How to Sort an Object Array by Date Property?

How to sort an object array by date property?

Sorting an object array by a date property can be a common requirement when working with JavaScript. In this blog post, we will explore two different approaches to accomplish this task.

Approach 1: Using the sort() method

The first approach involves using the sort() method, which allows us to sort an array based on a specified criterion. In this case, we will provide a custom comparison function that compares the date properties of the objects.

// Sample object array
const objArray = [
  { name: 'Object 1', date: new Date('2022-01-01') },
  { name: 'Object 2', date: new Date('2021-12-31') },
  { name: 'Object 3', date: new Date('2022-02-01') }
];

// Sort the object array by date property
objArray.sort((a, b) => a.date - b.date);

console.log(objArray);

The sort() method takes a comparison function as an argument. The comparison function compares the date properties of two objects and returns a negative value if the first object should be sorted before the second object, a positive value if the first object should be sorted after the second object, or zero if the objects have the same date.

The output of the above code will be:

[
  { name: 'Object 2', date: '2021-12-31T00:00:00.000Z' },
  { name: 'Object 1', date: '2022-01-01T00:00:00.000Z' },
  { name: 'Object 3', date: '2022-02-01T00:00:00.000Z' }
]

Approach 2: Using the localeCompare() method

The second approach involves converting the date properties to string format and using the localeCompare() method to compare them.

// Sample object array
const objArray = [
  { name: 'Object 1', date: new Date('2022-01-01') },
  { name: 'Object 2', date: new Date('2021-12-31') },
  { name: 'Object 3', date: new Date('2022-02-01') }
];

// Sort the object array by date property
objArray.sort((a, b) => a.date.toString().localeCompare(b.date.toString()));

console.log(objArray);

In this approach, we convert the date properties to strings using the toString() method and then compare them using localeCompare(). The localeCompare() method returns a negative value if the first string should be sorted before the second string, a positive value if the first string should be sorted after the second string, or zero if the strings are the same.

The output of the above code will be the same as the previous approach:

[
  { name: 'Object 2', date: '2021-12-31T00:00:00.000Z' },
  { name: 'Object 1', date: '2022-01-01T00:00:00.000Z' },
  { name: 'Object 3', date: '2022-02-01T00:00:00.000Z' }
]

Both approaches provide a way to sort an object array by a date property. Choose the one that suits your specific requirements and coding style.

That’s it for this blog post! We hope you found it helpful in sorting object arrays by date properties in JavaScript.

Happy coding!