Complete Guide For Difference Between C++ and Java

Here’s an article on the difference between C++ and Java programming languages. You’ll find a guide on difference between C++ and Java in Tabular Form at the bottom of this article along with Hello World Programs for comparison of both these languages.

Generally, most of the beginners in Java, treat it as a language having a lot of similarities with C++. This is primarily due to the similarity between operators and keywords. Let us now see the difference between C++ and Java separately. Also, here you get to know some of the differences between Object Oriented Programming Paradigm and Procedural Programming Paradigm.

Also Read: Find Difference Between Call By Value and Call By Reference

How C++ Programming Language is different from Java Programming Language

C++ programming language was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup in 1979 at Bell Laboratories in USA. It is primarily based on the syntax of C.

C++ language primarily focuses on Application Programming and System Programming. It includes additional support for the following:

Exception Handling Standard Libraries Statically Typed Object Oriented Programming Scoped Resource Management

C++ supports the usage of global variables that are not allowed in java. In C++, global variables do not belong to any particular class. It can, therefore, be modified by any method or function. C++ programs only makes use of Compilers.

C++ makes an extensive use of the Scope Resolution Operators. Also, GOTO statements are allowed in C++ which is not recommended though.

C++ includes the usage of Pointers extensively. However, Pointers are a loophole in object oriented programming as it can be used to break in the security of an application and even lead to system crash. The errors in C++ are not as accurate as compared to Java.

C++ includes Pre-Processor directives and also uses #include to incorporate other Library Files which is not allowed in Java.

C++ supports both Object Oriented Programming Paradigm and Procedural Programming Paradigm in a single program. Therefore, it is not mandatory to bind every single piece of code within a class template. Therefore, use of classes are optional in C++.

C++ programs are not Platform-Dependent as its codes are executed as normal programs which are dependent upon the Hardware and the Operating System. However, you can develop platform dependent codes in C++ by calling Linux or Windows APIs.

The Unions in C++ provides Memory Overlapping feature which is eliminated in Java. C++ supports both Late Binding and Early Binding. It is not a memory safe language.

The older version of C++ does not offer any built-in support for Thread Management. But, the recent version C++11 supports Thread Management. C++11 is compatible with its previous versions as well. Also, it can be achieved by using Third Party applications. C++ provides complete support for both Operator Overloading and Method Overloading.

How Java Programming Language is different from C++ Programming Language

Java programming language is primarily developed by James Gosling in 1995 at Sun Microsystems in USA. Java primarily includes the syntax derived from C / C++.

Java had been primarily developed for Network Oriented Computing Systems. Later due to its robustness, it grew into development of applications and applets.

In Java, the pre-defined methods are included in the current program by Import statements. It does not allow using include statements. These import statements are used to fetch packages in the current programs.

Java does not support Global variables. Every single piece of code needs to be within a class template. Java is truly an Object Oriented Language. Java programming makes use of both Compiler and Interpreter. This is one of the major difference in Java and C++.

Java only supports Object Oriented Paradigm within a program. It does not include Procedural Programming paradigm within its code.

Java codes are Platform-Independent as its codes are executed as Bytecodes which are Binary Files. These Bytecodes are executed within Java Virtual Machine (JVM) which makes it portable.

Java does not support Multiple Inheritance. However, there is another way to achieve multiple inheritance in Java. It can be done through Interfaces.

Java programming does not use Scope Resolution Operators. However, the GOTO statements are not allowed to be used in Java. Java does not support Structures and Unions.

Java offers an excellent support for Thread Management that makes the processing very fast. Java supports Multi-Threading which is not supported in C++. Java supports only Method Overloading. However, it does not provide any support for Operator Overloading.

Java does not allow the usage of Pointers. This makes java very secure as pointers can be used to manipulate memory data, break security systems and also can lead to system crashes. Java is a memory safe programming language.

Java provides Type Safety which does not allow to arbitrarily cast one data type into another. Also, Java strictly follows Type Checking during assignment operations. The Errors in Java are defined in a very precise and definitive manner.

Also Read: 40+ Java Programs Here

Compare the following Codes written in Java and C++. This is a simple Hello World program that will help you differentiate between C++ and Java Programming Language.

Java Program To Print Hello World

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 import java . io . * ; public HelloWorld { public static void main ( String args [ ] ) { System . out . println ( "Hello World" ) ; } }

C++ Program To Print Hello World

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 #include<iostream> int main ( ) { std :: cout << "Hello World" ; return 0 ; }

Difference Between C++ and Java in Points

Java C++ Java is a True Object Oriented Programming Language. C++ is not Truly an Object Oriented Programming Language.Type Checking Java only supports Late Binding. C++ supports both Early Binding and Late Binding. Everything single line of code has to be included within a Class template. In C++, it is not necessary to include every single code within a Class. Java has an internal mechanism to provide Thread Management. The older version of C++ does not have any in-built support for Threads. The C++11 version supports Thread Management. Classes are mandatory in Java Programming Language. Classes are optional in C++ Programming Language. Java does not support Procedural Programming Paradigm. C++ supports Procedural Programming Paradigm. In Java, Multiple Inheritance is not supported. However, it can be achieved through Interfaces. C++ Programming Language supports Multiple Inheritance. Java Code is Platform – Independent. C++ Codes may or may not be Platform – Independent. Java supports only Object Oriented Programming Paradigm. C++ supports both Procedural Programming Paradigm and Object Oriented Programming Paradigm. Java does not support the use of Pointers due to security issues. C++ supports Pointers extensively. Java does not provide Scope Resolution Operator. C++ extensively makes use of Scope Resolution Operator. Java does not support Global Variables. C++ supports Global Variable. Java offers automatic garbage collection mechanism. C++ does not provide automatic garbage collection feature. There is no typedef keyword in Java for creating datatype aliases. There is typedef keyword in Java for creating datatype aliases. Java uses both Interpreter and Compiler. C++ only makes use of a Compiler.

We hope that you got some good information about the difference between C++ and Java out of this article. If you have any doubts or any extra information about Java or C++, please let us know about them in the comment section below.