# Hash Table vs Binary Search Trees

## Hash Tables

* Simpler to code.
* No effective alternative for unordered keys.
* Faster for simple keys (a few arithmetic ops versus log N compares).
* Better system support in Java for strings (e.g., cached hash code).

## Binary Search Trees

* Stronger performance guarantee.
* Support for ordered ST operations.
* Easier to implement compareTo() correctly than equals() and hashCode().

## Java Implementations

**Red-black BSTs**: java.util.TreeMap, java.util.TreeSet.

**Hash Tables:** java.util.HashMap, java.util.IdentityHashMap.


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