Java - iterate over array of strings

In this article, we would like to show you how to iterate over array of strings in Java.

Quick solution:

String[] letters = {"A", "B", "C"};

for (String letter : letters) {
    System.out.println(letter);
}

1. Practical example using enhanced for loop

In this example, we use enhanced for loop to iterate over the letters array and print each element.

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        String[] letters = {"A", "B", "C"};

        for (String letter : letters) {
            System.out.println(letter);
        }
    }
}

Output:

A
B
C

2. Practical example using for loop

In this example, we use simple for loop to iterate over the letters array. This solution is equivalent to the above one, however we recommend to use enhanced for loop for its simplicity.

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        String[] letters = {"A", "B", "C"};

        for (int i = 0; i < letters.length; i++) {
            System.out.println(letters[i]);
        }
    }
}

Output:

A
B
C

3. Java 8 and streams

import java.util.Arrays;

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        String[] letters = {"A", "B", "C"};

        // forEach + lambda
        Arrays.stream(letters).forEach(s -> System.out.println(s));

        // forEach + method reference
        Arrays.stream(letters).forEach(System.out::println);
    }
}

See also

1. Java - for-each, for and forEach performance test