C++ Tutorial | Learn C++ Programming
C++ is a popular programming language that was developed as an extension of the C programming language to include OOPs programming paradigm. Since then, it has become foundation of many modern technologies like game engines, web browsers, operating systems, financial systems, etc.
Why Learn C++?
C++ is often taught as a foundational language to aspiring programmers, but it is much more than that:
- C++ remains one of the most used and popular programming languages used in making operating systems, embedded systems, graphical user interfaces and nowadays in High Frequency Trading (HFT) systems.
- It supports both low-level and high-level features such as manual memory management and OOPs programming respectively.
- Syntax similarity with C, Java, and C# makes it easier to switch languages.
- C++ provides one of the fastest execution speeds among high level languages, which can be a deciding factor in Competitive Programming or high-performance applications.
First C++ Program
Before going in-depth with this C++ tutorial, let’s have a quick intro to C++ language using a simple program that prints the text "Hello World". You can run this program by clicking on the play button on the top right of the code snippet.
#include <iostream>
using namespace std;
int main() {
cout << "Hello World!";
return 0;
}
Output
Hello World!
C++ Tutorial
This C++ tutorial provides a comprehensive guide to learn C++ in a well-organized, step-by-step manner. It is suitable for both absolute beginners and seasoned programmers seeking to deepen their knowledge. Each topic in this tutorial is clearly explained with practical code examples and real-world applications.
Let's start now!
C++ Overview
C++ Basics
- Hello World Program
- Comments
- Tokens
- Identifiers
- Keywords
- Variables
- Data Types
- Literals
- Constants
- Operators
- Input and Output
C++ Control Flow
- if Statement
- if-else Statement
- if-else-if Ladder
- Nested if-else Statement
- Switch Statement
- Jump Statements
- for Loop
- while Loop
- do…while Loop
C++ Functions
C++ Pointers
- Introduction to Pointers
- Applications of Pointers
- Pointer Arithmetic
- Dangling, Void, Null, and Wild Pointers
- References
- Pointers vs References
C++ Arrays
- Introduction to Arrays
- Pointer to an Array
- Passing Arrays to Functions
- Size of Array
- Multidimensional Arrays
C++ Strings
C++ Structures and Unions
- Introduction to Structures
- Pointer to Structure
- C Structures vs C++ Structures
- Introduction to Unions
- Bit Fields
- Enumeration
- typedef
C++ Dynamic Memory
- Dynamic Memory Management
- new and delete Operators
- new vs malloc() and free() vs delete
- Memory Leak
- Static vs Dynamic Memory Allocation
C++ OOPS Concepts
- Classes and Objects
- Access Modifiers
- Friend Class and Function
- Constructors
- Destructors
- Shallow Copy and Deep Copy
- this pointer
- Encapsulation
- Abstraction
- Polymorphism
- Function Overloading
- Function Overriding
- Inheritance
- Multiple Inheritance
- Virtual Functions
C++ Templates
C++ STL
- The C++ Standard Template Library (STL)
- Algorithms
- Containers
- Iterators
- Vector
- Pair
- Set
- Map
- Stack
- Queue
- Priority Queue
- Deque
- List
- Forward List
- Bitset
C++ Exception Handling
C++ Files and Streams
C++ Preprocessors
Advanced C++
C++ Interview Questions
- Top 50 C++ Interview Questions and Answers
- Top C++ STL Interview Questions and Answers
- 30 OOPs Interview Questions and Answers
- Top C++ Exception Handling Interview Questions and Answers
Difference Between C and C++
| Feature | C | C++ |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Procedural Programming Language | Middle-level Language that supports both Procedural and Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) |
| Paradigm | Procedural only | Multi-paradigm: Supports Procedural, Object-Oriented, and Generic Programming |
| Data Security | Less secure as it supports only procedural programming | More secure due to features like encapsulation, which hides data |
| Use of Classes and Objects | Does not support classes and objects | Supports classes and objects, enabling Object-Oriented Programming |
| Memory Management | Manual memory management using functions like malloc and free | Supports both manual (using malloc/free) and automatic memory management (using constructors/destructors and new/delete keywords) |
| Function Overloading | Does not support function overloading | Supports function overloading, allowing multiple functions with the same name but different parameters |
| Exception Handling | Does not support exception handling | Supports exception handling using try, catch, and throw keywords |
| Namespace | No namespace feature | Supports namespaces to avoid name collisions |
| Input/Output Functions | Uses standard input/output functions like scanf and printf | Uses object-oriented input/output streams like cin and cout |
| Inheritance | No support for inheritance | Supports inheritance, allowing classes to inherit properties and methods from other classes |
| Template Support | No support for templates | Supports templates, enabling generic programming |
| Dynamic Binding | Does not support dynamic binding | Supports dynamic binding using virtual functions |
| Header File Extensions | Uses .h file extension for header files | Uses .hpp or .h file extensions for header files |
| Compatibility | Generally limited to C programming | Backward compatible with C, allowing C code to run in C++ programs |
| Application Domain | Mainly used for system programming, embedded systems, and low-level programming | Widely used in game development, GUI applications, real-time simulations, and system/software development |
Learn C++ Interactively
If you feel overwhelmed and looking for a simpler guide to learn C++, then you can explore the GFG Free C++ Programming Language Guide, which serves as a self-taught course. It is a simple guide that discusses the basic components of the language first and provides quizzes and practice questions after each concept to help you master it. Additionally, it contains final assessment tests at the end of the guide to test your knowledge.
Jobs or Careers in C++
If we see the Statista report, then you will see that after JavaScript, Java and C#, C++ will be one of the most used programming languages in 2024. In the list of the most used languages, 23% of developers use this language. There are multiple companies seeking proficient C++ developers; some of them are listed below:
