Java Catch Multiple Exceptions

Before learning about catching multiple exceptions, you need to be familiar with basic exception handling in Java. Moving forward, we assume you are familiar with a try and catch block in Java.

Why do we need multiple catch blocks in Java?

Multiple catch blocks in Java are used to handle different types of exceptions. Before Java 7 was launched, we needed a specific catch block to catch a specific exception. This created blocks of redundant code and hence resulted in an inefficient approach. Have a look at the following example to witness caught exceptions. It uses separate catch blocks for different kinds of exceptions.

Example using Separate Catch Blocks

import java.util.Arrays;

public class ExceptionHandler {

	public static void main(String[] args) {

		Integer[] colorsOfASpectrum = { 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0 };

		try {

			System.out.println("Total number of options on a dice are: " + Arrays.toString(colorsOfASpectrum));
		
	// 		un-comment the following line to see "Index Out of Bounds Exception"		
	//		colorsOfASpectrum[10] = 7; // Index Out of Bounds Exception
			
			System.out.println(colorsOfASpectrum[0] / 0);	// Arithmetic Exception

		} catch (ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException e) {
			// This catch block executes in case of "Index Out of Bounds Exception"
			System.out.println("Array Index Out Of Bounds Exception " + e);
		
		} catch (ArithmeticException e) {
			// This catch block executes in case of "Arithmetic Exception"
			System.out.println("Arithmetic Exception " + e);
		}
		
		System.out.println("\n----Rest of the code executes here----");
	}
}

Output

As you can see, in the example above a different block is executed when an exception is thrown. There is a more efficient way to catch multiple exceptions using the same block of code for catching exceptions of different types. Have a look at the following example.

Example using Multiple Catch Block in Java

import java.util.Arrays;

public class MultiExceptionHandler {

	public static void main(String[] args) {

		Integer[] colorsOfASpectrum = { 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 };

		try {

			System.out.println("Total colors on a spectrum are: " + Arrays.toString(colorsOfASpectrum));

	//		colorsOfASpectrum[10] = 7; // Index Out of Bounds Exception
			System.out.println(colorsOfASpectrum[0] / 0); // Arithmetic Exception

		} catch (ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException | ArithmeticException e) {
			// We don't need two different catch blocks for different kinds of exceptions
			// Both exceptions will be handled using this multiple catch block

			System.out.println("Exception Encountered " + e);
		}
		System.out.println("\n----Rest of the code executes here----");
	}
}

Output

You can un-comment line 13 for printing out the exception of other kind.

Conclusion

This was a quick overview of using java catch multiple exceptions block. As a challenge, try printing the parent and the child exception in the same block. You’re encouraged to learn and practise to grow. Cheers and happy learning!