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Operators in Java - A Comprehensive Guide

What are operators and its types in Java?

Operators in Java are the symbols which perform the operation on the some values. These values are known as operands. Java has following operators –

  • Arithmetic Operators in Java
  • Relational Operators in Java
  • Logical Operators in Java
  • Assignment Operators in Java
  • Bitwise Operators in Java
  • Misc Operators in Java

1. Arithmetic Operators in Java

Operator Operator Name Description Example
+ Addition Adds two operands I = 40, J= 20I + J = 60
Subtraction Subtracts second operand from the first I = 40, J= 20I – J = 20
* Multiplication Multiplies both operands I = 40, J= 20I * J = 800
/ Divide Perform division operation I = 40, J= 20I / J = 2
% Modulus Return the remainder after Division I = 40, J= 20I % J = 0
++ Increment Increase the operand value by 1 I=40,I++ = 41++I  =  40 (print 40 but next time its value is 41)
Decrement Decrease the operand value by 1 I=40I– = 39–I =  40(print 40 but next time its value is 39)

2. Relational Operators in Java

It is also known as comparison operator because it compares the values. After comparison it returns the Boolean value i.e. either true or false.

Operator Operator Name Description Example
== Equal to If the values of two operands are equal then it returns true. I = 20, J = 20(I == J) is true
!=  Not Equal to If the values of two operands are not equal then it returns true. I = 20, J = 20(I == J) is False
< Less than If the value of left operand is less than the value of right operand then it returns true I = 40, J = 20(I < J) is False
> Greater than If the value of left operand is greater than the value of right operand then it returns true I = 40, J = 20(I > J) is True
<= Less than or equal to If the value of left operand is less than or equal to the value of right operand then it returns true. I = 40, J = 20(I <= J) is False
>= Greater than or equal to If the value of left operand is greater than or equal to the value of right operand then it returns true. I = 40, J = 20(I >= J) is True

3. Logical Operators in Java

Operator Operator Name Description Example
and Logical AND When Both side condition is true the result is true otherwise false 2<1 and 2<3False
or Logical OR When at least one condition is true then result is true otherwise false 2<1 or 2<3True
not Logical NOT Reverse the condition Not(5>4)False

4. Assignment Operator in Java

Operator Operator Name Description Example
= Assignment It assigns value from right side operand to left side operand I = 40 It assigns 40 to I
+= Add then assign It performs addition and then result is assigned to left hand operand I+=J that meansI = I + J
-= Subtract then assign It performs subtraction and then result is assigned to left hand operand I-=J that meansI = I – J
*= Multiply the assign It performs multiplication and then result is assigned to left hand operand. I*=J that meansI = I * J
/= Divide then assign It performs division and then result is assigned to left hand operand I/=J that meansI = I / J
%= Modulus then assign It performs modulus and then result is assigned to left hand operand I%=Jthat meansI = I % J
<<= Left shift AND assignment operator It performs Binary left shift and then result is assigned to left hand operand I<<=5 that means
I = I << 5
>>= Right shift AND assignment operator It performs Binary right shift and then result is assigned to left hand operand I>>=5 that means
I = I >>=5
&= Bitwise AND assignment operator It performs bitwise AND and then result is assigned to left hand operand I &= 5 that meansI = I & 5
^= bitwise exclusive OR and assignment operator It performs bitwise exclusive OR and then result is assigned to left hand operand I ^= 5 that meansI = I ^ 5
|= bitwise inclusive OR and assignment operator It performs bitwise inclusive OR and then result is assigned to left hand operand I |= 5 that meansI = I | 5

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5. Bitwise Operators in Java

It performs bit by bit operation. Suppose there are two variable I = 10 and J = 20 and their binary values are

I = 10 = 0000 1010
J = 20 = 0001 0100
Operator Operator Name Description Example
& Binary AND If both bits are 1 then 1 otherwise 0  I & J0000 0000
| Binary OR If one of the bit is 1 then 1 otherwise 0 I | J0001 1110
^ Binary XOR If both bit are same then 0 otherwise 1 I ^ J0001 1110
~ Binary Complement If bit is 1 the make it 0 and if bit is 0 the make it 1 ~I1111 0101
<< Binary Left Shift The left operand is moved left by the number of bits specified by the right operand. I << 2 will give 240 i.e. 1111 0000
>> Binary Right Shift The left operand is moved right by the number of bits specified by the right operand. I >> 2 will give 15 i.e. 1111
>>> Shift right zero fill operator Left operand is shifted right by the no. of bits specified by right operand and shifted values are filled up with 0. I >>>2 will give 15  i.e. 0000 1111

Misc Operators in Java

Let’s discuss the misc operators in Java Operators:
1. Conditional Operator ( ? : )
It is also known as ternary operator that means it consists of three operands and performs Boolean expression.
Syntax

variable i = (condition) ? value1 (if condition is true) : value2( if condition is false)

e.g.

public class Intellipaat {
public static void main(String args[]){
int i, j;
i = 20;
j = (i <=50) ? 20: 60;
System.out.println( "Value of j is : " +  j );
}
}

Compile and execute above program.
Output

alue of j is : 20

2. instanceof Operator:
It is used only for object reference variables. It checks that whether the object is of interface type or class type.
Syntax:

(Object_reference_variable ) instanceof  (interface/class type)

e.g.

public class Intellipaat {
public static void main(String args[]){
String name = "intellipaat";
boolean outcome = name instanceof String;
System.out.println( outcome );
}
}

Compile and execute above program.
Output
true
It returns true because name is a type of String.

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Operators Precedence in Java:

Category  Operator  Associativity 
Postfix () [] . (dot operator) Left toright
Unary ++ – – ! ~ Right to left
Multiplicative * / % Left to right
Additive + – Left to right
Shift >> >>> << Left to right
Relational > >= < <= Left to right
Equality == != Left to right
Bitwise AND & Left to right
Bitwise XOR ^ Left to right
Bitwise OR | Left to right
Logical AND && Left to right
Logical OR || Left to right
Conditional ?: Right to left
Assignment = += -= *= /= %= >>= <<= &= ^= |= Right to left
Comma , Left to right

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About the Author

Senior Consultant Analytics & Data Science

Sahil Mattoo, a Senior Software Engineer at Eli Lilly and Company, is an accomplished professional with 14 years of experience in languages such as Java, Python, and JavaScript. Sahil has a strong foundation in system architecture, database management, and API integration.