Sort array of objects by string property value - JavaScript

Sorting an array of objects by a string property is a common task in JavaScript. The most efficient approach uses the built-in sort() method with localeCompare() for proper alphabetical ordering.

Sample Data

Let's work with this array of person objects:

const people = [
    { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
    { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
    { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
];

console.log("Original array:", people);

Original array: [
  { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
  { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
  { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
]

Method 1: Using localeCompare() (Recommended)

The localeCompare() method provides proper alphabetical sorting that handles case sensitivity and special characters correctly:

const people = [
    { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
    { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
    { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
];

// Sort by last_name alphabetically
people.sort((a, b) => a.last_name.localeCompare(b.last_name));

console.log("Sorted by last_name:", people);

Sorted by last_name: [
  { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
  { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
  { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
]

Method 2: Simple String Comparison

For basic sorting, you can use direct string comparison with the less than () operators:

const people = [
    { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
    { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
    { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
];

// Sort using string comparison
people.sort((a, b) => {
    if (a.last_name  b.last_name) return 1;
    return 0;
});

console.log("Sorted using comparison:", people);

Sorted using comparison: [
  { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
  { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
  { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
]

Reverse Order Sorting

To sort in descending order, simply reverse the comparison:

const people = [
    { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
    { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
    { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
];

// Sort in descending order
people.sort((a, b) => b.last_name.localeCompare(a.last_name));

console.log("Sorted descending:", people);

Sorted descending: [
  { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' },
  { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
  { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' }
]

Reusable Sorting Function

Create a generic function to sort by any string property:

function sortByProperty(array, property) {
    return array.sort((a, b) => a[property].localeCompare(b[property]));
}

const people = [
    { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
    { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
    { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
];

// Sort by first_name
sortByProperty(people, 'first_name');
console.log("Sorted by first_name:", people);

Sorted by first_name: [
  { first_name: 'Lazslo', last_name: 'Jamf' },
  { first_name: 'Pig', last_name: 'Bodine' },
  { first_name: 'Pirate', last_name: 'Prentice' }
]

Comparison

Conclusion

Use localeCompare() for robust string property sorting in JavaScript. It handles case sensitivity and special characters properly, making it the preferred method for most applications.