# How to convert an Array to a List in Java

By Atta Ur Rehman Shah (https://attacomsian.com/about). Published Dec 1, 2019, updated Oct 29, 2022. Topics: Java.
Canonical URL: https://attacomsian.com/blog/java-convert-array-to-list

> A short article to learn how to convert an array to a list in Java using Stream API.

There are multiple ways to convert an array to a list in Java. In this article, you will learn about different ways of converting an array to a `List` in Java. 

## Convert an array to a list  using a loop

Let us start with a simple example that shows how to convert a primitive array `int[]` to a `List<Integer>` by using a loop:

```java
int[] years = {2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020};

// convert array to list
List<Integer> list = new ArrayList<>();
for (int y : years) {
    list.add(y);
}

// print list elements
for (Integer elem: list) {
    System.out.println(elem);
}
```

The above code will print the following on the console:

```bash
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
```

## Convert an array to a list  using `Arrays.asList()`

For string or object (non-primitive) arrays, you can use the `Arrays.asList()` method to easily convert an array to a list. Here is an example of a string array to list conversion:

```java
String[] names = {"Atta", "John", "Emma", "Tom"};

// convert array to list
List<String> list = Arrays.asList(names);

// print list elements
System.out.println(list);
```

You should see the following output:

```bash
[Atta, John, Emma, Tom]
```

## Convert an array to a list  using Java 8 Stream

In Java 8+, you can use the Stream API to convert an array to a list, as shown below:

```java
int[] years = {2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020};

// convert array to list
List<Integer> list = Arrays.stream(years).boxed().collect(Collectors.toList());

// print list elements
list.forEach(System.out::println);
```

Here is the output:

```bash
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
```

Java 8 Stream API can also be used for non-primitive arrays:

```java
String[] names = {"Atta", "John", "Emma", "Tom"};

// convert array to list
List<String> list = Arrays.stream(names).collect(Collectors.toList());
```

## Convert an array to a list  using `List.of()`

If you are using Java 9 or higher, you can use the `List.of()` method as well for an array to a list conversion:

```java
String[] names = {"Atta", "John", "Emma", "Tom"};

// convert array to list
List<String> list = List.of(names);

// print list elements
System.out.println(list);
```