---
acl_categories:
- '@write'
- '@list'
- '@slow'
arguments:
- display_text: source
  key_spec_index: 0
  name: source
  type: key
- display_text: destination
  key_spec_index: 1
  name: destination
  type: key
- arguments:
  - display_text: left
    name: left
    token: LEFT
    type: pure-token
  - display_text: right
    name: right
    token: RIGHT
    type: pure-token
  name: wherefrom
  type: oneof
- arguments:
  - display_text: left
    name: left
    token: LEFT
    type: pure-token
  - display_text: right
    name: right
    token: RIGHT
    type: pure-token
  name: whereto
  type: oneof
arity: 5
categories:
- docs
- develop
- stack
- oss
- rs
- rc
- oss
- kubernetes
- clients
command_flags:
- write
- denyoom
complexity: O(1)
description: Returns an element after popping it from one list and pushing it to another.
  Deletes the list if the last element was moved.
group: list
hidden: false
key_specs:
- RW: true
  access: true
  begin_search:
    spec:
      index: 1
    type: index
  delete: true
  find_keys:
    spec:
      keystep: 1
      lastkey: 0
      limit: 0
    type: range
- RW: true
  begin_search:
    spec:
      index: 2
    type: index
  find_keys:
    spec:
      keystep: 1
      lastkey: 0
      limit: 0
    type: range
  insert: true
linkTitle: LMOVE
railroad_diagram: /images/railroad/lmove.svg
since: 6.2.0
summary: Returns an element after popping it from one list and pushing it to another.
  Deletes the list if the last element was moved.
syntax_fmt: LMOVE source destination <LEFT | RIGHT> <LEFT | RIGHT>
title: LMOVE
---
> [!NOTE]
> This command's behavior varies in clustered Redis environments. See the [multi-key operations](/content/develop/using-commands/multi-key-operations.md) page for more information.


Atomically returns and removes the first/last element (head/tail depending on
the `wherefrom` argument) of the list stored at `source`, and pushes the
element at the first/last element (head/tail depending on the `whereto`
argument) of the list stored at `destination`.

For example: consider `source` holding the list `a,b,c`, and `destination`
holding the list `x,y,z`.
Executing `LMOVE source destination RIGHT LEFT` results in `source` holding
`a,b` and `destination` holding `c,x,y,z`.

If `source` does not exist, the value `nil` is returned and no operation is
performed.
If `source` and `destination` are the same, the operation is equivalent to
removing the first/last element from the list and pushing it as first/last
element of the list, so it can be considered as a list rotation command (or a
no-op if `wherefrom` is the same as `whereto`).

This command comes in place of the now deprecated [`RPOPLPUSH`](/content/commands/rpoplpush.md). Doing
`LMOVE RIGHT LEFT` is equivalent.

## Required arguments

<details open><summary><code>source</code></summary>

The key of the source list.

</details>

<details open><summary><code>destination</code></summary>

The key of the destination list.

</details>

<details open><summary><code>LEFT | RIGHT</code></summary>

The end of `source` to pop the element from: `LEFT` (head) or `RIGHT` (tail).

</details>

<details open><summary><code>LEFT | RIGHT</code></summary>

The end of `destination` to push the element to: `LEFT` (head) or `RIGHT` (tail).

</details>

## Examples

{{% redis-cli %}}
redis> RPUSH mylist "one"
(integer) 1
redis> RPUSH mylist "two"
(integer) 2
redis> RPUSH mylist "three"
(integer) 3
redis> LMOVE mylist myotherlist RIGHT LEFT
"three"
redis> LMOVE mylist myotherlist LEFT RIGHT
"one"
redis> LRANGE mylist 0 -1
1) "two"
redis> LRANGE myotherlist 0 -1
1) "three"
2) "one"
{{% /redis-cli %}}

## Details

### Pattern: reliable queue

Redis is often used as a messaging server to implement processing of background
jobs or other kinds of messaging tasks.
A simple form of queue is often obtained pushing values into a list in the
producer side, and waiting for this values in the consumer side using [`RPOP`](/content/commands/rpop.md)
(using polling), or [`BRPOP`](/content/commands/brpop.md) if the client is better served by a blocking
operation.

However in this context the obtained queue is not _reliable_ as messages can
be lost, for example in the case there is a network problem or if the consumer
crashes just after the message is received but it is still to process.

`LMOVE` (or [`BLMOVE`](/content/commands/blmove.md) for the blocking variant) offers a way to avoid
this problem: the consumer fetches the message and at the same time pushes it
into a _processing_ list.
It will use the [`LREM`](/content/commands/lrem.md) command in order to remove the message from the
_processing_ list once the message has been processed.

An additional client may monitor the _processing_ list for items that remain
there for too much time, and will push those timed out items into the queue
again if needed.

### Pattern: circular list

Using `LMOVE` with the same source and destination key, a client can visit
all the elements of an N-elements list, one after the other, in O(N) without
transferring the full list from the server to the client using a single [`LRANGE`](/content/commands/lrange.md)
operation.

The above pattern works even in the following conditions:

* There are multiple clients rotating the list: they'll fetch different
  elements, until all the elements of the list are visited, and the process
  restarts.
* Even if other clients are actively pushing new items at the end of the list.

The above makes it very simple to implement a system where a set of items must
be processed by N workers continuously as fast as possible.
An example is a monitoring system that must check that a set of web sites are
reachable, with the smallest delay possible, using a number of parallel workers.

Note that this implementation of workers is trivially scalable and reliable,
because even if a message is lost the item is still in the queue and will be
processed at the next iteration.

## Redis Software and Redis Cloud compatibility

| Redis<br />Software | Redis<br />Cloud | <span style="min-width: 9em; display: table-cell">Notes</span> |
|:----------------------|:-----------------|:------|
| <span title="Supported">&#x2705; Standard</span><br /><span title="Supported"><nobr>&#x2705; Active-Active</nobr></span> | <span title="Supported">&#x2705; Standard</span><br /><span title="Supported"><nobr>&#x2705; Active-Active</nobr></span> |  |

## Return information

{{< multitabs id="lmove-return-info" 
    tab1="RESP2" 
    tab2="RESP3" >}}

[Bulk string reply](../../develop/reference/protocol-spec#bulk-strings): the element being popped and pushed.

-tab-sep-

[Bulk string reply](../../develop/reference/protocol-spec#bulk-strings): the element being popped and pushed.

{{< /multitabs >}}