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🔗 Java LinkedList Methods – Full Guide with Syntax, Examples & Best Practices (2025)

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🧲 Introduction – Why Use Java LinkedList Methods?

Java’s LinkedList is a powerful data structure that combines the benefits of a list and a queue. It allows for fast insertions and deletions, especially at the beginning and middle of the list — and comes with a rich set of methods to make your code flexible and efficient.

By the end of this guide, you’ll understand how to:

• ✅ Use all key LinkedList methods
• ✅ Perform add, remove, access, and queue operations
• ✅ Know when to choose LinkedList over ArrayList

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🔑 What is a Java LinkedList?

LinkedList is a doubly-linked list implementation of the List, Deque, and Queue interfaces in Java. Unlike ArrayList, it:

• Allows fast insertions/removals from both ends
• Can be used as a stack, queue, or deque
• Is ideal for applications with frequent element shifting

📘 Located in java.util package

import java.util.LinkedList;
LinkedList<String> names = new LinkedList<>();

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📋 Common Java LinkedList Methods

🧩 Method	📘 Purpose
add() / add(index, element)	Adds element to end or at position
addFirst() / addLast()	Adds element to beginning or end
remove() / remove(index) / remove(object)	Removes first match or index
removeFirst() / removeLast()	Removes from beginning or end
get(index)	Gets element by index
getFirst() / getLast()	Retrieves first/last element
set(index, element)	Updates value at index
contains()	Checks if element exists
size()	Gets number of elements
clear()	Empties the list
peek(), poll(), pop(), offer()	Queue/stack-like operations
indexOf() / lastIndexOf()	Gets index of element

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✅ Java LinkedList Method Examples

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✅ 1. add() and add(index, element)

LinkedList<String> list = new LinkedList<>();
list.add("Java");
list.add("Python");
list.add(1, "C++");
System.out.println(list);

Output:

[Java, C++, Python]

✅ Adds elements at end or specified index.

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✅ 2. addFirst() and addLast()

list.addFirst("Start");
list.addLast("End");
System.out.println(list);

Output:

[Start, Java, C++, Python, End]

✅ Adds elements at both ends.

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✅ 3. get() and getFirst() / getLast()

System.out.println(list.get(2));       // C++
System.out.println(list.getFirst());   // Start
System.out.println(list.getLast());    // End

✅ Retrieves values from specified positions.

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✅ 4. remove(), removeFirst(), removeLast()

list.remove("C++");
list.removeFirst();
list.removeLast();
System.out.println(list);

Output:

[Java, Python]

✅ Removes elements by value or position.

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✅ 5. set(index, value) – Update Value

list.set(1, "Go");
System.out.println(list);

Output:

[Java, Go]

✅ Replaces element at given index.

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✅ 6. contains() – Check for Element

System.out.println(list.contains("Java"));  // true

✅ Checks existence of a value.

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✅ 7. size() and clear()

System.out.println(list.size());  // 2
list.clear();
System.out.println(list.isEmpty());  // true

✅ Gets total count and clears list.

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✅ 8. offer(), poll(), peek() – Queue Operations

LinkedList<String> queue = new LinkedList<>();
queue.offer("A");
queue.offer("B");
System.out.println(queue.poll());  // A
System.out.println(queue.peek());  // B

✅ Queue-like behavior:

• offer() = enqueue
• poll() = dequeue
• peek() = view front

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✅ 9. push() and pop() – Stack Behavior

LinkedList<String> stack = new LinkedList<>();
stack.push("First");
stack.push("Second");
System.out.println(stack.pop());  // Second

✅ Stack-like LIFO (last-in, first-out) operations.

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📌 Summary Table of Methods

🔧 Operation	✅ Methods
Add	add(), addFirst(), addLast(), offer()
Remove	remove(), removeFirst(), removeLast(), poll(), pop()
Access	get(), getFirst(), getLast(), peek()
Update	set(index, value)
Check	contains(), isEmpty()
Size & Clear	size(), clear()
Search Index	indexOf(), lastIndexOf()
Stack / Queue	push(), pop(), offer(), poll()

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💡 Tips for Using LinkedList Methods

• ✅ Use addFirst() / removeFirst() for queue operations.
• ✅ Use push() / pop() for stack operations.
• ⚠️ Avoid get(index) if random access is frequent — prefer ArrayList for that.
• 📘 LinkedList has higher memory usage than ArrayList.

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🧠 Summary – Java LinkedList Methods

Java LinkedList offers:

• ✅ Dual support for List and Queue
• ✅ Efficient add/remove from front or end
• ✅ Built-in methods for search, queue, stack, and iteration

Mastering these methods enables you to write flexible, performant code for any real-world application.

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❓FAQs on Java LinkedList Methods

❓ Is LinkedList ordered?

Yes. LinkedList maintains insertion order.

❓ Can LinkedList contain duplicates?

Yes, duplicates are allowed.

❓ What’s the difference between LinkedList and ArrayList?

Feature	ArrayList	LinkedList
Access Speed	Fast (O(1))	Slow (O(n))
Insertion/Deletion	Slow (shifts)	Fast (no shift)
Memory Usage	Lower	Higher

❓ Is LinkedList synchronized?

No. Use Collections.synchronizedList(new LinkedList<>()) for thread safety.

❓ How to convert LinkedList to Array?

String[] arr = list.toArray(new String[0]);

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