priority & "</strong></td>");

        writeOutput("</tr>");

    }

    writeOutput("</table>");

    // Business recommendations

    writeOutput("<h4>🎯 Business Recommendations:</h4>");

    writeOutput("<ul>");

    for (i = 1; i <= min(3, arrayLen(featureStats)); i++) {

        stat = featureStats[i];

        writeOutput("<li><strong>" & stat.feature & "</strong>: Top priority - mentioned by " & stat.percentage & "% of respondents</li>");

    }

</cfscript>

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