Collections.emptyMap() vs new HashMap()

Question

What are some of the situations where I can use Collections.emptyMap() ? The Documentation says I can use this method if I want my collection to be immutable. <

Answer 1

Most of the time we use a constructor to create a new empty map. But the Collections methods offer a couple of advantages to create an empty map using static method java.util.Collections.emptyMap()

1. They're more concise because you don't need to explicitly type out the generic type of the collection - it's generally just inferred from the context of the method call.

2. They're more efficient because they don't bother creating new objects; they just re-use an existing empty and immutable object. This effect is generally very minor, but it's occasionally (well, rarely) important.