ConcurrentHashMap Vs HashMap

ConcurrentHashMap vs HashMap | In this post we will see the difference between HashMap vs ConcurrentHashMap. The HashMap is defined in java.util package whereas ConcurrentHashMap is given in java.util.concurrent package. Both of them implement Map(I) and are used to store key-value pairs but they have many differences.

The HashMap is mainly given for single thread applications where only one thread performs all the operations but ConcurrentHashMap is the best choice for multiple thread applications where multiple threads perform operations simultaneously. 

Comparison Table between ConcurrentHashMap Vs HashMap

ConcurrentHashMap HashMap
ConcurrentHashMap is thread-safe. HashMap is not thread-safe i.e. at a time multiple threads can work on HashMap objects simultaneously which may lead to data inconsistency problems.
Introduced in 1.5 version.Introduced in 1.2 version.
ConcurrentHashMap is defined in java.util.concurrent package.HashMap is defined in java.util package.
Compared to HashMap, performance is low because sometimes threads are required to wait to operate on ConcurrentHashMap.Compared to ConcurrentHashMap, performance is high because threads are not required to wait to operate on HashMap.
While one thread iterates ConcurrentHashMap the other threads are allowed to modify ConcurrentHashMap objects in a safe manner and it won’t throw ConcurrentModificationException.While one thread iterates HashMap the other threads are not allowed to modify HashMap objects. Otherwise, we will get a Runtime exception:- ConcurrentModificationException.
The Iterator of ConcurrentHashMap is fail-safe and it won’t throw ConcurrentModificationException.The Iterator of HashMap is fail-fast and it throws ConcurrentModificationException.
Null is not allowed for both keys and values otherwise we will get a NullPointerException.Null is allowed for both keys and values.

Let us demonstrate ConcurrentHashMap vs HashMap through programs by inserting null values.

ConcurrentHashMap is defined in java.util.concurrent package. Null is not allowed for both keys and values otherwise we will get a NullPointerException.

import java.util.concurrent.*;
public class Test {
   public static void main(String[] args) {
      ConcurrentHashMap<Integer, String> chm = 
             new ConcurrentHashMap<Integer, String>();

      // insert some value
      chm.put(101, "A");
      chm.put(102, "B");
      System.out.println(chm); // {101=A, 102=B}

      /* Trying to insert null key or/and value */
      // chm.put(103, null); //  NullPointerException
      // chm.put(null, "C"); //  NullPointerException
      // chm.put(null, null); //  NullPointerException
   }
}

Output:-

{101=A, 102=B}

HashMap is defined in the java.util package.  Null is allowed for both keys and values.

import java.util.*;
public class Test {
   public static void main(String[] args) {
     HashMap<Integer, String> chm = 
         new HashMap<Integer, String>();

      // insert some value
      chm.put(101, "A");
      chm.put(102, "B");
      System.out.println(chm); // {101=A, 102=B}

      /* trying to insert null key or/and value */
      chm.put(103, null);
      chm.put(null, "C");
      chm.put(null, null);
      System.out.println(chm);
   }
}

Output:-

{101=A, 102=B}
{null=null, 101=A, 102=B, 103=null}

ConcurrentHashMap vs HashMap In Multithreading

In a Multithreading environment:- ConcurrentHashMap is thread-safe whereas HashMap is not thread-safe. With a HashMap object, at a time multiple threads can perform different operations simultaneously. 

With ConcurrentHashMap object:-

  • Multiple threads can perform read operation simultaneously.
  • But a limited number of threads can perform update operations. By default (when we are using constructor ConcurrentHashMap()) maximum 16 threads are allowed to perform simultaneously for update operation.

While one thread iterates HashMap the other threads are not allowed to modify HashMap objects. Otherwise, we will get a Runtime exception:- ConcurrentModificationException.

Let us demonstrate ConcurrentModificationException through an example:-

import java.util.*;
public class MyThread extends Thread {

   static Map<Integer, String> map = 
            new HashMap<Integer, String>();

   public void run() {
      try {
         Thread.sleep(2000);
      } catch (InterruptedException ie) { }
      System.out.println("Child thread updating map");
      map.put(103, "C");
   }

   public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
      map.put(101, "A");
      map.put(102, "B");

      // create another thread
      MyThread mt = new MyThread();
      mt.start();

      // iterate Map
      Set s1 = map.keySet();
      Iterator itr = s1.iterator();
      while(itr.hasNext()) {
         Integer i1 = (Integer) itr.next();
         System.out.println("Main thread iterating"
            + " map & current entry is: "+ i1 
            + "..." + map.get(i1));
         Thread.sleep(3000);
      }
      System.out.println(map); 
   }
}

Output:-

Main thread iterating map & current entry is: 101…A
Child thread updating map
Exception in thread “main” java.util.ConcurrentModificationException
at java.base/java.util.HashMap$HashIterator.nextNode(HashMap.java:1584)
at java.base/java.util.HashMap$KeyIterator.next(HashMap.java:1607)
at MyThread.main(MyThread.java:28)

While one thread iterates ConcurrentHashMap the other threads are allowed to modify ConcurrentHashMap objects in a safe manner and it won’t throw ConcurrentModificationException.

import java.util.concurrent.*;
import java.util.*;
public class MyThread extends Thread {

   static Map<Integer, String> map = 
            new ConcurrentHashMap<Integer, String>();

   public void run() {
      try {
         Thread.sleep(2000);
      } catch (InterruptedException ie) { }
      System.out.println("Child thread updating map");
      map.put(103, "C");
   }

   public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
      map.put(101, "A");
      map.put(102, "B");

      // create another thread
      MyThread mt = new MyThread();
      mt.start();

      // iterate Map
      Set s1 = map.keySet();
      Iterator itr = s1.iterator();
      while(itr.hasNext()) {
         Integer i1 = (Integer) itr.next();
         System.out.println("Main thread iterating"
            + " map & current entry is: "+ i1 
            + "..." + map.get(i1));
         Thread.sleep(3000);
      }
      System.out.println(map); 
   }
}

Output:-

Main thread iterating map & current entry is: 101…A
Child thread updating map
Main thread iterating map & current entry is: 102…B
Main thread iterating map & current entry is: 103…C
{101=A, 102=B, 103=C}

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