This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by rahul khattri
TL;DR: Never!
The finalize() method in Java was originally designed to let developers clean up resources before an object is reclaimed by the Garbage Collector.
But here’s the catch:
⚠️ It is not guaranteed to be called.
⚠️ Its execution is totally unpredictable.
⚠️ Relying on it means your resources (like file handles, DB connections, sockets) may never actually close.
Instead of finalize(), the modern and reliable approach is:
✅ Try-with-resources (introduced in Java 7):
try (FileInputStream fis = new FileInputStream("data.txt")) {
// use the resource
} catch (IOException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
This ensures that resources are automatically closed once the block is done — no surprises, no waiting for the GC.
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by rahul khattri
rahul khattri | Sciencx (2025-09-03T18:06:28+00:00) 🚫 When Should You Use finalize() in Java?. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/09/03/%f0%9f%9a%ab-when-should-you-use-finalize-in-java/
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