Java Method Overloading: Enhance Flexibility with Multiple Methods

Learn about Java method overloading, a feature that allows you to define multiple methods with the same name but different parameters. Understand how method overloading enables you to perform similar tasks for different data types or numbers of arguments in your Java programs.



Java Method Overloading

In Java, method overloading allows you to define multiple methods with the same name but with different parameters. This enables you to perform similar tasks using methods that are tailored to different types or numbers of parameters.

Example: Overloading Methods

Consider the following example where we define two methods that perform addition for different data types:

Example 1

public class Main {
static int plusMethod(int x, int y) {
return x + y;
}

static double plusMethod(double x, double y) {
return x + y;
}

public static void main(String[] args) {
int myNum1 = plusMethod(8, 5);
double myNum2 = plusMethod(4.3, 6.26);
System.out.println("int: " + myNum1);
System.out.println("double: " + myNum2);
}
}
    
Output

int: 13
double: 10.56
    

In this example, the method plusMethod is overloaded to handle both int and double parameters, returning the sum accordingly.

Overloading methods allows you to write more concise and readable code by using the same method name for different operations, depending on the parameters passed.