Java 8 – How to Sort List by java.util.Date in 4 ways ?

In this article, we will discuss and learn how to sort List by java.util.Date in ascending as well as descending order in different ways

Sort List by java.util.Date in 4 ways:

  1. Using java.util.Comparator
  2. Using Lambda expression
  3. Using Method References
  4. Using Stream API

We have Product class with 4 member variables, its setters & getters, 4-arg parameterized constructor and overriding toString() method for pretty print. We will sort List of Products on the basis of java.util.Date in ascending and descending order in 4 different ways as mentioned above.

Product.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.util.Date;

public class Product {

	// member variables
	private int prodId;
	private String prodName;
	private Date prodCreatedDate;
	private double prodRate;


	// getters and setters


	// 4-arg parameterized constructor


	// toString() method
	@Override
	public String toString() {
		return "Product [prodId=" + prodId 
				+ ", prodCreatedDate=" + prodCreatedDate
				+ ", prodRate=" + prodRate 
				+ ", prodName=" + prodName 
				+ "]";
	}
}

1. Sort List by Date using java.util.Comparator

  • There is a list of Products and we will be sorting product list by java.util.Date in ascending and descending order using java.util.Comparator interface
  • For sorting,
    • We will create separate class implementing java.util.Comparator interface and overriding compare() method for ascending-order sorting
    • For descending-order sorting, we will reverse the Comparator using reversed() method
  • Finally, we will print product list to console in ascending and descending order

ProductSortingComparator.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.util.Comparator;

public class ProductSortingComparator implements Comparator<Product> {

	@Override
	public int compare(Product prod1, Product prod2) {
		return Long.valueOf(prod1.getProdCreatedDate().getTime())
				.compareTo(prod2.getProdCreatedDate().getTime());
	}
}

ProductDateSortingUsingComparator.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.text.ParseException;
import java.text.SimpleDateFormat;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;

public class ProductDateSortingUsingComparator {

	public static void main(String[] args) throws ParseException {

		// 1. products
		Product product1 = new Product(1, "Cooker", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-05-31"), 13750.0);
		Product product2 = new Product(2, "Sofa-Bed", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2019-11-02"), 11750.0);
		Product product3 = new Product(3, "Fridge", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2021-03-27"), 12750.0);
		Product product4 = new Product(4, "Cupboard", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2020-04-30"), 11525.0);
		Product product5 = new Product(5, "Utensils", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-06-01"), 17050.0);


		// 1.1 List of Products
		List<Product> products = new ArrayList<Product>();
		products.add(product1);
		products.add(product2);
		products.add(product3);
		products.add(product4);
		products.add(product5);


		// 1.2 print to console
		System.out.println("Before sorting :- \n");
		for(Product prod : products) {
			System.out.println(prod);
		}


		// 2. Ascending-order sorting
		Collections.sort(products, new ProductSortingComparator());


		// 2.1 print to console - ascending order
		System.out.println("\n\nAscending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		for(Product prod : products) {
			System.out.println(prod);
		}


		// 3. Descending-order sorting
		Collections.sort(products, (new ProductSortingComparator()).reversed());


		// 3.1 print to console - descending order
		System.out.println("\n\nDescending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		for(Product prod : products) {
			System.out.println(prod);
		}
	}
}

Output:

Before sorting :- 

Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Ascending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Descending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]

2. Sort List by Date using Lambda Expression

  • There is a list of Products and we will be sorting product list by java.util.Date in ascending and descending order using Lambda Expression
  • For sorting, we will write/code lambda expression to sort list of product on the basis of product created date which will return Comparator
    • For ascending-order sorting, we will pass actual list and Comparator to Collections.sort() method
    • For descending-order sorting, we will reverse the Comparator using reversed() method and pass actual list and reversed Comparator to Collections.sort() method
  • Finally, we will print product list to console in ascending and descending order

ProductDateSortingUsingLambdaExpression.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.text.ParseException;
import java.text.SimpleDateFormat;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.Comparator;
import java.util.List;

public class ProductDateSortingUsingLambdaExpression {

	public static void main(String[] args) throws ParseException {

		// 1. products
		Product product1 = new Product(1, "Cooker", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-05-31"), 13750.0);
		Product product2 = new Product(2, "Sofa-Bed", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2019-11-02"), 11750.0);
		Product product3 = new Product(3, "Fridge", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2021-03-27"), 12750.0);
		Product product4 = new Product(4, "Cupboard", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2020-04-30"), 11525.0);
		Product product5 = new Product(5, "Utensils", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-06-01"), 17050.0);


		// 1.1 List
		List<Product> products = new ArrayList<Product>();
		products.add(product1);
		products.add(product2);
		products.add(product3);
		products.add(product4);
		products.add(product5);


		// 1.2 print to console
		System.out.println("Before sorting :- \n");
		products.forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));


		// 2. get Comparator using Lambda expression
		Comparator<Product> comparatorAsc = (prod1, prod2) -> Long.valueOf(
				prod1.getProdCreatedDate().getTime())
				.compareTo(prod2.getProdCreatedDate().getTime()
						);


		// 2.1 pass above Comparator and sort in ascending order
		Collections.sort(products, comparatorAsc);


		// 2.2 print to console
		System.out.println("\n\nAscending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		products.forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));



		// 3. get Comparator using Lambda expression
		Comparator<Product> comparatorDesc = (prod1, prod2) -> Long.valueOf(
				prod2.getProdCreatedDate().getTime())
				.compareTo(prod1.getProdCreatedDate().getTime()
						);


		// 3.1 pass above Comparator and sort in descending order
		Collections.sort(products, comparatorDesc);


		// 3.2 print to console - descending order
		System.out.println("\n\nDescending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		products.forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));
	}
}

Output:

Before sorting :- 

Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Ascending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Descending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]

3. Sort List by Date using Method References

  • There is a list of Products and we will be sorting product list by java.util.Date in ascending and descending order using Method References
  • For sorting, create a Comparator by passing Method References to Comparator.comparing() method
    • For ascending-order sorting, pass above created Comparator to List.sort() method
    • For descending-order sorting, we will reverse the Comparator using reversed() method and pass reversed Comparator to List.sort() method
  • Finally, we will print product list to console in ascending and descending order

ProductDateSortingUsingMethodReferences.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.text.ParseException;
import java.text.SimpleDateFormat;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Comparator;
import java.util.List;

public class ProductDateSortingUsingMethodReferences {

	public static void main(String[] args) throws ParseException {

		// 1. products
		Product product1 = new Product(1, "Cooker", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-05-31"), 13750.0);
		Product product2 = new Product(2, "Sofa-Bed", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2019-11-02"), 11750.0);
		Product product3 = new Product(3, "Fridge", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2021-03-27"), 12750.0);
		Product product4 = new Product(4, "Cupboard", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2020-04-30"), 11525.0);
		Product product5 = new Product(5, "Utensils", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-06-01"), 17050.0);


		// 1.1 List
		List<Product> products = new ArrayList<Product>();
		products.add(product1);
		products.add(product2);
		products.add(product3);
		products.add(product4);
		products.add(product5);


		// 1.2 print to console
		System.out.println("Before sorting :- \n");
		products.forEach(System.out::println);


		// 2. ascending-order sorting using Method References
		products.sort(Comparator.comparing(Product::getProdCreatedDate));


		// 2.1 print to console
		System.out.println("\n\nAscending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		products.forEach(System.out::println);


		// 3. descending-order sorting using Method References
		products.sort(Comparator.comparing(Product::getProdCreatedDate).reversed());


		// 3.1 print to console - descending order
		System.out.println("\n\nDescending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		products.forEach(System.out::println);
	}
}

Output:

Before sorting :- 

Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Ascending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Descending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]

4. Sort List by Date using Stream API

ProductDateSortingUsingStreamAPI.java

package in.bench.resources.date.sorting;

import java.text.ParseException;
import java.text.SimpleDateFormat;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Comparator;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.stream.Collectors;

public class ProductDateSortingUsingStreamAPI {

	public static void main(String[] args) throws ParseException {

		// 1. products
		Product product1 = new Product(1, "Cooker", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-05-31"), 13750.0);
		Product product2 = new Product(2, "Sofa-Bed", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2019-11-02"), 11750.0);
		Product product3 = new Product(3, "Fridge", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2021-03-27"), 12750.0);
		Product product4 = new Product(4, "Cupboard", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2020-04-30"), 11525.0);
		Product product5 = new Product(5, "Utensils", 
				new SimpleDateFormat("yyyy-MM-dd").parse("2022-06-01"), 17050.0);


		// 1.1 List
		List<Product> products = new ArrayList<Product>();
		products.add(product1);
		products.add(product2);
		products.add(product3);
		products.add(product4);
		products.add(product5);


		// 1.2 print to console
		System.out.println("Before sorting :- \n");
		products.stream().forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));


		// 2. ascending-order sorting
		List<Product> sortedProductListAsc = products
				.stream()
				.sorted(Comparator.comparing(Product::getProdCreatedDate))
				.collect(Collectors.toList());


		// 2.1 print to console
		System.out.println("\n\nAscending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		sortedProductListAsc.stream().forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));


		// 3. descending-order sorting
		List<Product> sortedProductListDesc = products
				.stream()
				.sorted(Comparator.comparing(Product::getProdCreatedDate).reversed())
				.collect(Collectors.toList());


		// 3.1 print to console - descending order
		System.out.println("\n\nDescending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- \n");
		sortedProductListDesc.stream().forEach(prod -> System.out.println(prod));
	}
}

Output:

Before sorting :- 

Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Ascending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]


Descending-order sorting on the basis of Created Date :- 

Product [prodId=5, prodCreatedDate=Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=17050.0, prodName=Utensils]
Product [prodId=1, prodCreatedDate=Tue May 31 00:00:00 IST 2022, prodRate=13750.0, prodName=Cooker]
Product [prodId=3, prodCreatedDate=Sat Mar 27 00:00:00 IST 2021, prodRate=12750.0, prodName=Fridge]
Product [prodId=4, prodCreatedDate=Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 IST 2020, prodRate=11525.0, prodName=Cupboard]
Product [prodId=2, prodCreatedDate=Sat Nov 02 00:00:00 IST 2019, prodRate=11750.0, prodName=Sofa-Bed]

Related Articles:

References:

Happy Coding !!
Happy Learning !!

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