Java - remove items from HashSet

In this article, we would like to show you how to remove items from the HashSet in Java.

Quick solution:

myHashSet.remove(item);

1. Remove selected items

In this example, we use remove() method to delete selected item from the letters HashSet.

import java.util.*;

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Set<String> letters = new HashSet<>();

        letters.add("A");
        letters.add("B");
        letters.add("C");

        System.out.println("Before: " + letters);  // [A, B, C]

        letters.remove("C");                       // removes item

        System.out.println("After:  " + letters);  // [A, B]
    }
}

Output:

Before: [A, B, C]
After:  [A, B]

2. Remove all items

In this example, we use clear() method to remove all items from the letters HashSet.

package hashsetOperations;

import java.util.*;

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Set<String> letters = new HashSet<>();

        letters.add("A");
        letters.add("B");
        letters.add("C");

        System.out.println("Before: " + letters);  // [A, B, C]

        letters.clear();                           // removes all items

        System.out.println("After:  " + letters);  // []
    }
}

Output:

Before: [A, B, C]
After:  []