Difference Between Comparing String Using == and String.equals() Method in Java

8 Oct 2025 | 4 min read

In Java, a strixng is an object, and comparing objects requires considering whether you want to compare their references (memory addresses) or their values they have.

Java provides the following two ways to compare strings:

Using Equals Operator (=)
Using String.equals() Method

Using Equals Operator (==)

The equals operator (==) compares the references (memory addresses) of the string objects rather than their contents. It determines whether two string objects refer to the same memory location. It returns true if the references are identical, meaning they point to the same memory address, and false if they do not. It is primarily used to compare primitive types and object references.

Example: Equals Operator (==)

Example

Compile and Run

Output:

true
false

Using String.equals() Method

The String.equals() method overrides the equals() method of the Object class. It compares the content (values) of two objects. The method returns true if and only if the argument is not null and is a String object that represents the same sequence of characters as this object.

Example: String.equals() Method

Example

Compile and Run

Output:

true
true
false
false

Equals Operator (==) Vs. String.equals() Method

Comparison Aspect	== Operator	.equals() Method
Comparison Basis	Checks if the memory addresses of the objects are equal.	Compares the content (values) of the objects.
Usage	Applicable to all data types.	Specifically designed for comparing objects, including strings.
Comparison Result	Returns true if the objects have the same address.	Returns true if the objects have the same content.
String Content Comparison	Not suitable for comparing string content.	Suitable for comparing string content.
Object Content Comparison	Compares the object references, not their content.	Compares the content of the objects, considering their internal state.
Called as	== is considered an operator in Java.	Equals() is considered a method in Java.
Primitive Comparison	Relevant and directly compares values.	Primitive people are not directly impacted. To be used, primitives need to be wrapped into objects (such as characters or integers) in order to use String.equals().
Overridable	No, because == is an operator, its behaviour is unchangeable.	Yes, classes are able to create their equality criteria by overriding the String.equals() method.
Complexity Analysis	The time required for comparison is O(1).	For regular objects, the time required is O(1), while for String objects, it is O(n).
Example	str1 == str2;	str1.equals(str2);

Important Points to Remember

The distinction between the String.equals() method and the == operator lies in their nature: one is a method while the other is an operator.
We generally use the == operator for reference comparison, whereas the String.equals() method is for content comparison.
A class will automatically utilize the String.equals(Object o) method of the closest parent class that has overridden this method, even though it does not override the equals() method.

String.equals() and == Operator MCQs

1. For comparing address of any two strings, we use ___________.

String.equals() Method
Equals Operator (==)
String.compareTo() method
All the above

Answer: B

Explanation: When used to compare strings, the equality operator (==) compares the references (memory addresses) of the string objects rather than their contents.

2. For comparing content of any two strings, we use ___________.

String.equals() Method
Equals Operator (==)
String.compareTo() Method
All the above

Answer: A

Explanation: The String.equals() compares the content (values) of two objects for equality. The primary purpose of the String.equals() method is to determine if two objects are meaningfully equivalent based on their internal state.

3. Which of the following methods returns a Boolean value?

String.equals() Method
Equals Operator (==)
String.compareTo() Method
Both A and b

Answer: A

Explanation: The String.equals() compares the content (values) of two objects for equality, and returns a Boolean value. The String.compareTo() method returns an integer value. Also, == is an operator, not a method.

4. Predict the output of the following code snippet.

Compilation Error
False
True
Runtime Error

Answer: B

Explanation: In the above code snippet, two new objects are created. Therefore, both the strings will have different addresses. When the comparison between these two strings is made using the equality operator in the print statement, a false value is returned.

5. Predict the output of the following code snippet.