Difference Between Thread Class and Runnable Interface in Java

In this post, we will understand the difference between

Thread

• It is a class.

• It can be used to create a thread.

• It has multiple methods such as ‘start’ and ‘run’.

• It requires more memory space.

• Since multiple inheritance is not allowed in Java, hence, after a class extends the Thread class, it can’t extend to any other class.

• Every thread creates a unique object and associates with it.

Runnable

• It is a functional interface.

• It can be used to create a thread.

• It has a single abstract method ‘run’.

• It requires less memory space.

• When a class implements the ‘runnable’ interface, the class can extend to other classes.

• Multiple threads can share the same objects.