Convert a collection of models to an array of models
Stefan Izdrail
Founder & Senior Architect · 2026-06-29
Title: Efficiently Convert Collections of Models to Arrays Using Eloquent Relationships in Laravel
Body:
Transforming collections into arrays is an essential task that every developer encounters during the course of building an application. In the context of Laravel, you may need to convert a collection of associated models into flat arrays. This blog post will discuss the methods available for efficiently converting model collections to arrays using Eloquent relationships in Laravel.
To begin with, let's assume we have two models: Post and Comment, where many comments belong to a single Post. You've queried these relationships using Laravel relationships as shown below:
```php
$post = App\Post::find(1); // Retrieve a specific post
$comments_collection = $post->comments()->get(); // Get all comments associated with the post as collection
```
Now, you want to convert this collection to an array. There are multiple ways of achieving this. Firstly, we will discuss how to achieve this using built-in methods and then move on to more direct approaches involving Eloquent relations.
1. Using Laravel's Collection Method:
The standard way to access a collection is by using Laravel's collection methods. This method involves looping through the collection and building an array, as shown below:
```php
$comments_array = [];
foreach ($comments_collection as $comment) {
$comments_array[] = $comment->toArray();
}
```
In this example, we have created an empty array called `$comments_array`. Then, we loop through the `$comments_collection` and extract each comment's data using the `toArray()` method. Finally, we append each comment's array to our main array. When done iterating through all comments, you will have a flat array with all the comment information in it.
2. Using Eloquent Relationships:
Laravel provides some direct methods for retrieving collections as arrays using relationships. This approach is more efficient than looping through collections but may be limited by your specific use case. Here are a few options:
A. Use the `toArray()` method on the relationship:
```php
$comments_array = $post->comments()->get(['id', 'title'])->toArray();
```
This returns an array of comment data extracted from the given post and filtered by the specified fields (ID and title). This is a direct way to manipulate Eloquent collections without iterating over them.
B. Specify your own conversion function with `pluck()`:
```php
$comments_array = $post->comments()->get(['id', 'title'])->pluck('title')->toArray();
```
In this example, we use `pluck()` to retrieve the comment titles and convert them to an array. While this approach is direct, it does not provide a complete model data, but you can add more fields if needed.
C. Use the accessor function:
```php
$comments_array = $post->getCommentsAsArray();
```
To implement this method, you have to create an accessor function in your Post model:
```php
public function getCommentsAsArrayAttribute() {
return $this->comments()->get(['id', 'title'])->toArray();
}
```
This method is the most convenient way as it hides all the complexity and provides an array of comment data related to a specific post.
These are some of the ways you can convert model collections into arrays in Laravel. The approach you choose will depend on your specific requirements and needs.
Conclusion:
Transforming a collection of models into arrays is essential for efficient application development. By using built-in Laravel methods or Eloquent relationships, you can achieve this conversion in various ways. The most convenient method would be to use the accessor function to create a custom getter for your Post model that returns a specific array representation of comments associated with it. This allows you to access comment data easily while still maintaining the model's integrity and flexibility.