An In-Depth Overview of Java vs. C++ and What Makes Them Unique
Compare C++ and Java, two Titans of web development. Understand their unique characteristics and where to best use each. This guide will help you make an informed decision on which language to choose for your specific programming needs.
August 15, 2023
12 minute reading
The C++ vs. Java debate has been going on for decades. When you compare C++ with Python, Java, or other beginner-friendly languages, C++ can feel overwhelming.
But C++ is a powerful general-purpose programming language that’s unlikely to ever be entirely ousted in embedded programming, systems programming, game development, legacy solutions, or operating system programming.
Java is a formidable competitor. It’s easier to learn, faster to develop on, and solves many of the issues that C++ had by abstracting memory management away from the developer. It also provides an extensive standard library for developers to get more done, faster. Java is widely used in the banking sector and in other enterprise contexts.
Let’s dive deep into the battle of these two titans.
C++ vs. Java: An overview
C++ and Java are both object-oriented programming languages, or OOPs.
Bjarne Stroustrup, a Danish computer scientist, developed C++ to combine C’s low-level power with the flexibility and program organization of objects and classes.
He named it C++ because “++”is the incremental operator used in C, meaning that C++ is the next version of C. For example, if we run the following C code, we can see that using C++ changes the value of the “C” variable.
C Code
int C = 1;// Starting value of the variableprintf("C = %d\n", C); C++;// Increment the variable by 1printf("C now equals = %d\n", C);
Output:
C = 1 C now equals = 2
Java
Sun Microsystems released the Java programming language in 1996. The language follows a “write once, run anywhere” (WORA)paradigm, meaning that Java’s purpose was to create a platform-independent language, empowering programmers to develop more widely used software without having to maintain separate code bases.
Java’s creator—a team led by computer scientistJames Gosling—used a C++ syntax for the language, making it familiar to existing C++ programmers. When Oracle acquired Sun Microsystems, it also obtained the rights to Java and the Java trademark.
Java’s influence on programming in general is profound. Its support of the WORA principle has become a de facto standard for programming languages and frameworks, considering the vast amount of different platforms on the market.
The WORA paradigm is reflected in Microsoft’s .Net Framework, Python, Flutter, React Native, and various JavaScript frameworks, such as Vue and Angular. These languages and frameworks are all based on a WORA methodology.
Java also shipped with an enormous standard library that abstracted a tremendous amount of low-level complexity for programmers. Microsoft .Net’s huge standard library has been frequently compared to Java’s.
Although subject to interpretation, Python’s vast standard library was likely also influenced by Java.
Java and C++ pricing
C++ has always been free and open source. You don’t need a license to use or distribute it.
Java’s open-source nature and history are a lot murkier. In short, yes, you can program and develop in Java for free. In 2023, several Java Development Kits (JDKs) exist, and we recommend using a non-Oracle JDK such asOpenJDKif you’re just starting out with Java.
Oracle has unfortunately repeatedlycreated confusion and angered the Java communitybecause of its back-and-forth regarding license fees for commercially using the Java runtime. At one stage, Java SE (Standard Edition) was free, then it required a license, then it was free again, and now it requires a per-employee license, whichseveral organizations have said is a step too far.
The good news is that it’s possible to program Java software using variousopen-source and free implementations of Java. Companies using Java EE (Enterprise Edition) who want to avoid ambiguous licensing terms in the future should consider moving toJakarta EE, the open-source implementation of Java EE.
The costs of using Oracle will be passed on to your customers. As a developer, no fee currently exists to develop with OracleJDK. If you’re uncertain which Java JDK to use, you canbuy programming consultation servicesfrom our experts at Fiverr to help you decide.
Key differences between Java and C++
C++ and Java were developed in different eras, and Sun Microsystems benefited from the knowledge gained from the years of C++ programming that came before Java. Here are the significant differences between C++ and Java:
Platform dependent
C++ code is platform dependent, meaning you must write code specific to a platform. For large applications, this can make code extraordinarily messy and difficult to manage. In C++, you have to write code for:
Different operating systems
Different hardware configurations
For example, although MacOS technically supports C++, the OS-specific APIs are primarily written in C. And the GUI APIs are written in Objective C.
Several frameworks have been developed to make cross-platform GUI development in C++ easier. Two popular GUI frameworks are Qt and wxWidgets. Some people prefer wxWidgets because it uses native APIs to display graphics. And you may need topay a license fee to use Qtin a commercial product.
In Java, you write your Java code, which runs on any machine with the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) installed.
Java GUI apps suffered from a distinctive “Java Look” for many years because GUI elements were created using Java-specific code. Recent advances and libraries make Java apps look more native on different platforms.
The Java Virtual Machine
Java code “runs anywhere” because of the Java Virtual Machine, or JVM. To run Java programs, a device needs to have a JVM installed. Java programs are compiled into bytecode, an intermediate-level code that the JVM understands.
The JVM runs on TVs, computers, phones, servers, IoT devices, and even some specialized hardware like microcontrollers.
The JVM is complemented by a just-in-time (JIT) compiler that compiles the Java bytecode to machine code when the application starts. The resulting code is highly optimized for the specific underlying system it’s running on, but this JIT compilation can delay the application’s startup time.
C++ is compiled directly into machine code and then distributed. You, therefore, have to create code that is targeted at specific configurations.
For example, in C++, you need to write different source code to show a simple message box on a Windows, Mac, or Linux machine because you’re referencing the underlying operating system APIs to show that message box. In Java, you write a single line of code as follows:
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(frame, "Fiverr is awesome!");
When you run the program on Windows, Linux, or a Mac, you get the same result:
Message box displayed on Linux, Windows, or Mac using the same code in Java.
Creating similar code in C++ requires setting specific compiler flags, creating different code for each system, and maintaining entirely different code bases. It also requires enormous amounts of code.
Example of C++ code that needs to detect the underlying operating system.
Java’s JVM underpins the language’s portability and optimizes Java’s performance to offer the best possible speed for the hardware it’s running on.
But Java can’t be used for direct low-level systems programming, where C++ continues to excel despite the language being nearly 40 years old.
Speed of development
Software development in Java is generally faster than in C++ by several orders of magnitude. Java abstracts many common tasks away from the programmer because of an extensive standard library. And managing only a single code base also speeds development up and significantly reduces the time to market.
However, many third-party tools now exist to address this lack of libraries in C++, but this can lead to library-specific code from project to project.
If you’re dealing with a software project that’s grown too complicated and has become difficult to debug because of so many libraries, you canbuy software bug-fix servicesfrom Fiverr to help you.
Operator overloading
C++ offers operator overloading, whereas Java doesn’t.
Operator overloading is the ability of a language to change the function of an operator, such as “+,” “++,” “-,” and other operators.
For example, if you want to create a “Point” class with an X and Y parameter, you can overload the “+” operator in C++ to add the two points together according to the rules you define:
#include
private:
int x;
int y; public:
Point(int xVal = 0, int yVal = 0) : x(xVal), y(yVal) {}
// Overloading the + operator for point addition
Point operator+(const Point& other) const {
return Point(x + other.x, y + other.y);
}
// Accessor functions for x and y
int getX() const { return x; }
int getY() const { return y; }
};
int main() {
Point p1(1, 2);
Point p2(3, 4);
Point sum = p1 + p2;
std::cout << "p1: (" << p1.getX() << ", " << p1.getY() << ")" << std::endl;
std::cout << "p2: (" << p2.getX() << ", " << p2.getY() << ")" << std::endl;
std::cout << "Sum: (" << sum.getX() << ", " << sum.getY() << ")" << std::endl;
return0;
}
Output:
p1: (1, 2)
p2: (3, 4)
Sum: (4, 6)
You can try this code sample usingthis online C++ compiler.
No such feature exists in Java at the programmer level. The Java implementation does overload the “+” operator for string concatenation, but programmers can’t create their own operator overloads.
Operator overloading is a powerful yet advanced feature that’s unlikely to become a dealbreaker between Java and C++ for general-purpose programming tasks.
Advanced C++ software requires immense experience to create. If you need to add only a small level of advanced code to your existing project, considerbuying C++ servicesfor that small portion instead of learning an entirely new programming language.
Destructors
Destructors refer to code that is called every time an object is destroyed. They help free resources and efficiently clean up memory. Destructors are essential for memory management and therefore crucial in C++, which requires programmers to directly manage memory.
Java doesn’t implement destructors because its built-in “garbage collection” feature periodically frees up unused resources. The garbage collector frees the software developer from tedious memory management tasks, but at the sacrifice of program control. Using C++ destructors, programmers have finer control over an app’s resources.
In C++, destructors are defined using a tilde (~) as shown below:
#include
classMyClass {
public:
// class constructor
MyClass() {
std::cout << "Constructor called" << std::endl;
}
// create a destructor using the tilde (~)
~MyClass() {
std:: cout < <“析构函数称为“< < std:: endl;
}
};
int main() {
MyClass obj;// Create an object of MyClass
// Rest of the code
return0;
}
Output:
Constructor called
Destructor called
Header files
C++ attempts to modularize code through header files. These files typically contain the declarations of functions to be implemented but not the implementation itself. They serve as a blueprint of what the C++ code file needs to implement.
Unfortunately, header files can become confusing in large projects due to naming conflicts, dependency management, and implementation differences. It’s possible to mitigate these confusions through proper project management, but it adds an additional burden to a large project that isn’t present in Java projects.
Java did away with header files and encapsulates all necessary code in “packages” that get checked at compile-time. This makes code easier to read and maintain.
Single-inheritance
In C++, a single class can inherit from multiple superclasses.
Consider the following C++ source code example:
#include
public:
void methodA() {
std::cout << "Method A" << std::endl;
}
};
classBaseClassB {
public:
void methodB() {
std::cout << "Method B" << std::endl;
}
};
// C++ supports deriving from multiple classes
classDerivedClass :public BaseClassA, public BaseClassB {
public:
void methodC() {
std::cout << "Method C" << std::endl;
}
};
int main() {
DerivedClass obj;
obj.methodA();
obj.methodB();
obj.methodC();
return0;
}
You can run the above C++ code inthis online C++ compiler.
Java supports only single inheritance by design, meaning that a class can have only one superclass.
The subject of multiple and single inheritance is hotly debated among programmers. The problem with multiple inheritance is that it can lead to ambiguities and conflicts. Java solved this problem by implementinginterfaces—a blueprint that derived classes can implement.
Here’s the same example as above in Java, using interfaces:
import java.io.*;
classClassA{
publicvoid methodA() {
System.out.println("Method A");
}
}
interfaceInterfaceB{
void methodB();// declared but not implemented
}
classDerivedClassextendsClassAimplementsInterfaceB{
// we must explicitly implement methodB.
publicvoid methodB() {
System.out.println("Method B");
}
publicvoid methodC() {
System.out.println("Method C");
}
}
publicclassMain{
publicstaticvoid main(String[] args) {
DerivedClass obj = new DerivedClass();
obj.methodA();
obj.methodB();
obj.methodC();
}
}
The DerivedClass derives from ClassA but implements InterfaceB. The programmer is forced to specifically implement code for methodB().
Simply stated, the DerivedClass “is” a ClassA and “has” an InterfaceB.
其它c++和Java之间的区别
Although C++ is an object-oriented programming language, you can also write procedural code in C++. Java has no support for procedural code.
Java provides a robust String class for manipulating strings, with many inbuilt methods. C++ has a std::string class, but many string manipulation methods aren’t part of the class itself. For example, converting a string to uppercase in Java is as simple as doing the following:
String str = "Hello, Fiverr!";
System.out.println(str.toUpperCase());
But achieving the same in C++ requires calling the std::transform method from the algorithm header. The resulting code is verbose and unintuitive:
#include
#include
// algorithm header
#include
int main() {
std:: stringstr = "Hello, Fiverr!";
std::transform(str.begin(), str.end(), str.begin(), ::toupper);
std::cout << str << std::endl;
return0;
}
Major similarities between Java and C++
Java and C++ are both strongly typed OOP languages. Each supports polymorphism, a core feature of object-oriented programming languages that allows an object in the same hierarchical tree to function as a different object.
Polymorphism means “many forms.”
For example, in the following Java code example, we show how the two Website objects function differently depending on how they’re instantiated:
Java code
classWebsite{
publicvoid visitWebsite() {
System.out.println("You are now on a website.");
}
}
// Polymorphism: Fiverr class inherits from the Website class
classFiverrextendsWebsite{
@Override
publicvoid visitWebsite() {
System.out.println("You are now on the Fiverr website.");
}
}
publicclassPolymorphicWebsite{
publicstaticvoid main(String[] args) {
// both variables are declared as the type "Website"
Website genericWebsite = new Website();
Website fiverrWebsite = new Fiverr();
genericWebsite.visitWebsite();// Output: "You are now on a website."
fiverrWebsite.visitWebsite();// Output: "You are now on the Fiverr website."
}
}
The output is:
You are now on a website. You are now on the Fiverr website.
Although the variables were both declared as a Website, we instantiated fiverrWebsite as a Fiverr object, showing that the Website class can have “many forms.”
The equivalent C++ code would look like this:
classWebsite {
public:
virtualvoid visitWebsite() {
std::cout << "You are now on a website." << std::endl;
}
};
// Polymorphism: Fiverr class inherits from the Website class
classFiverr :public Website {
public:
void visitWebsite() override {
std::cout << "You are now on the Fiverr website." << std::endl;
}
};
Encapsulation
Both languages also support encapsulation, the concept of including all the necessary information for the class within the class’s definition. Encapsulation also encompasses the concept of hiding internal data that shouldn’t be accessible to other classes.
For example, we could add a domain property to our Website class above and add some basic error checking when setting the domain, all encapsulated within the class itself.
Encapsulation in Java
classWebsite{
private String domain;
publicvoid visitWebsite() {
System.out.println("You are now on the website: " + name);
System.out.println("Domain: " + domain);
}
public String getDomain() {
return domain;
}
publicvoid setDomain(String domain) {
if (isValidDomain(domain)) {
this.domain = domain;
} else {
System.out.println("Invalid domain name.");
}
}// hidden error-checking
privateboolean isValidDomain(String text) {
// do some internal error checking here, such as checking format and alphanumeric
characters
returntrue;
}
}
Other language differences
Other major similarities between the two languages are:
Method overloading:
This is when a method can be declared with the same name but a different number or type of parameters.
Multithreading:
As of C++ 11, the language has built-in support for multithreaded programming through the std::thread class. Java has built-in support for multithreading, but it’s important to note that all threads run inside the JVM. Java’s multithreading is more abstracted than C++ and so easier to work with for programmers.
Namespaces:
Java doesn’t encompass the concept of namespaces but offers similar functionality through its use of packages. In Java, you include packages in your Java code through the import keyword.
Java packages
import java.util.ArrayList;// importing the java.util.ArrayList class, part of the java.util package
publicclassMain{
publicstaticvoid main(String[] args) {
ArrayList
myList.add("Hello");
myList.add("Java");
myList.add("World");
for (String item : myList) {
System.out.println(item);
}
}
}
You can try the above code in thisonline Java code compiler.
C++ vs. Java: Where to use each
As a rule of thumb, C++ is preferred for high-performance software, or software that needs to work closely with the underlying hardware.
“If the outcome the client wants is performance-related, C++ is the champ, because it handles memory without any intermediate system,”saysSlav Kulik, CEO ofPlan A Technologies, a software development and advisory firm.“Java非常便携,但强度from the fact that the JVM is a few levels removed from the underlying hardware and that Java is abstracted away from understanding which system it really runs on—something to keep in mind if you need specific platform control of hardware (drivers, video cards, etc.).”
C++ is a low-level programming language that interfaces directly with the hardware below it. Software engineers have complete control over memory allocation and can therefore maximize performance on embedded systems with constrained resources.
Java’s automatic garbage collection abstracts memory handling away from the programmer. The JVM determines when memory needs to be freed up. This reduces potentially severe errors, such as accessing memory that’s being used by another process but puts the software engineer at the mercy of the JVM.
It’s also possible to mix C++ and Java code. You can write performance-critical functions in a C++ library and then call them using the Java Native Interface (JNI), such as:
privatenativevoid performNativeOperation();
Web development
Web development is a rapidly evolving topic, with new frameworks regularly disrupting the status quo. Python has arisen as a leading choice for many developers because it’s so easy to learn and also supports AI development out of the box. Powerful JavaScript frameworks such as Vue and Angular let developers create modern websites rapidly.
Despite all this, Java remains a favorite for many enterprises because of its history as a robust and secure solution. Java iswidely used in the banking and financial sectordue to its security and ability to scale. Security comes first in banking, and it’s unlikely that these institutions will run to the latest fad without proven enterprise support behind it.
Java is still used in 23% of the top 10,000 websites, although use in the top one million sites has dropped drastically since 2021:
Screenshot fromBuiltWith.
Although C++ was widely used as a web development language in the early days, it wasn’t created for web development. One company often cited as using C++ for its website is Amazon, although little is known about how much of that original codebase still exists.
C++ continues to be used for processing-intensive functions at the server level, and popular languages such as Python and PHP can call C++ libraries to leverage this speed.
If choosing between Java and C++ for general-purpose web development, use Java.
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Mobile applications
If you’re developing games for Android, you’ll need to use C++ and a gaming engine. Therecommended gaming enginesalso support C# and Lua, but not Java.
iOS doesn’t support Java, so you’d be developing games in Objective-C or C++, depending on your gaming engine.
As for general-purpose apps, Android apps were once written entirely in Java. But Google has now moved to a proprietary programming language called Kotlin.
Java is fully compatible with Kotlin, and you can include Java files inside a Kotlin project. Google also still supports Java-written Android apps.
Although it’spossible to use C++ for general-purpose Android比Java应用程序开发,它需要更多的努力or Kotlin, and some Android APIs don’t work directly with C++.
It’s also possible to write features in C++ and then include them in your Java/Kotlin Android Project using theAndroid NDK.
One benefit of writing your Android app in C++ is that you can reuse any platform-agnostic C++ code in your iOS projects.
Recent advancements in mobile development mean that easier ways now exist to create platform-independent mobile apps using frameworks such as .Net MAUI, Flutter, and React Native.
Another option for platform-independent mobile apps is tocreate a web appinstead.
AI and Machine Learning
Java isspectacularly fastcompared to Python, another popular AI development language, making Java an excellent choice for developing AI applications.
Several Java AI libraries exist, although the offering is nowhere near as complete as what Python offers.
As for C++, this language is used for low-level AI programming, and many of the existing Python AI libraries end up calling underlying C or C++ code for performance-critical tasks. But C++ is only recommended for AI development if you’ll be coding at the low level of an AI application.
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About Author
R. Paulo DelgadoTech & Business Writer
R. Paulo Delgado is a tech and business freelance writer with nearly 17 years of software development experience under his belt, including WordPress programming. He is also a crypto journalist for Moneyweb, and proudly a member of Fiverr's Pro Seller program — hand-vetted professionals, verified by Fiverr for quality and service.
