In this article I will explain with an example, how to use the Container.DataItemIndex property in ASP.Net GridView using C# and VB.Net.
The Container.DataItemIndex is the index of the data item bound to the GridView and it can be used to determine the Row Index of the GridView Row.
 
 
Database
I have made use of the following table Customers with the schema as follows.
Add (Show) Serial Number in First Column of GridView in ASP.Net using C# and VB.Net
 
I have already inserted few records in the table.
Add (Show) Serial Number in First Column of GridView in ASP.Net using C# and VB.Net
 
Note: You can download the database table SQL by clicking the download link below.
          Download SQL file
 
 
HTML Markup
The below HTML Markup consists of a GridView control where the first column consists of a Label control whose Text property is bound to Container.DataItemIndex property.
The DataItemIndex property is a zero based index and hence we need to increment it by one so that we get values starting from one.
<asp:GridView ID="GridView1" runat="server" AutoGenerateColumns="false">
<Columns>
    <asp:TemplateField HeaderText = "Row Number" ItemStyle-Width="100">
        <ItemTemplate>
            <asp:Label ID="lblRowNumber" Text='<%# Container.DataItemIndex + 1 %>' runat="server" />
        </ItemTemplate>
    </asp:TemplateField>
    <asp:BoundField DataField="Name" HeaderText="Name" ItemStyle-Width="150" />
    <asp:BoundField DataField="Country" HeaderText="Country" ItemStyle-Width="150" />
</Columns>
</asp:GridView>
 
 
Namespaces
You will need to import the following namespaces.
C#
using System.Data;
using System.Data.SqlClient;
using System.Configuration;
 
VB.Net
Imports System.Data
Imports System.Data.SqlClient
Imports System.Configuration
 
 
Populating the GridView control
The GridView is populated using the records from the Customers table inside the Page Load event of the ASP.Net page.
C#
protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    if (!this.IsPostBack)
    {
        this.BindGrid();
    }
}
 
private void BindGrid()
{
    string constr = ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings["constr"].ConnectionString;
    using (SqlConnection con = new SqlConnection(constr))
    {
        using (SqlCommand cmd = new SqlCommand("SELECT Name, Country FROM Customers"))
        {
            using (SqlDataAdapter sda = new SqlDataAdapter())
            {
                cmd.Connection = con;
                sda.SelectCommand = cmd;
                using (DataTable dt = new DataTable())
                {
                    sda.Fill(dt);
                    GridView1.DataSource = dt;
                    GridView1.DataBind();
                }
            }
        }
    }
}
 
VB.Net
Protected Sub Page_Load(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Me.Load
    If Not Me.IsPostBack Then
        Me.BindGrid()
    End If
End Sub
 
Private Sub BindGrid()
    Dim constr As String = ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings("constr").ConnectionString
    Using con As New SqlConnection(constr)
        Using cmd As New SqlCommand("SELECT Name, Country FROM Customers")
            Using sda As New SqlDataAdapter()
                cmd.Connection = con
                sda.SelectCommand = cmd
                Using dt As New DataTable()
                    sda.Fill(dt)
                    GridView1.DataSource = dt
                    GridView1.DataBind()
                End Using
            End Using
        End Using
    End Using
End Sub
 
Using Container.DataItemIndex property in ASP.Net GridView 
 
 
Demo
View Demo
 
 
Downloads
Download Code