How to Do Number Sorting in Java

You can use an array and a Java loop structure to sort a list of numbers. This method is called a "bubble" sort. Loop through each number, compare each number with the previous number, and swap the number location until you reach the end of the array. The result is a list of numbers in numerical order.

Instructions

1. Right-click the Java file you want to use to sort the numbers and click "Open With." Click your Java editor in the list of programs that appears.

2. Create an array variable of numbers. The following code creates an array of four numbers to sort using the bubble method:

   int[] numbers;
   numbers[0] = 5;
   numbers[1] = 3;
   numbers[2] = 6;
   numbers[3] = 1;

3. Loop through each number using the bubble method to sort the array. The following code sorts the array from least to greatest:

   for (int i = 0; i < numbers.length; i++) {
   int smallest = i;
   for (int j = i; j < numbers.length; j++) {
   if (numbers[j] < numbers[smallest])
   smallest= j;
   }
   int temp;
   temp = numbers[i];
   numbers[i] = numbers[smallest];
   numbers[smallest] = temp;
   }

References

• Java2s: Sort Numbers