Java: Sort the elements of a stack in descending order

Last update on May 09 2025 12:50:23 (UTC/GMT +8 hours)

3. Sort the elements of a stack in descending order.

Write a Java program to sort the elements of the stack in descending order.

Sample Solution:

Java Code:

import java.util.Scanner;
public class Stack {
  private int[] arr;
  private int top;

  // Constructor to initialize the stack
  public Stack(int size) {
    arr = new int[size];
    top = -1;
  }

  // Method to push an element onto the stack
  public void push(int num) {
    if (top == arr.length - 1) {
      System.out.println("Stack is full");
    } else {
      top++;
      arr[top] = num;
    }
  }

  // Method to pop an element from the stack
  public int pop() {
    if (top == -1) {
      System.out.println("Stack Underflow");
      return -1;
    } else {
      int poppedElement = arr[top];
      top--;
      return poppedElement;
    }
  }

  // Method to get the top element of the stack
  public int peek() {
    if (top == -1) {
      System.out.println("Stack is empty");
      return -1;
    } else {
      return arr[top];
    }
  }

  // Method to check if the stack is empty
  public boolean isEmpty() {
    return top == -1;
  }

  public void sort() {
    if (top == -1) {
      System.out.println("Stack is empty");
      return;
    }

    Stack tempStack = new Stack(arr.length);

    while (!isEmpty()) {
      int temp = pop();

      while (!tempStack.isEmpty() && tempStack.peek() < temp) {
        push(tempStack.pop());
      }

      tempStack.push(temp);
    }

    while (!tempStack.isEmpty()) {
      int temp = tempStack.pop();
      push(temp);
    }
  }

  public void display() {
    if (top == -1) {
      System.out.println("Stack is empty");
    } else {
      System.out.print("Stack elements: ");
      for (int i = top; i >= 0; i--) {
        System.out.print(arr[i] + " ");
      }
      System.out.println();
    }
  }

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    System.out.println("Initialize a stack:");
    Stack stack = new Stack(6);
    System.out.println("\nInput some elements on the stack:");
    stack.push(1);
    stack.push(3);
    stack.push(2);
    stack.push(0);
    stack.push(7);
    stack.push(5);
    stack.display();
    System.out.println("\nSort the elements of the stack in descending order:");
    stack.sort();
    stack.display();
  }
}

Sample Output:

Initialize a stack:

Input some elements on the stack:
Stack elements: 5 7 0 2 3 1

Sort the elements of the stack in descending order:
Stack elements: 7 5 3 2 1 0

Flowchart:

Flowchart: Java Exercises: Sort the elements of a stack in descending order.

For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

Write a Java program to sort a stack in descending order using recursion without utilizing additional collections.
Write a Java program to reverse a sorted ascending stack to obtain a descending order using only stack operations.
Write a Java program to implement a descending sort on a stack by using an auxiliary stack and iterative comparison.
Write a Java program to combine two stacks sorted in descending order into a single descending sorted stack.

Go to:

PREV : Sort the elements of a stack in ascending order.
NEXT : Reverse the elements of a stack.

Live Demo:

Java Code Editor:

Improve this sample solution and post your code through Disqus