Since version 9, Java has new features every 6 months and it’s very hard to keep track of these new changes. Most of the information on the internet describes changes between the last 2 Java versions. However, if you’re in a similar situation as me, you’re not using the last Java version but a version several releases older.
Then it’s useful to know which new features were added since the version you use now, or between the versions that you use now and the one you want to start using next. Therefore I’ve compiled a table with all new features added since Java 8 for each new Java version. The first table contains changes in the Java language, the second language contains additions outside of the language, such as command line tools or JVM improvements.
Note that I didn’t include all the new features and API additions, only those that are most useful, to keep the list brief.
Below you can find tables for:
UPDATE: Dávid Csákvári also wrote a similar article for new features between Java 8 and Java 15, a more detailed one, with a lot of useful examples.
New Java language features since Java 8
New JDK tools and features since OpenJDK 8
Tool / feature | Since | Experimental since |
Packaging Tool | 14 | |
Helpful NullPointerExceptions | 14 | |
Shenandoah GC | 12 | |
Epsilon (no-op) GC | 11 | |
Z GC | 11 | |
Experimental Java-Based JIT Compiler (Graal VM) | 10 | |
Docker Container Support (-XX:-UseContainerSupport) | 10 and 8u191 | |
Flexible heap size selection (-XX:MaxRAMPercentage) | 10 and 8u191 | |
Application Class-Data Sharing | 10 | |
jlink | 9 | |
JShell (Java REPL) | 9 | |
Multi-Release JAR Files | 9 | |
Compact Strings | 9 |
Deprecated/removed features and APIs:
Feature / API | Deprecated since | Removed since |
Solaris and SPARC Ports | 14 | |
ParallelScavenge + SerialOld GC Combination | 14 | |
CMS GC | 9 | 14 |
Pack200 Tools and API | 11 | 14 |
Nashorn JavaScript Engine | 11 | |
Java FX (moved to OpenJFX) | 11 | |
Java EE and CORBA modules | 9 | 11 |
javah Native-Header Generator | 10 | |
jhat Heap Visualizer | 9 | |
Launch-Time JRE Version Selection | 9 | |
Rarely-Used GC Combinations | 8 | 9 |
Applet API | 9 |
For more details, the javaalmanac.io/ catalog is very useful to browse the changes in Java thoughout all its history. It can give you complete diff of APIs between selected Java versions, e.g. between Java 8 and Java 11. Very useful If you’re thinking about migrating to a specific Java version.