Bubble sort program in C

In this tutorial, we will learn how to create a program in C that sorts an array in ascending order using the bubble sort technique. At last, we have also created a function that can be used to sort any given array in ascending order.

However, before proceeding with the program, if you are unfamiliar with how bubble sorting works, please refer to the step-by-step operation of bubble sort. Now let's move on and implement it in the C program.

Bubble Sort in C

Now let's implement bubble sort in a C program as given below. I'll explain each and every line of code later on. The question is: write a program in C that sorts a given array in ascending order using the bubble sort technique. The answer to this question is:

#include<stdio.h>
#include<conio.h>
int main()
{
    int arr[50], i, j, n, temp;
    printf("Enter total number of elements to store: ");
    scanf("%d", &n);
    printf("Enter %d elements:", n);
    for(i=0; i<n; i++)
        scanf("%d", &arr[i]);
    printf("\nSorting array using bubble sort technique...\n");
    for(i=0; i<(n-1); i++)
    {
        for(j=0; j<(n-i-1); j++)
        {
            if(arr[j]>arr[j+1])
            {
                temp = arr[j];
                arr[j] = arr[j+1];
                arr[j+1] = temp;
            }
        }
    }
    printf("All Array elements sorted successfully!\n");
    printf("Array elements in ascending order:\n\n");
    for(i=0; i<n; i++)
        printf("%d ", arr[i]);
    getch();
    return 0;
}

As the above program was written in the Code::Blocks IDE, here is the first snapshot of the sample run:

c program bubble sort

Now supply the size of the array, say 10, and then enter 10 array elements. After providing the array size and its element, press the ENTER key to sort and print all array elements in ascending order using the bubble sort method. Here is the second snapshot of the sample run:

bubble sort in c

Program Explained

C bubble sort: show array after each sort

If you want to display the array after each sort, then here is the program you may go for:

#include<stdio.h>
#include<conio.h>
int main()
{
    int arr[10], i, j, temp;
    printf("Enter 10 array elements:");
    for(i=0; i<10; i++)
        scanf("%d", &arr[i]);
    for(i=0; i<(10-1); i++)
    {
        for(j=0; j<(10-i-1); j++)
        {
            if(arr[j]>arr[j+1])
            {
                temp = arr[j];
                arr[j] = arr[j+1];
                arr[j+1] = temp;
            }
        }
        printf("\n");
        printf("Step %d: ", i+1);
        for(j=0; j<10; j++)
            printf("%d ", arr[j]);
        printf("\n");
    }
    printf("\nSorted Array is:\n");
    for(i=0; i<10; i++)
        printf("%d ", arr[i]);
    getch();
    return 0;
}

Here is the final snapshot of this program:

c sort array using bubble sort

Function-based Bubble Sort Program in C

Here is another program that does the same job using a user-defined function, bubbleSort():

#include<stdio.h>
#include<conio.h>
void bubbleSort(int arr[], int n);
int main()
{
    int arr[100], nos, i;
    printf("How many element that has to be sorted ? ");
    scanf("%d", &nos);
    printf("\n");
    for(i=0; i<nos; i++)
    {
        printf("Enter integer value for element no.%d: ",i+1);
        scanf("%d",&arr[i]);
    }
    bubbleSort(arr, nos);
    printf("\n\nFinally sorted array is:\n");
    for(i=0; i<nos; i++)
        printf("%d\n",arr[i]);
    getch();
    return 0;
}
void bubbleSort(int arr[], int no)
{
    int i, j, temp;
    for(i=no-2; i>=0; i--)
    {
        for(j=0; j<=i; j++)
        {
            if(arr[j]>arr[j+1])
            {
                temp = arr[j];
                arr[j] = arr[j+1];
                arr[j+1] = temp;
            }
        }
    }
}

After a successful build and run, Here is the first screenshot of the sample run:

bubble sort using function c

And here is the second screenshot of the sample run:

bubble sort c program using function

Program Explained

Except for the function, all of the steps are the same as those discussed in the first program (of this article). As here, we have used functions to implement bubble sort. Here are some of the main steps for using function in this case:

The same program in different languages

C Quiz


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