A fundamental data structure in computer science, stacks are frequently utilized in many different contexts, such as memory management, algorithms, and other areas. In this post, we’ll examine how a stack is implemented in JavaScript and comprehend all of its various uses.

We will go over how to implement a stack in JavaScript in this tutorial. We will first define the stack data structure and its fundamental operations before implementing a stack with an array.

A stack is a collection of elements, where each element has a position in the stack called the “top” of the stack. The stack’s top is where the next element will be added or removed. The basic operations that can be performed on a stack are:

  • push(element): adds an element to the top of the stack
  • pop(): removes the element from the top of the stack and returns it
  • peek(): returns the element at the top of the stack without removing it
  • isEmpty(): returns true if the stack is empty, otherwise, it returns false

We can use an array to store the elements to implement a JavaScript stack. Here is an example of a stack implementation using an array:

				
					class Stack {
  constructor() {
    this.stack = [];
  }

  // Adds an element to the top of the stack
  push(element) {
    this.stack.push(element);
  }

  // Removes and returns the element from the top of the stack
  pop() {
    return this.stack.pop();
  }

  // Returns the element at the top of the stack without removing it
  peek() {
    return this.stack[this.stack.length - 1];
  }

  // Returns true if the stack is empty, otherwise false
  isEmpty() {
    return this.stack.length === 0;
  }
}

This implementation uses an array to store the elements of the stack and the push(), pop(), peek(), and isEmpty() methods to perform the basic stack operations.

In this example, we created a Stack class with a constructor that initializes an empty array to represent the stack. The push() method adds an element to the stack’s top by using the array’s push() methodpush() method of the array. The pop() method removes and returns the element from the top of the stack using the array’s pop() methodpop() method of the array. The peek() method returns the part at the top of the stack without removing it by accessing the last element of the array. Finally, the isEmpty() method returns true if the stack is empty by checking the array’s length.

This example is a basic implementation of a stack in JavaScript, serving the purpose of primary use cases. However, in practical scenarios it may be beneficial to keep track of the top pointer and add size property.

In conclusion, stacks are a proper data structure in JavaScript, as they allow you to perform operations such as push, pop, peek, and check if a stack is empty in a very efficient way. Furthermore, implementing a stack in JavaScript is relatively simple, as it can be done using an array and basic array methods such as push and pop.


Thanks for reading. Happy coding!