How to sort a Set in JavaScript

Sort a Set in JavaScript #

To sort a Set in JavaScript:

Use the Array.from() method to convert the Set to an array.
Use the Array.sort() method to sort the array.
Convert the array back to a Set object.

index.js

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// ✅ Sort a Set containing Strings

const set1 = new Set(['c', 'b', 'a']);

const sortedArray = Array.from(set1).sort();
console.log(sortedArray); // 👉️ ['a', 'b', 'c']

const sortedSet = new Set(sortedArray);
console.log(sortedSet); // 👉️ {'a', 'b', 'c'}

If you need to sort a Set containing numbers, you have to pass a function to the Array.sort() method.

index.js

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// ✅ Sort a Set containing Numbers

const set1 = new Set([300, 100, 700]);

// 👇️ sorts numbers in Ascending order
const sortedArray = Array.from(set1).sort((a, b) => a - b);
console.log(sortedArray); // 👉️ [100, 300, 700]

const sortedSet = new Set(sortedArray);
console.log(sortedSet); // 👉️ {100, 300, 700}

We used the Array.from() method to convert the Set object to an array, so we can call the Array.sort() method on the array.

Notice that when sorting numbers, we have to pass a function as a parameter to the sort() method, whereas with strings, we don't.

The parameter we passed to the sort() method is a function that defines the sort order.

If you don't provide the parameter, the array elements get converted to strings and sorted according to their UTF-816 code unit values.

This is not what we want when working with Set objects that contain numbers, however, it is exactly what we want when comparing strings.

After we have sorted the array, we pass it to the Set() constructor to convert it back to a Set.

If you have to do this often, define reusable functions.

index.js

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function sortStringSet(set) {
  const sortedArray = Array.from(set).sort();

  const sortedSet = new Set(sortedArray);

  return sortedSet;
}

// 👇️ Set(3) { 'a', 'b', 'c' }
console.log(sortStringSet(new Set(['c', 'b', 'a'])));

// 👇️ Set(3) { 'a', 'c', 'z' }
console.log(sortStringSet(new Set(['c', 'z', 'a'])));

The sortStringSet() function takes a Set containing strings as a parameter and sorts the Set.

You can also define a sortNumbersSet() function.

index.js

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function sortNumbersSet(set) {
  const sortedArray = Array.from(set).sort((a, b) => a - b);

  const sortedSet = new Set(sortedArray);

  return sortedSet;
}

// 👇️ Set(3) { 100, 300, 700 }
console.log(sortNumbersSet(new Set([700, 100, 300])));

// 👇️ Set(3) { 100, 500, 600 }
console.log(sortNumbersSet(new Set([500, 600, 100])));

The function takes a numeric Set as a parameter and sorts the Set.

Sort a Set using spread syntax (...) #

Alternatively, you can use the spread syntax (...) to convert the Set to an array.

index.js

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// ✅ Sort a Set object that contains strings
const set1 = new Set(['c', 'b', 'a']);

const sortedArray = [...set1].sort();
console.log(sortedArray); // 👉️ [ 'a', 'b', 'c' ]

const sortedSet = new Set(sortedArray);
console.log(sortedSet); // 👉️ {'a', 'b', 'c'}

If your Set object contains numbers, pass a function to the Array.sort() method.

index.js

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const numbersSet = new Set([300, 100, 700]);

const sortedNumbers = [...numbersSet].sort((a, b) => a - b);
console.log(sortedNumbers); // 👉️ [100, 300, 700]

const sortedNumbersSet = new Set(sortedNumbers);
console.log(sortedNumbersSet); // 👉️ {100, 300, 700}

The code samples achieve the same result as the ones that used the Array.from() method.

The spread syntax (...) simply unpacks the elements of the Set into an array.

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How to sort a Set in JavaScript

Sort a Set in JavaScript #

Sort a Set using spread syntax (...) #

Borislav Hadzhiev