What is list object in excel vba

Using a VBA ArrayList

An ArrayList is a VBA object that can be used to store values. It is similar to a Collection object, but it has far greater flexibility from a programming point of view. Let’s discuss some difference between ArrayLists and Collections and Arrays.

• The Collection object only has two methods (Add, Remove) and two properties (Count, Item) whereas an Array List has many more.
• The Collection object is read only. Once values have been added, the indexed value cannot be changed, whereas on an Array List, editing is possible.
• The ArrayList object expands and contracts in size according to how many items that it contains.  It does not need to be dimensioned before use like an Array.
• The ArrayList is one dimensional (same as the Collection object) and the default data type is Variant, which means that it will accept any type of data, whether it be numeric, text, or date.

In many ways the Array List addresses a number of shortcomings of the Collection object. It is certainly far more flexible in what it can do.

The Array List object is not part of the standard VBA library. You can use it in your Excel VBA code by using late or early binding.

Sub LateBindingExample()
Dim MyList As Object
Set MyList = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
End Sub

Sub EarlyBindingExample()
Dim MyList As New ArrayList
End Sub

In order to use the early binding example, you must first enter a reference in VBA to the file ‘mscorlib.tlb’

You do this by selecting ‘Tools | References ‘ from the Visual Basic Editor (VBE) window. A pop-up window will appear with all available references. Scroll down to ‘mscorlib.dll’ and tick the box next to it. Click OK and that library is now part of your project:

One of the big drawbacks of an Array List object is that it does not have ‘Intellisense’. Normally, where you are using an object in VBA such as a range, you will see a pop-up list of all the available properties and methods.  You do not get this with an Array List object, and it sometimes needs careful checking to make sure that you have spelt the method or property correctly.

Also, if you press F2 in the VBE window, and search on ‘arraylist’, nothing will be displayed, which is not very helpful to a developer.

Your code will run considerably faster with early binding, because it is all compiled up front. With late binding, the object has to be compiled as the code runs

Distributing Your Excel Application Containing an Array List

As already pointed out, the ArrayList object is not part of Excel VBA. This means that any of your colleagues that you distribute the application to must have access to the file ‘mscorlib.tlb’

This file is normally located in:

C:WindowsMicrosoft.NETFrameworkv4.0.30319

It could be worth writing some code (using the Dir method) to check that this file exists when a user loads the application so that they experience a ‘soft landing’ if not found. If it is not present, and the code runs then errors will occur.

Also, the user must have the correct .Net Framework version installed. Even if the user has a later version, V3.5 must be installed otherwise your application will not work

Scope of an Array List Object

In terms of scope, the Array List object is only available whilst the workbook is open. It does not get saved when the workbook is saved. If the workbook is re-opened then the Array List object needs to be re-created using VBA code.

If you want your Array List to be available to all the code in your code module, then you need to declare the Array List object in the Declare section at the very top of the module window

This will ensure that all your code within that module can access the Array List.  If you want any module within your workbook to access the Array List object, then define it as a global object.

Global MyCollection As New ArrayList

Populating and Reading from Your Array List

The most basic action that you want to take is to create an array list, put some data into it and then prove that the data can be read.  All the code examples in this article assume that you are using early binding, and have added ‘mscorlib.tlb’ to the VBA references, as described above.

Sub ArrayListExample()
'Create new array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList

'Add items to list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"

'Iterate through array list to prove values
For N = 0 To MyList.Count - 1
    MsgBox MyList(N)
Next N

End Sub

This example creates a new ArrayList object, populates it with 3 items, and the iterates through the list displaying each item.

Note that the ArrayList index starts at 0, not 1, so you need to subtract 1 from the Count value

You can also use a ‘For…Each’ loop to read the values:

Sub ArrayListExample()
'Create new array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList

'Add items to list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"

'Iterate through array list to prove values
For Each I In MyList
    MsgBox I
Next I

End Sub

Editing and Changing Items in an Array List

A major advantage of an Array List over a Collection is that the items in the list can be edited and changed within your code. The Collection object is read only whereas the Array List object is read / write.

Sub ArrayListExample()
'Create new array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList

'Add items to list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"

'Change item 1 from ‘Item2’ to ‘Changed’
MyList(1) = "Changed"

'Iterate through array list to prove change worked
For Each I In MyList
    'Display item name
    MsgBox I
Next I

End Sub

In this example, the second item, ‘Item2’ is altered to the value ‘Changed’ (remember that the index starts at 0). When the iteration is run at the end of the code, the new value will be displayed.

Adding an Array of Values to an Array List

You can enter values into your Array List by using an array containing a list of these values or references to cell values on a worksheet

Sub AddArrayExample()
'Create Array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList

'iterate through array values adding them to the array list
For Each v In Array("A1", "A2", "A3")
    'Add each array value to list		
    MyList.Add v
Next

'iterate through array values with worksheet references adding them to the array list
For Each v In Array(Range("A5").Value, Range("A6").Value)
    MyList.Add v
Next

'Iterate through array list to prove values
For N = 0 To MyList.Count – 1
   'Display list item
    MsgBox MyList.Item(N)
Next N

End Sub

Reading / Retrieving a Range of Items from an Array List

By using the GetRange method on an Array List, you can specify a rage of consecutive items to be retrieved. The two parameters required are the starting index position and the number of items to be retrieved. The code populates a second Array List object with the sub set of items which can then be read separately.

Sub ReadRangeExample()
'Define objects
Dim MyList As New ArrayList, MyList1 As Object

'Add items to ‘MyList’ object
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
MyList.Add "Item6"
MyList.Add "Item4"
MyList.Add "Item7"

'Capture 4 items in ‘MyList’ starting at index position 2
Set MyList1 = MyList.GetRange(2, 4)

'Iterate through the object ‘MyList1’ to display the sub set of items
For Each I In MyList1
   'Display item name
    MsgBox I
Next I

End Sub

Searching for Items Within an Array List

You can test whether a named item is in your list by using the ‘Contains’ method. This will return True or False

MsgBox MyList.Contains("Item2")

You can also find the actual index position by using the ‘IndexOf’ method. You need to specify the start index for the search (usually 0).  The return value is the index of the first instance of the found item.  You can then use a loop to change the starting point to the next index value to find further instances if there are several duplicate values.

If the value is not found then a value of -1 is returned

This example demonstrates using ‘Contains’, item not found, and looping through the array list to find the position of all duplicate items:

Sub SearchListExample()
'Define array list and variables
Dim MyList As New ArrayList, Sp As Integer, Pos As Integer

'Add new items including a duplicate
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
MyList.Add "Item1"

'Test for “Item2” being in list - returns True
MsgBox MyList.Contains("Item2")

'Get index of non-existent value – returns -1
MsgBox MyList.IndexOf("Item", 0)

'Set the start position for the search to zero
Sp = 0

'Iterate through list to get all positions of ‘Item1”
Do
     'Get the index position of the next ‘Item1’ based on the position in the variable ‘Sp’
    Pos = MyList.IndexOf("Item1", Sp)
   'If no further instances of ‘Item1’ are found then exit the loop
    If Pos = -1 Then Exit Do
   'Display the next instance found and the index position
    MsgBox MyList(Pos) & " at index " & Pos
   'Add 1 to the last found index value – this now becomes the new start position for the next search
    Sp = Pos + 1
Loop

End Sub

Note that the search text used is case sensitive and wild cards are not accepted.

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Insert and Remove Items

If you do not wish to add your items onto the end of the list, you can insert them at a particular index position so that the new item is in the middle of the list. The index numbers will be automatically adjusted for the subsequent items.

Sub InsertExample()
'Define array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList

'Add items to array list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
MyList.Add "Item1"

'Insert ‘Item6’ at index position 2
MyList.Insert 2, "Item6"

'Iterate through items in the array list to show new order and index position
For N = 0 To MyList.Count - 1
    MsgBox MyList(N) & " Index " & N
Next N

End Sub

In this example, ‘Item6’ is added into the list at index position 2, so the ‘item3’ which was at index position 2 now moves to index position 3.

An individual item can be removed by using the ‘Remove’ method.

MyList.Remove "Item"

Note that there is no error produced if the item name is not found. All the subsequent index numbers will be changed to suit the removal.

If you know the index position of the item you can use the ‘RemoveAt’ method e.g.

MyList.RemoveAt 2

Note that if the index position given is greater than the number of items in the array list, then an error will be returned.

You can remove a range of values from the list by using the ‘RemoveRange’ method.  The parameters are the starting index and then the number of items to remove e.g.

MyList.RemoveRange 3, 2

Note that you will get an error in your code if the number of items offset from the start value is greater than the number of items in the array list.

In both the ‘RemoveAt’ and ‘RemoveRange’ methods, some code would be advisable to check whether the index numbers specified are greater than the total number of items in the array list in order to trap any possible errors.  The ‘Count’ property will give the total number of items in the array list.

Sub RemoveExample()
'Define array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList
'Add items to array list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item4"
MyList.Add "Item5"
'Insert ‘Item6’ at index position 2
MyList.Insert 2, "Item6"
'Remove ‘Item2’
MyList.Remove "Item2"
'Remove ‘Item’ – this does not exist in the array list but does not error
MyList.Remove "Item"
'Remove the item at index position 2
MyList.RemoveAt 2
'Remove 2 consecutive items starting at index position 2
MyList.RemoveRange 3, 2
'Iterate through the array list to show what is left and what index position it is now in
For N = 0 To MyList.Count - 1
    MsgBox MyList(N) & " Index " & N
Next N
End Sub

Note that if you are using the ‘RemoveAt’ to remove an item at a specific position then as soon as that item is removed, all the subsequent index positions are altered. If you have multiple removals using the index position, then a good idea is to start with the highest index number and step backwards down to position zero so that you will always be removing the correct item. In this way you will not have the problem

Sorting an Array List

Another big advantage over a collection is that you can sort the items into ascending or descending order.

The Array List object is the only object in Excel VBA with a sorting method.  The sorting method is very fast and this can be an important consideration for using an Array List.

In the collection object, some ‘out of the box’ thinking was required to sort all the items, but with an array list, it is very simple.

The ‘Sort’ method sorts in ascending order, and the ‘Reverse’ method sorts in descending order.

Sub ArrayListExample()
'Create Array List object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList
'Add items in a non-sorted order
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item3"
MyList.Add "Item2"
'Sort the items into ascending order
MyList.Sort
'Iterate through the items to show ascending order
For Each I In MyList
    'Display item name
    MsgBox I
Next I
'Sort the items into descending order
MyList.Reverse
'Iterate through the items to show descending order
For Each I In MyList
    'Display item name
    MsgBox I
Next I
End Sub

Cloning an Array List

An array list has the facility to create a clone or copy of itself.  This is useful if a user makes changes to the items using a front end and your VBA code, but you need to keep a copy of the items in their original state as a backup.

This could provide the user with an ‘Undo’ feature. They may have made the changes, and wish to revert back to the original list.

Sub CloneExample()
'Define two objects – array list and an object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList, MyList1 As Object
'Populate first object with items
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
'Copy Mylist to MyList1
Set MyList1 = MyList.Clone
'Iterate through MyList1 to prove cloning
For Each I In MyList1
    'Display item name
    MsgBox I
Next I
End Sub

‘MyList1’ now contains all the items from ‘MyList’ in the same order

Copying a List Array into a Conventional VBA Array Object

You can use a simple method to copy the array list into a normal VBA array:

Sub ArrayExample()
'Create array list object and a standard array object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList, NewArray As Variant
'Populate array list with items
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
'Copy the array list to the new array
NewArray = MyList.ToArray
'Iterate through the new array – note that the array list count provides the maximum index
For N = 0 To MyList.Count – 1
    'Display item name
    MsgBox NewArray(N)
Next N
End Sub

Copying a List Array into a Worksheet Range

You can copy your array list to a specific worksheet and cell reference without the need to iterate through the array list. You need only specify the first cell reference

Sub RangeExample()
'Create new array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList
'Add items to list
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
'Clear the target sheet
Sheets("Sheet1").UsedRange.Clear
'Copy items across a row
Sheets("Sheet1").Range("A1").Resize(1, MyList.Count).Value = MyList.toArray
'Copy items down a column
Sheets("Sheet1").Range("A5").Resize(MyList.Count, 1).Value =  _
WorksheetFunction.Transpose(MyList.toArray)
End Sub

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Empty All Items from an Array List

There is a simple function (Clear) to clear the array list completely

Sub ClearListExample()
'Create array list object
Dim MyList As New ArrayList
'Add new items
MyList.Add "Item1"
MyList.Add "Item2"
MyList.Add "Item3"
'Show count of items
MsgBox MyList.Count
'Clear all items
MyList.Clear
'Show count of items to prove that clear has worked
MsgBox MyList.Count
End Sub

This example creates items in an array list and then clears the array list.  Message boxes prove before and after the number of items in the array list.

Array List Methods Summary for Excel VBA

The ListObjects property of the Worksheet object returns the ListObjects collection. The ListObjects collection contains all the list objects on a worksheet. The ListObject object is a member of the ListObjects collection. Each ListObject object represents a table (previously known as a list) in the worksheet.

An Excel table typically contains related data in a series of worksheet rows and columns that have been formatted as a table. By using the table features, you can then manage the data in the table rows and columns independently from the data in other rows and columns on the worksheet.

Here is how a table (list) looks like. It can be identified by a small blue arrow at the right-most bottom-most cell of the table.

Whenever you import data from a file (Excel / Text / XML / JSON) or from a database (SQL / Access), the imported data is always in the form of a table.

You can also convert the selected range in Excel to a table by using the Format as Table option. For that simply select your data range, in the home tab, go to “Format as Table” and select the desired formatting. You will asked to confirm the selected data range and whether your table has headers. Input the data and click on OK and a table will be created.

To convert a table back to normal range, use the convert to range option. For that, click anywhere on the table, the design tab will be visible. In the design tab, click on convert to range.

Now, that we know what is a table let us look at how to use VBA to modify these tables.

Example 1: Loop through all the tables (lists) in a worksheet

The code below creates a new ListObjects collection which represents all the tables in a worksheet and displays the name of each of the table in the collection. The code along with the comments is self-explanatory.

Sub excelLists()
    Dim dataSheet As Worksheet
    Dim tableList As ListObjects
    Dim table As ListObject

    Set dataSheet = Sheet1

    'create a new ListObjects collection which represents all the tables in Sheet1
    Set tableList = dataSheet.ListObjects

    'Loop through each table in the tableList ListObjects collection
    For Each table In tableList

        'Display the table name
        MsgBox table.Name

    Next table

End Sub

The name of the table can be seen in the design tab. Select any cell in the table and the design tab will be shown. The name of the selected table is seen in the left side of the tab. You can edit it from here. You can also see a list of all the tables in the workbook along with their names and ranges in the Name Manager (in the Formulas tab).
Example 2: Column operations on a table
In this example we will see few of the most common operations that you can perform on the table columns. Namely, looping through all the columns of a table and printing their names, inserting columns at the end or at a specified position, deleting a particular column and copying only the data from a particular column.
Sub ListCols()
    Dim dataSheet As Worksheet
    Dim table As ListObject
    Dim tblCols As ListColumns
    Dim tblCol As ListColumn
    Dim newCol As ListColumn

    Set dataSheet = Sheet1

    'Refer a table by it's name
    Set table = dataSheet.ListObjects("Table2")

    'Get all the columns of a table
    Set tblCols = table.ListColumns

    'Loop through all the columns of a table
    For Each tblCol In tblCols
        MsgBox tblCol.Name
    Next tblCol

    'Insert a column at the last position
    Set newCol = tblCols.Add
    newCol.Name = "Last"

    'Insert a column at the third position (after title)
    Set newCol = tblCols.Add(3)
    newCol.Name = "Third"

    'Delete the fifth column (i.e. DOB)
    table.ListColumns(5).Delete

    'Copy only the data in column 1 (excluding the header)
    'We are pasting it in the "Last" column for demo
    table.ListColumns(1).DataBodyRange.Copy (Cells(3, 9))

End Sub

Here is how the above table will look after executing the code

Example 3:  Row operations
In this example let us have a look at some of the row operations in a table. As with columns, you can loop through all the rows, add and delete rows, work with totals row and header row.
Sub excelLists()
    Dim dataSheet As Worksheet
    Dim table As ListObject
    Dim tblRows As ListRows
    Dim tblRow As ListRow
    Dim newRow As ListRow

    Set dataSheet = Sheet2
    Set table = dataSheet.ListObjects("Table5")

    'Get all the Rows of a table
    Set tblRows = table.ListRows

    'Loop through all the Rows of a table
    For Each tblRow In tblRows
        'Display the value in each row for column 1
        'The row index will always start at 1, irrespective of its
        'position on the worksheet
        MsgBox table.DataBodyRange(tblRow.Index, 1)
    Next tblRow

    'Insert a Row at the last position
    tblRows.Add

    'Insert a Row at the third position (excluding header row)
    Set newRow = tblRows.Add(3)

    'Delete the fifth Row (i.e. with ID 5148)
    table.ListRows(5).Delete

    'Display the totals row at the bottom
    table.ShowTotals = True

    'Change color of only the header row
    table.HeaderRowRange.Interior.Color = vbBlue

End Sub

This is how the original table will look like after executing the code

Did you know you can convert this table into text using VBA? Read here to find out more.
See Also:
Excel VBA, Find and List All Files in a Directory and its Subdirectories
Guide to Dictionary Objects

The VBA ArrayList is a much better alternative to the built-in VBA Collection. It contains much richer functionality such as sorting, converting to an array, removing all items etc.

Check out the quick guide for an overview of what the ArrayList does. The rest of this post provides examples of how to use the ArrayList.

Quick Guide to the VBA ArrayList

Description

The ArrayList is similar to the VBA built-in Collection. It is not part of VBA, but it is in an external library which we can access easily. The ArrayList is the same one that is used in the language C#. As you would expect, the ArrayList has a built-in sort, array conversion and other functionality that you would expect in a modern programming language. For the purpose of this article, I will refer to it as the VBA ArrayList.

Download the Source Code

Declare and Create the VBA ArrayList

Like all external libraries we can create the ArrayList using early and late binding.

Late Binding

We use CreateObject to create the ArrayList using late binding:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub UsingArrayList()

    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")

End Sub

Early Binding

Update 12-Nov-2019: Intellisense doesn’t currently work for the ArrayList.
Early binding allows use to use the Intellisense to see what is available to use. We must first add the type library as a reference and then select it from the reference list. We can use the following steps to do this:

1. Select Tools and then References from the menu.
2. Click on the Browse.
3. Find the file mscorlib.tlb and click Open. It should be in a folder like this C:WindowsMicrosoft.NETFrameworkv4.0.30319.
4. Scroll down the list and check mscorlib.dll.
5. Click Ok.

 
You can now use the following code to declare the ArrayList using early binding:

Dim coll As New ArrayList

VBA ArrayList Automation Error

You may encounter the VB Run-time Error ‘-2146232576 Automation Error’ when trying to get the ArrayList to work. Or sometimes your code has been working for a long time and then suddenly this error appears.

This is caused by not having the correct .Net Framework version installed. The correct version is 3.5. It doesn’t matter if you have a later version like 4.7, you must have 3.5 installed.

Adding Items to the VBA ArrayList

Adding items to the ArrayList is very similar to how we add them to the Collection. We use the Add method:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub AddingToList()

    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    coll.Add "Apple" 
    coll.Add "Watermelon"
    coll.Add "Pear"
    coll.Add "Banana"
    
    ' Insert to first position
    coll.Insert 0, "Plum"

End Sub

Reading through an ArrayList

We read through the ArrayList similar to the VBA Collection except that we read from zero to Count-1 rather than from one to Count.

Note: We will use this PrintToImmediateWindow sub in the follow examples to show the contents of the array after the various operations.

' Print all items to the Immediate Window(Ctrl + G)
' Items must be basic data type e.g. Long, String, Double
' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub PrintToImmediateWindow(coll As Object)

    Dim i As Long
    For i = 0 To coll.Count - 1
        Debug.Print coll(i)
    Next i
    
End Sub

 
We can use the For Each loop with the VBA ArrayList just like we use it with a Collection:

' Print all items to the Immediate Window(Ctrl + G)
' Items much be basic data type e.g. Long, String, Double
' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub PrintToImmediateWindowEach(coll As Object)

    Dim item As Variant
    For Each item In coll
        Debug.Print item
    Next item
    
End Sub

You can download all the code examples at the top of this post.

Sorting

Sort will sort the VBA ArrayList in ascending order.

To sort in descending order simply use Reverse after Sort.

The following code shows an example of sorting in both ascending and descending order:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub Sorting()

    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    coll.Add "Apple"
    coll.Add "Watermelon"
    coll.Add "Pear"
    coll.Add "Banana"
    coll.Add "Plum"
    
    ' Sort
    coll.Sort
    
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "Sorted Ascending"
    ' Add this sub from "Reading through the items" section
    PrintToImmediateWindow coll
    
    ' Reverse sort
    coll.Reverse
    
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "Sorted Descending"
    PrintToImmediateWindow coll
    
End Sub

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub PrintToImmediateWindow(coll As Object)

    Dim i As Long
    For i = 0 To coll.Count - 1
        Debug.Print coll(i)
    Next i
    
End Sub

Cloning the VBA ArrayList

We can create a copy of the ArrayList by using the Clone method. This creates a brand new copy of the ArrayList.

It’s not the same as assigning the variable which means both variables point to the same ArrayList e.g.

' Both variables point to the same ArrayList
Set coll2 = coll

We use Clone like this:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub Cloning()

    ' Create the ArrayList
    Dim coll1 As Object
    Set coll1 = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    coll1.Add "Apple"
    coll1.Add "Watermelon"
    coll1.Add "Pear"
    coll1.Add "Banana"
    coll1.Add "Plum"
    
    ' Creates a copy of the original ArrayList
    Dim coll2 As Object
    Set coll2 = coll1.Clone
    
    ' Remove all items from coll1
    coll1.Clear
    
    ' Add PrintToImmediateWindow sub from "Reading through the items" section
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "coll1 Contents are:"
    PrintToImmediateWindow coll1
    
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "coll2 Contents are:"
    PrintToImmediateWindow coll2

End Sub

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub PrintToImmediateWindow(coll As Object)

    Dim i As Long
    For i = 0 To coll.Count - 1
        Debug.Print coll(i)
    Next i
    
End Sub

Copying from an VBA ArrayList to an Array

We can copy from the ArrayList to an array in one line using the ToArray method:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub CopyToArray()

    ' Declare and Create ArrayList
    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    coll.Add "Apple"
    coll.Add "Watermelon"
    coll.Add "Pear"
    coll.Add "Banana"
    coll.Add "Plum"
    
    ' Copy to array
    Dim arr As Variant
    arr = coll.ToArray
    
    ' Print the array
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "Printing the array contents:"
    PrintArrayToImmediate arr
    
End Sub

' Prints the contents of a one dimensional array
' to the Immediate Window(Ctrl + G)
' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub PrintArrayToImmediate(arr As Variant)
    
    Dim i As Long
    For i = LBound(arr) To UBound(arr)
        Debug.Print arr(i)
    Next i
       
End Sub

 
You can download all the code examples at the top of this post.
 

Writing Directly to a Range

One of the biggest advantages of the ArrayList is that we can write the contents directly to a range.

The code below writes the contents to both a row and a column:

'  Writes the contents of an ArrayList to a worksheet range
' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub ClearArrayList()

    ' Declare and Create ArrayList
    Dim fruit As Object
    Set fruit = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    fruit.Add "Apple"
    fruit.Add "Watermelon"
    fruit.Add "Pear"
    fruit.Add "Banana"
    fruit.Add "Plum"
    fruit.Add "Peach"
    
       
    ' ' Clean existing data
    Sheet1.Cells.ClearContents
    
    ' Write to a row
    Sheet1.Range("C1").Resize(1, fruit.Count).Value = fruit.toArray
    
    ' Write to a column
    Sheet1.Range("A1").Resize(fruit.Count, 1).Value = WorksheetFunction.Transpose(fruit.toArray)
    
End Sub

Array to a VBA ArrayList(1D)

As we have seen, there is an in-built function ToArray which will copy from an ArrayList to an Array.

If we want to copy from an Array to an ArrayList we need to create our own function which I have done below. Because we read through the items one at a time, it may be a bit slow if we have a lot of data:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Function ArrayToArrayList(arr As Variant) As Object

    ' Check that array is One Dimensional
    On Error Resume Next
    Dim ret As Long
    ret = -1
    ret = UBound(arr, 2)
    On Error Goto 0
    If ret <> -1 Then
        Err.Raise vbObjectError + 513, "ArrayToArrayList" _
                , "The array can only have one 1 dimension"
    End If

    ' Create the ArrayList
    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items to the ArrayList
    Dim i As Long
    For i = LBound(arr, 1) To UBound(arr, 1)
        coll.Add arr(i)
    Next i
    
    ' Return the new ArrayList
    Set ArrayToArrayList = coll
    
End Function

 
You can use it like this:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub ReadFromArray1D()
    
    Dim arr(1 To 3) As Variant
    
    arr(1) = "PeterJ"
    arr(2) = "Jack"
    arr(3) = "Jill"
    
    ' Create the ArrayList
    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = ArrayToArrayList(arr)

    PrintToImmediateWindow coll
    
End Sub

Remove All Items from the ArrayList

We can remove all the items from an ArrayList by using the Clear function:

' https://excelmacromastery.com/
Sub ClearArrayList()

    ' Declare and Create ArrayList
    Dim coll As Object
    Set coll = CreateObject("System.Collections.ArrayList")
    
    ' Add items
    coll.Add "Apple"
    coll.Add "Watermelon"
    coll.Add "Pear"
    coll.Add "Banana"
    coll.Add "Plum"
    
    Debug.Print vbCrLf & "The number of items is: " & coll.Count
    
    ' Remove all item
    coll.Clear
    
    Debug.Print "The number of items is: " & coll.Count
    
End Sub

 
You can download all the code examples at the top of this post.
 

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