How to Convert Java to Kotlin in Android Studio?

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How to Convert Java to Kotlin in Android Studio?

Java and Kotlin are two popular programming languages that used to develop Android applications. Android Studio offers a convenient built-in converter that makes simpler the process of migrating existing Java code to Kotlin.  In this article, we will show you how to migrate Java code to Kotlin code in Android Studio.

How to Convert Java to Kotlin in Android Studio?

by

Viktoriia Domukhovska

Updated: September 12, 2023

Java and Kotlin are two popular programming languages that used to develop Android applications. Android Studio offers a convenient built-in converter that makes simpler the process of migrating existing Java code to Kotlin.  In this article, we will show you how to migrate Java code to Kotlin code in Android Studio.

Converting Java to Kotlin in Android Studio

To perform the migration of your Java code to Kotlin code in Android Studio, you can follow the following steps:

1. Open the Java file you want to convert in Android Studio.
2. Go to Code > Convert Java File to Kotlin File in the menu bar.
3. A window will appear with the Kotlin conversion settings. Select the desired settings and select OK.
4. A Kotlin file will be created in the same package as the original Java file.

Converting only a part of a Java file to Kotlin in Android Studio

1. Open the Java file in Android Studio and select the portion of the code that you want to convert.
2. Copy the selected code to the clipboard (Ctrl+C or Cmd+C).
3. Create a new Kotlin file in your project (File > New > Kotlin File/Class) or add code to an existing file.
4. Paste the copied code into the new Kotlin file (Ctrl+V or Cmd+V).

Android Studio will automatically convert the Java code to Kotlin syntax as you paste it into the new file. Note that this method only works for small portions of code and may not be suitable for larger files or more complex code. Additionally, you may need to manually adjust some parts of the converted code to ensure it compiles and runs correctly in Kotlin.

Android Studio – it’s a powerful IDE for developing Android applications, and one of it’s great features is the ability to combine Java and Kotlin code in the same project. This permit developers to take preference of both languages and use the best tool for the job.

If you have a piece of Java code that you want to reuse in your Kotlin project, you can easily convert it using Android Studio. Here are the steps to follow:

1. Open your Kotlin project in Android Studio.
2. Create a new Kotlin file where you want to use the Java code.
3. In the new Kotlin file, create a class that has the same name as the Java class you want to reuse.
4. In the new Kotlin class, use the ‘@JvmName’ annotation to give the class the same name as the Java class. For example, if your Java class is named ‘MyClass’, you can add ‘@JvmName(“MyClass”)’ above the Kotlin class declaration.
5. Copy the Java code you want to reuse and paste it into the new Kotlin class.
6. Make any necessary adjustments to the code to ensure it compiles and runs correctly in Kotlin.

Following these steps, you can easily use again Java code in your Kotlin project without having to rewrite it from scratch. This will help to save time and effort, and allow you to take advantage of the strengths of both languages in your Android app.

Using a Java to Kotlin Converter

In addition to Android Studio’s built-in converter and migration assistant, there are also third-party Java to Kotlin converters that you can use. Here are two popular options:

• Java to Kotlin Converter: An online converter that allows you to convert Java code to Kotlin code without having to install any software.
• IntelliJ IDEA: A popular IDE for Java and Kotlin development that includes a built-in converter for converting Java code to Kotlin.

Java code example and its Kotlin equivalent

Java code

public class HelloWorld {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        System.out.println("Hello, world!");
    }
}

Kotlin equivalent

class HelloWorld() {
    fun main() {
        println("Hello, world!")
    }
}

Both versions of the code print the string “Hello, world!” to the console.

As you can see, the Kotlin code is much more concise and requires less boilerplate than the Java code. Moreover, unlike Java, the main function in Kotlin doesn’t necessitate an array of String arguments.