$

The $ positional operator identifies an element in an array to update without explicitly specifying the position of the element in the array.

$

The $ positional operator identifies an element in an array to update without explicitly specifying the position of the element in the array. The $ operator acts as a placeholder for the first element that matches the query condition, and the array field must appear as part of the query document.

Syntax

db.collection.updateOne(
  { <array>: <value> },
  { <update operator>: { "<array>.$": <value> } }
)

Parameters

Parameter	Description
`array`	The array field that contains the element to update. Must be part of the query condition.
`value`	The value used to match the array element in the query condition.
`update operator`	The update operator to apply (for example, `$set`, `$inc`, `$unset`).

Examples

Consider this sample document from the stores collection.

{
    "_id": "0fcc0bf0-ed18-4ab8-b558-9848e18058f4",
    "name": "First Up Consultants | Beverage Shop - Satterfieldmouth",
    "location": {
        "lat": -89.2384,
        "lon": -46.4012
    },
    "staff": {
        "totalStaff": {
            "fullTime": 8,
            "partTime": 20
        }
    },
    "sales": {
        "totalSales": 75670,
        "salesByCategory": [
            {
                "categoryName": "Wine Accessories",
                "totalSales": 34440
            },
            {
                "categoryName": "Bitters",
                "totalSales": 39496
            },
            {
                "categoryName": "Rum",
                "totalSales": 1734
            }
        ]
    },
    "promotionEvents": [
        {
            "eventName": "Unbeatable Bargain Bash",
            "promotionalDates": {
                "startDate": {
                    "Year": 2024,
                    "Month": 6,
                    "Day": 23
                },
                "endDate": {
                    "Year": 2024,
                    "Month": 7,
                    "Day": 2
                }
            },
            "discounts": [
                {
                    "categoryName": "Whiskey",
                    "discountPercentage": 7
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Bitters",
                    "discountPercentage": 15
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Brandy",
                    "discountPercentage": 8
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Sports Drinks",
                    "discountPercentage": 22
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Vodka",
                    "discountPercentage": 19
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "eventName": "Steal of a Deal Days",
            "promotionalDates": {
                "startDate": {
                    "Year": 2024,
                    "Month": 9,
                    "Day": 21
                },
                "endDate": {
                    "Year": 2024,
                    "Month": 9,
                    "Day": 29
                }
            },
            "discounts": [
                {
                    "categoryName": "Organic Wine",
                    "discountPercentage": 19
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "White Wine",
                    "discountPercentage": 20
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Sparkling Wine",
                    "discountPercentage": 19
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Whiskey",
                    "discountPercentage": 17
                },
                {
                    "categoryName": "Vodka",
                    "discountPercentage": 23
                }
            ]
        }
    ]
}

Example 1: Project the first element of an array, matching the condition

This query returns the first element within the salesByCategory array, for DJ equipment with totalSales greater than 35000.

db.stores.find({
    "sales.salesByCategory": {
        $elemMatch: {
            categoryName: {
                $regex: "^DJ"
            }
        }
    },
    "sales.salesByCategory.totalSales": {
        $gt: 35000
    }
}, {
    "sales.salesByCategory.$": 1
}).limit(2)

The first two results returned by this query are:

[
  {
    "_id": "d3c9df51-41bd-4b4e-a26b-b038d9cf8b45",
    "sales": {
      "salesByCategory": [
        {
          "categoryName": "DJ Speakers",
          "totalSales": 36972
        }
      ]
    }
  },
  {
    "_id": "7954bd5c-9ac2-4c10-bb7a-2b79bd0963c5",
    "sales": {
      "salesByCategory": [
        {
          "categoryName": "DJ Headphones",
          "totalSales": 35911
        }
      ]
    }
  }
]

Example 2: Update discount percentage for a specific category

This query updates the discount percentage for "Desks" category in the first matching promotion event.

db.stores.updateOne(
  { 
    _id: "905d1939-e03a-413e-a9c4-221f74055aac",
    "promotionEvents.discounts.categoryName": "Desks"
  },
  {
    $set: { "promotionEvents.$.discounts.$[elem].discountPercentage": 25 }
  },
  {
    arrayFilters: [{ "elem.categoryName": "Desks" }]
  }
)

Example 3: Update sales category total

This query updates the total sales for a specific category using the $ (positional operator).

db.stores.updateOne(
  { 
    _id: "905d1939-e03a-413e-a9c4-221f74055aac",
    "sales.salesByCategory.categoryName": "Desk Lamps"
  },
  {
    $inc: { "sales.salesByCategory.$.totalSales": 1000 }
  }
)

$