JavaScript: Get a random item from an array

JavaScript Array: Exercise-35 with Solution

Random Array Item

Write a JavaScript function to get random items from an array.

Visual Presentation:

Sample Solution:

JavaScript Code:

// Function to return a random item from an array
function random_item(items) {
    // Use Math.random() to generate a random number between 0 and 1,
    // multiply it by the length of the array, and use Math.floor() to round down to the nearest integer
    return items[Math.floor(Math.random() * items.length)];
}

// Declare and initialize an array of items
var items = [254, 45, 212, 365, 2543];

// Output the result of the random_item function with the array of items
console.log(random_item(items));

Output:

365

Flowchart:

ES6 Version:

// Arrow function to return a random item from an array
const random_item = items => items[Math.floor(Math.random() * items.length)];

// Declare and initialize an array of items
const items = [254, 45, 212, 365, 2543];

// Output the result of the random_item function with the array of items
console.log(random_item(items));

Live Demo:

See the Pen JavaScript - Get a random item from an array - array-ex- 35 by w3resource (@w3resource) on CodePen.

For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

• Write a JavaScript function that returns a random element from an array using Math.random() and floor.
• Write a JavaScript function that shuffles an array and returns its first element as a random item.
• Write a JavaScript function that generates a random index and retrieves the corresponding element from an array.
• Write a JavaScript function that handles empty arrays by returning a default value when picking a random item.

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