The **`ArrayList.contains()` method** in Java is used to check whether or not a list contains a specific element.

To check if an element is in an array, we first need to convert the array into an ArrayList using the `asList()` method and then apply the same `contains()` method to it​.

# Syntax


# Code
The following code snippet demonstrates how the `contains()` method is used to check the presence of an object in a list:

import java.util.ArrayList;

public class main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // create an array list
    ArrayList<Integer> arrlist = new ArrayList<Integer>(4);

    // populate the list
    arrlist.add(10);
    arrlist.add(20);
    arrlist.add(30);
    arrlist.add(40);  

    // check for presence of an element contained in the list
    boolean retval = arrlist.contains(10); 
      
    if (retval == true) {
      System.out.println("10 is present in the list");
    } else {
      System.out.println("10 is not present in the list");
    }
        
    // check for presence of an element not contained in the list
    boolean retval2 = arrlist.contains(90);
      
    if (retval2 == true) {
      System.out.println("90 is present in the list");
    } else {
      System.out.println("90 is not present in the list");
    }
  }
}

To apply the `contains()` method to an *array*, we first need to convert the array into an ArrayList:

import java.util.Arrays;

public class main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // create an array
    Integer arr[] = { 10, 20, 30, 40 }; 

    // check for presence of an element in the array
    boolean retval = Arrays.asList(arr).contains(10); 

    if (retval == true) {
      System.out.println("10 is present in the Array");
    } else {
      System.out.println("10 is not present in the Array");
    }
        
    // check for presence of an element not in the Array
    boolean retval2 = Arrays.asList(arr).contains(90); 
      
    if (retval2 == true) {
      System.out.println("90 is present in the Array");
    } else {
      System.out.println("90 is not present in the Array");
    }
  }
}

What is the ArrayList.contains() method in Java?

Syntax

Code