C Exercises: Move all zeroes to the end of a given array

Last update on March 18 2025 13:21:14 (UTC/GMT +8 hours)

58. Move Zeroes to Array End

Write a program in C to move all zeroes to the end of a given array.

Expected Output :
The given array is : 2 5 7 0 4 0 7 -5 8 0
The new array is:
2 5 7 8 4 -5 7 0 0 0

To move all zeroes to the end of a given array, the program iterates through the array while maintaining a position pointer for non-zero elements. As it encounters non-zero elements, it places them at the current position pointer and increments the pointer. After processing all elements, the remaining positions in the array are filled with zeroes. This approach maintains the relative order of the non-zero elements.

Visual Presentation:

Sample Solution:

C Code:

#include <stdio.h>

// Function to segregate zeros in an array to the right side
void PickOutZeros(int *arr1, int arr_size) {
    int tmp, lft = 0, rgt = arr_size - 1;

    // Loop until the pointers meet or cross each other
    while (rgt > lft) {
        // Move the left pointer until a non-zero element is found
        while (arr1[lft] != 0)
            lft++;

        // Move the right pointer until a non-zero element is found
        while (arr1[rgt] == 0)
            rgt--;

        // Swap the non-zero elements at the left and right pointers if left is less than right
        if (lft < rgt) {
            tmp = arr1[lft];
            arr1[lft] = arr1[rgt];
            arr1[rgt] = tmp;
        }
    }
}

int main() {
    int arr1[] = {2, 5, 7, 0, 4, 0, 7, -5, 8, 0};
    int n = sizeof(arr1) / sizeof(arr1[0]);
    int i;

    //------------- print original array ------------------
    printf("The given array is: ");
    for (i = 0; i < n; i++) {
        printf("%d ", arr1[i]);
    } 
    printf("\n");
    //------------------------------------------------------ 

    // Function call to segregate zeros to the right side
    PickOutZeros(arr1, n);

    // Printing the new array after segregating zeros
    printf("The new array is: \n");
    for (i = 0; i < n; i++) {
        printf("%d ", arr1[i]);
    }

    return 0;
}

Sample Output:

The given array is :  2  5  7  0  4  0  7  -5  8  0  
The new array is: 
2 5 7 8 4 -5 7 0 0 0 

Flowchart:/p>

For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

• Write a C program to move all zeroes in an array to the end while maintaining the order of non-zero elements.
• Write a C program to segregate zero and non-zero elements in an array using two-pointer technique.
• Write a C program to move all zeroes to the end and then sort the non-zero elements in ascending order.
• Write a C program to shift zeroes to the end of an array in-place without using extra space.

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