StringUtils.isBlank() checks that each character of the string is a whitespace character (or that the string is empty or that it's null). This is totally different than just checking if the string is empty.

From the linked documentation:

Checks if a String is whitespace, empty ("") or null.

 StringUtils.isBlank(null)      = true
 StringUtils.isBlank("")        = true  
 StringUtils.isBlank(" ")       = true  
 StringUtils.isBlank("bob")     = false  
 StringUtils.isBlank("  bob  ") = false

For comparison StringUtils.isEmpty:

 StringUtils.isEmpty(null)      = true
 StringUtils.isEmpty("")        = true  
 StringUtils.isEmpty(" ")       = false  
 StringUtils.isEmpty("bob")     = false  
 StringUtils.isEmpty("  bob  ") = false

Warning: In java.lang.String.isBlank() and java.lang.String.isEmpty() work the same except they don't return true for null.

java.lang.String.isBlank() (since Java 11)

java.lang.String.isEmpty()

Answer from arshajii on Stack Overflow
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Baeldung
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Difference Between String isEmpty() and isBlank() | Baeldung
December 2, 2025 - The above table summarizes that if the String doesnโ€™t contain any character, both methods return true. Additionally, the escape sequences \t, \n, \r, \f, and \s are considered whitespace characters, so only isBlank() returns true. In contrast, isEmpty() returns false for all of them. Finally, for any other character different from the ones shown in the table, both methods return false. Before Java 11, developers typically used the combination of String.trim() and String.isEmpty() to validate that a text contains only whitespace characters.
People also ask

When to use isEmpty() over isBlank()?
Use isEmpty() when you want to check if a string has absolutely no characters. Choose isBlank() when you want to check if a string is either empty or contains only spaces, tabs, or similar whitespace characters.
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bootcamptoprod.com
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Is there a performance difference between isEmpty() and isBlank()?
isBlank() involves additional checks for whitespace characters, potentially impacting performance, especially with larger strings, compared to isEmpty().
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How to check if a string is null, empty, or blank in Java?
You can use a combination of the Objects class methods and the String class methods to check if a string is null, empty, or blank. For example:Object class method: Objects.isNull(str)String class methods: str.isEmpty() or str.isBlank()
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Java String isEmpty vs isBlank: A Detailed Comparison - BootcampToProd
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Baeldung
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Checking for Empty or Blank Strings in Java | Baeldung
January 8, 2024 - The most convenient way is to use Apache Commons Lang, which provides helpers such as StringUtils.isBlank. If we want to stick to plain Java, we can use a combination of String#trim with either String#isEmpty or String#length.
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Medium
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isEmpty() vs empty() vs isBlank() vs isNull() | by leela prasad | Medium
February 16, 2025 - The isEmpty operator checks if a string contains no characters and is only whitespace. The isBlank operator checks if a string contains no characters, is only whitespace, and is null.
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howtodoinjava.com โ€บ home โ€บ java 11 โ€บ java string isblank() โ€“ check blank or empty string
Java String isBlank() - Check Blank or Empty String
December 12, 2022 - Learn to use String.isBlank() method ... The isBlank() method has been added in Java 11. To check if a given string does not have even blank spaces, use String.isEmpty() method....
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Reddit
reddit.com โ€บ r/askprogramming โ€บ in java, should i use (string ) isempty() or isblank() when checking an xml object for an empty value?
r/AskProgramming on Reddit: In Java, should I use (String ) isEmpty() or isBlank() when checking an XML object for an empty value?
September 26, 2022 -

I have some config file and it is deployed in many regions. Some regions have certain requirements for example lets say one region needed a username and password (basic auth). The current setup is that each deployment has it's own config file and only the instances where it is needed are these values included in the respective config.xml file.

So I have in my Java code some logic that says

'if this element is in the XML, set the corresponding variable with its value, if not do nothing'

So when I'm trying to see if that value is present or if the tag is empty/blank, which String utility should I use to check?

example code (default option left open as empty string):

if (my_config.getString(USER_ID_ELEMENT, "") != null
    & my_config.getString(PASSWORD_ELEMENT, "") != null) {
		my_userId = m_config.getString(USER_ID_ELEMENT, "");
		my_password = m_config.getString(PASSWORD_ELEMENT, "");

Here I'm checking if it is not null, but I don't think it's a very good test since I don't know if an empty XML tag is blank or is empty (i think null isn't even an option)?

Find elsewhere
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BootcampToProd
bootcamptoprod.com โ€บ java-string-isempty-vs-isblank
Java String isEmpty vs isBlank: A Detailed Comparison - BootcampToProd
December 16, 2023 - The isEmpty and isBlank methods are used to check if a string is empty or blank, respectively. An empty string is a string that has no characters, while a blank string is a string that has only whitespace characters.
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w3schools.com โ€บ java โ€บ ref_string_isempty.asp
Java String isEmpty() Method
The isEmpty() method checks whether a string is empty or not. This method returns true if the string is empty (length() is 0), and false if not. ... If you want to use W3Schools services as an educational institution, team or enterprise, send ...
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tutorialspoint.com โ€บ home โ€บ java/lang โ€บ java string isblank method
Java String isBlank Method
September 1, 2008 - It returns true if and only if, the string is empty or contains the white-spaces; false otherwise. In Java, the isBlank() and isEmpty() methods return the same values, but the difference is the isBlank() method considers that the white-spaces are blank strings...
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javaguides.net โ€บ 2024 โ€บ 01 โ€บ string-isempty-vs-isblank-in-java.html
String isEmpty() vs String isBlank() in Java
June 15, 2024 - The isEmpty() and isBlank() methods ... whitespace characters. While isEmpty() checks if the string's length is 0, isBlank() checks if the string is empty or consists only of whitespace characters....
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Stack Abuse
stackabuse.com โ€บ java-check-if-string-is-null-empty-or-blank
Java: Check if String is Null, Empty or Blank
February 28, 2023 - It additionally provides a few methods that we can leverage for this, including StringUtils.isEmpty() and StringUtils.isBlank(): String nullString = null; if (nullString == null) { System.out.println("String is null"); } else if (StringUtils.isEmpty(nullString)) { System.out.println("String is empty"); } else if (StringUtils.isBlank(nullString)) { System.out.println("String is blank"); } The output will be: String is null ยท
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javatpoint.com โ€บ java-string-isempty
Java String isEmpty()
Java String isEmpty() method with method signature and examples of concat, compare, touppercase, tolowercase, trim, length, equals, split, string isempty in java etc.
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GeeksforGeeks
geeksforgeeks.org โ€บ java โ€บ java-string-isblank-method
Java String isBlank() Method - GeeksforGeeks
July 23, 2025 - // Java program to use isBlank() with conditional logic public class StringIsBlank { public static void main(String[] args) { // String with spaces String s = " "; // Check if the message is blank if (s.isBlank()) { System.out.println("The message is blank."); } else { System.out.println("Message: " + s); } } } Output ยท The message is blank. Before Java 11, developers often used isEmpty() or a combination of trim() and isEmpty() to check for blank strings.
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Codemia
codemia.io โ€บ knowledge-hub โ€บ path โ€บ stringutilsisblank_vs_stringisempty
StringUtils.isBlank() vs String.isEmpty()
Enhance your system design skills with over 120 practice problems, detailed solutions, and hands-on exercises
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Reddit
reddit.com โ€บ r/learnjava โ€บ question about .isempty() and .contains("")
r/learnjava on Reddit: Question about .isEmpty() and .contains("")
July 25, 2023 -

SORRY

I JUST REALISED I MADE A MISTAKE I WANTED TO ASK ABOUT EQUALS("") BUT AT THE SAME TIME I WAS FIGHTING WITH ANOTHER EXCERCISE IN WHICH I HAD TO USE CONTAINS() METHOD AND THIS MESSED UP MY THOUGHTS SORRY FOR WASTING YOUR TIME :/

but still i was able to get some usefull info about contains method so it wasn't as much wasted effort but still sorry

Hi i'm doing(or atleast trying to do) mooc.fi java part 1 course and there in some exercises is required to check for empty input.

So there is my question what is difference between .isEmpty() and .Equals("") because i like to use the first one but in suggested solutions always is used ".Equals("") and i'm wondering is there any rule for using .isEmpty(), maybe it's the matter of optimalization etc. or maybe both are as good

I know it can be stupid question but it's better to ask that and get rid of bad habits in writing code as soon as possible :D

In advance thanks for answers

P.S i hope everything is easy to understand unfortunately my english is still far from good :D

Top answer
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isEmpty() checks for string length and returns true if it's zero, while contains("") will return true unless the string isn't initialized/null. For checking empty strings or strings containing only whitespace you could also use the method isBlank(). Hope this helps!
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String.isEmpty() vs String.isBlank() in Java | by Ramesh Fadatare | Medium
April 2, 2025 - String s1 = ""; System.out.println(s1.isEmpty()); // true String s2 = " "; System.out.println(s2.isEmpty()); // false ... Introduced in Java 11, this method returns true if the string is empty OR contains only whitespace. String s1 = ""; ...
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