Title: Categories array
Last modified: August 19, 2016

---

# Categories array

 *  [frivolio](https://wordpress.org/support/users/frivolio/)
 * (@frivolio)
 * [15 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/categories-array/)
 * I have the following code which test categories and display if they have posts
   with some metadata set or not.
 *     ```
       <?php
       $category_counter = count(get_the_category());
       $counter = 0;
          foreach((get_the_category()) as $cat)
          {
             $counter++;
             $category_variable = $cat->cat_ID;
             $query_paying_companies = 'cat=' . $category_variable. '&meta_key=field-company-type&meta_value=j';
             query_posts($query_paying_companies); ?>
             <?php if ( have_posts() ) :?>
                   <p><?php echo $category_variable;?> - This category is good!</p>
             <?php else: ?>
                   <p><?php echo $category_variable;?> - This category is NOT good!</p>
             <?php endif; ?>
       <?php wp_reset_query();
         }
       ?>
       ```
   
 * Code works well. What I want – and I do not succeed to complete – is to create
   and array of “GOOD categories” – only the categories with posts which have this
   metadata set and then random choose one.

Viewing 2 replies - 1 through 2 (of 2 total)

 *  [Michael](https://wordpress.org/support/users/alchymyth/)
 * (@alchymyth)
 * [15 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/categories-array/#post-1782355)
 *     ```
       <?php
       $good_categories = array(); //NEW CODE
       $category_counter = count(get_the_category());
       $counter = 0;
          foreach((get_the_category()) as $cat)
          {
             $counter++;
             $category_variable = $cat->cat_ID;
             $query_paying_companies = 'cat=' . $category_variable. '&meta_key=field-company-type&meta_value=j';
             query_posts($query_paying_companies); ?>
             <?php if ( have_posts() ) :?>
                   <p><?php echo $category_variable;?> - This category is good!</p>
       <?php $good_categories[] = $category_variable; //NEW CODE ?>
             <?php else: ?>
                   <p><?php echo $category_variable;?> - This category is NOT good!</p>
             <?php endif; ?>
       <?php wp_reset_query();
         }
       ?>
       ```
   
 * to check your results, you could add this after the code:
    `<?php var_dump($good_categories);?
   >`
 *  Thread Starter [frivolio](https://wordpress.org/support/users/frivolio/)
 * (@frivolio)
 * [15 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/categories-array/#post-1782401)
 * Thanks a lot alchymyth! I managed myself to make something similar. Works like
   a charm! Thank you!

Viewing 2 replies - 1 through 2 (of 2 total)

The topic ‘Categories array’ is closed to new replies.

## Tags

 * [array](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/array/)
 * [categories](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/categories/)
 * [category](https://wordpress.org/support/topic-tag/category/)

 * In: [Hacks](https://wordpress.org/support/forum/plugins-and-hacks/hacks/)
 * 2 replies
 * 2 participants
 * Last reply from: [frivolio](https://wordpress.org/support/users/frivolio/)
 * Last activity: [15 years, 4 months ago](https://wordpress.org/support/topic/categories-array/#post-1782401)
 * Status: not resolved

## Topics

### Topics with no replies

### Non-support topics

### Resolved topics

### Unresolved topics

### All topics