The natsort Function

The natsort function sorts an array as a human would. This function preserves the associations between keys and values. This algorithm is called natural ordering.

The function modifies the array itself.

Syntax

phpnatsort(array &$array, int $flags = SORT_REGULAR): bool

Example

Let's sort an array using the regular sort function:

php<?php
  $arr = [
    'img12.png',
    'img10.png',
    'img2.png',
    'img1.png',
  ];
  
  sort($arr);
  var_dump($arr);
?>

Code execution result:

php[
  'img1.png',
  'img10.png',
  'img12.png',
  'img2.png',
]

Example

Now let's perform natural sorting using the natsort function:

php<?php
  $arr = [
    'img12.png',
    'img10.png',
    'img2.png',
    'img1.png'
  ];
  
  natsort($arr);
  var_dump($arr);
?>

Code execution result:

php[
  'img1.png',
  'img2.png',
  'img10.png',
  'img12.png',
]

See Also