Return Statement in Java

What is a return statement in Java?

In Java programming, the return statement is used for returning a value when the execution of the block is completed. The return statement inside a loop will cause the loop to break and further statements will be ignored by the compiler.

Returning a Value from a Method

In Java, every method is declared with a return type such as int, float, double, string, etc.

These return types required a return statement at the end of the method. A return keyword is used for returning the resulted value.

The void return type doesn't require any return statement. If we try to return a value from a void method, the compiler shows an error.

Following are the important points must remember while returning a value:

The return type of the method and type of data returned at the end of the method should be of the same type. For example, if a method is declared with the float return type, the value returned should be of float type only.
The variable that stores the returned value after the method is called should be a similar data type otherwise, the data might get lost.
If a method is declared with parameters, the sequence of the parameter must be the same while declaration and method call.

Syntax:

The syntax of a return statement is the return keyword is followed by the value to be returned.

The following Java programs demonstrate the use of return statements.

SampleReturn1.java

public class SampleReturn1 
{
    /* Method with an integer return type and no arguments */
    public int CompareNum() 
    { 
        int x = 3;
        int y = 8;
        System.out.println("x = " + x + "\ny = " + y);
        if(x>y)
            return x;
        else
            return y;
    }
    
    /* Driver Code */
    public static void main(String ar[]) 
    {
        SampleReturn1 obj = new SampleReturn1();
        int result = obj.CompareNum();
        System.out.println("The greater number among x and y is: " + result);
    }
}

Output:

x = 3
y = 8
The greater number among x and y is: 8

In the above Java code, the method CompareNum is defined with the int return type. It compares the x and y values and returns the greater number.

SampleReturn2.java

public class SampleReturn2 
{
    /* Method with an integer return type and arguments */
    public int CompareNum(int x, int y) 
    { 
        System.out.println("x = " + x + "\ny = " + y);
        if(x>y)
            return x;
        else
            return y;
    }
    
    /* Driver Code */
    public static void main(String ar[]) 
    {
        SampleReturn2 obj = new SampleReturn2();
        int result = obj.CompareNum(15,24);
        System.out.println("The greater number among x and y is: " + result);
    }
}

Output:

x = 15
y = 24
The greater number among x and y is: 24

In the above Java code, the method CompareNum is defined with int return type and two arguments x and y. The method compares x and y values and returns the greater number.

Returning a Class or Interface

A method can have the class name as its return type. Therefore it must return the object of the exact class or its subclass.

An interface name can also be used as a return type but the returned object must implement methods of that interface.

The following Java program shows the implementation of a class name as a return type.

SampleReturn3.java

class SumReturn
{
    private int a;
    public SumReturn(int i)
    {
        a = i;
    }
    /*The addition method returns a SumReturn object with adding 100 into it. */
    public SumReturn addition()
    {
        SumReturn result = new SumReturn(a + 100);

        return result;
    }
    public void display()
    {
        System.out.println("Additon result: " + a);
    }
}
public class SampleReturn3
{
    /* Driver Code */
    public static void main(String[] args)
    {
        SumReturn obj1 = new SumReturn(50);
        SumReturn obj2;
        /* addition method returns a reference of SumReult class */
        obj2 = obj1.addition();
        obj2.display();
    }
}

Output:

Additon result: 150

In the above code, a SumResult class contains an addition method with class name as its return type. It returns the result value and prints it using the display method.

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