What is PHP Array?

A PHP array literal: an outer array of rows, each an associative array keyed by column name.

Who uses it

PHP applications that need a lookup table in code rather than in a database.

Writing PHP Array

Values are single-quoted with backslashes and quotes escaped, so the output can be pasted into a file as is.

What it can hold

PHP is source code. An array of associative arrays; PHP keeps insertion order, so column order survives. A machine can read the table back out of it without guessing, which is what makes it safe to convert into and out of.

It keeps

Types. A number stays a number and a boolean stays a boolean, so whatever reads the file next does not have to guess from how a value looks.
The difference between empty and missing, which most table formats cannot express at all.
Nested values. A cell can hold a list or an object rather than only a single value.
A line break inside a cell, which survives rather than ending the row.

It cannot express

Any formatting. Bold, colour, column widths and merged cells have nowhere to go.
A partial read. The document has to be complete to mean anything, so a truncated file yields nothing and a large one has to be held in memory whole.
A header row. Column names are repeated on every record instead, which is why a file in this format is larger than the table it holds.

What it looks like

Example PHP Array

$staff = [
  ['id' => '007', 'name' => 'Halima Yusuf', 'role' => 'Analyst, data', 'started' => '2024-03-15', 'hours' => '38.5'],
  ['id' => '012', 'name' => 'Jonah "Jo" Pryce', 'role' => 'Engineer', 'started' => '2025-11-02', 'hours' => ''],
  ['id' => '104', 'name' => 'Wei Chen', 'role' => 'Manager', 'started' => '2023-06-30', 'hours' => '40'],
];

Questions

How do I open PHP Array files?

PHP Array is written by Tablizer rather than read by it. Open the file in whichever tool the format belongs to.

Is PHP Array a good format for sharing data?

It depends who is receiving it. PHP applications that need a lookup table in code rather than in a database. If the recipient is outside that group, a plain CSV travels further than anything else.