Java continue Statement

continue is break's lighter cousin. Where break says stop the loop entirely, continue says skip the rest of this iteration and start the next one. The loop keeps going.

Basic use

for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++) {
  if (i == 2) {
    continue;
  }
  System.out.println(i);
}

Output:

0
1
3
4

When i == 2, continue jumps straight to the loop's update step (i++), skipping the println. The loop then re-checks its condition and proceeds with i == 3.

How loops resume

The behavior depends on the loop kind:

• for — runs the update expression, then checks the condition
• while — checks the condition immediately
• do/while — checks the condition immediately (at the bottom of the loop)
• enhanced for — moves to the next element

A continue in a while that forgets to advance state can quickly become an infinite loop:

int i = 0;
while (i < 5) {
  if (i == 2) {
    continue;     // i never advances — infinite loop!
  }
  System.out.println(i);
  i++;
}

This is a classic mistake. Either increment before the continue, or use a for loop so the update step runs automatically.

Filtering elements

The most common use of continue is "skip the elements I don't care about":

int[] nums = {3, 7, 2, 8, 5, 4};

for (int n : nums) {
  if (n % 2 != 0) {
    continue;          // skip odd numbers
  }
  System.out.println(n);
}

Output: 2 8 4.

continue vs. inverting the condition

You can often rewrite a continue as an if that wraps the rest of the body:

for (int n : nums) {
  if (n % 2 == 0) {
    System.out.println(n);
  }
}

Functionally identical. Which to prefer is a style call:

• Use continue when there are multiple skip conditions; a series of early-out guards is flatter than deeply nested ifs.
• Use a wrapping if when the skip condition is simple and the body is short.

// continue style — easy to add another skip condition
for (User u : users) {
  if (u == null) continue;
  if (!u.isActive()) continue;
  if (u.isBanned()) continue;
  process(u);
}

continue only skips one level

Like break, continue affects the innermost enclosing loop:

for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
  for (int j = 0; j < 3; j++) {
    if (j == 1) continue;     // only skips inner iteration
    System.out.println(i + "," + j);
  }
}

Output:

0,0
0,2
1,0
1,2
2,0
2,2

To continue the outer loop from inside the inner one, use a labeled continue — covered in labeled statements.

A worked example

What's next

When you combine for loops, you get nested loops — the foundation for working with grids, tables, and 2D arrays.

Practice