--- title: How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the... description: Java arrays are objects, so calling `.equals()` on them compares references, not content. To compare array contents, use `Arrays.equals()`, which checks that... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips | daily.dev og:description: Java arrays are objects, so calling `.equals()` on them compares references, not content. To compare array contents, use `Arrays.equals()`, which checks that... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/sBOpN9kHw.png og:image:alt: How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips **[Java \(Official Oracle\)](https://daily.dev/sources/java-oracle)** · 1 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Java arrays are objects, so calling `.equals()` on them compares references, not content. To compare array contents, use `Arrays.equals()`, which checks that elements are equal and in the same order. For multi-dimensional arrays containing sub-arrays, use `Arrays.deepEquals()` instead. Both methods support null values, treating two nulls as equal, though putting nulls in arrays is discouraged. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Most JavaScript Developers Get == Wrong in Interviews \(Not Because It's Hard\)](https://daily.dev/posts/most-javascript-developers-get-wrong-in-interviews-not-because-it-s-hard--i6iheuzwh) · Medium · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#java](https://daily.dev/tags/java) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw"},"datePublished":"2026-07-29T10:14:56.108Z","dateModified":"2026-07-29T10:15:09.391Z","description":"Java arrays are objects, so calling `.equals()` on them compares references, not content. To compare array contents, use `Arrays.equals()`, which checks that...","image":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4f2MDQg15J8/sddefault.jpg","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4f2MDQg15J8/sddefault.jpg","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Java (Official Oracle)","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Java (Official Oracle)","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--SM9hIYUY--/f_auto,q_auto/v1773648791/logos/java-oracle?_a=BAMAMiiu0","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/java-oracle"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-can-you-compare-arrays-for-equality-cracking-the-java-coding-interview-javacoding-javatips-sbopn9khw","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"java","timeRequired":"PT1M","video":{"@type":"VideoObject","name":"How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips","description":"Java arrays are objects, so calling `.equals()` on them compares references, not content. To compare array contents, use `Arrays.equals()`, which checks that...","thumbnailUrl":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4f2MDQg15J8/sddefault.jpg","uploadDate":"2026-07-29T10:14:56.108Z","duration":"PT1M","url":"https://api.daily.dev/r/sBOpN9kHw","embedUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/embed/4f2MDQg15J8"}} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Java (Official Oracle)","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/java-oracle"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"How can you compare arrays for equality? Cracking the Java Coding Interview #javacoding #javatips"}]} ```