How to Remove the Last Character from a String in Java?

Question

How do you remove the last character from a string in Java without affecting other characters?

public String removeLastCharacter(String str) {
    if (str != null && str.length() > 0) {
        return str.substring(0, str.length() - 1);
    }
    return str; // Return original string if null or empty
}

Answer

To remove the last character from a string in Java, it's essential to leverage the `substring` method without using `replace`, which may impact other instances of characters in the string. Here's how to properly achieve this task.

public String removeLastCharacter(String str) {
    if (str != null && str.length() > 0) {
        return str.substring(0, str.length() - 1);
    }
    return str; // Return original string if null or empty
}

Causes

  • Using `str.replace()` method erroneously replaces occurrences of the last character throughout the string.
  • Failing to check if the string is null or empty can lead to exceptions.

Solutions

  • Use the `substring()` method to extract a portion of the string, ensuring that only the last character is omitted.
  • Always check if the string is null or has a length greater than zero before attempting to modify it.

Common Mistakes

Mistake: Using `str.replace()` instead of `str.substring()`

Solution: Use `str.substring(0, str.length() - 1)` to remove the last character correctly.

Mistake: Not checking for null or empty strings before manipulating them

Solution: Ensure the string is not null and has a length greater than zero to avoid `StringIndexOutOfBoundsException`.

Helpers

  • remove last character java
  • java string manipulation
  • substring method java

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