The New LINQ Methods from .NET 6 to .NET 9

With each new release of the .NET framework, developers eagerly anticipate enhancements and new features that can help streamline their coding experience. From .NET 6 to .NET 9, several new LINQ (Language Integrated Query) methods were introduced, providing developers with more powerful tools for querying collections. In this post, we will explore these new methods and how they can enhance your coding experience.

What is LINQ?

LINQ is a powerful query language integrated directly into C#. It allows developers to write declarative queries using a syntax that is easier to read and maintain compared to the older techniques of querying collections. LINQ enables querying arrays, collections, XML, databases, and more in a consistent way.

New LINQ Methods Introduced

Between .NET 6 and .NET 9, several new LINQ methods have been added to provide more functionality and ease of use. Here’s a summary of some notable additions:

MinBy() and MaxBy(): These methods allow you to find the minimum or maximum element based on a specific key.
ToHashSet(): Converts a collection to a HashSet, which can improve performance for specific use cases where you need fast lookups.
DistinctBy(): This method returns distinct elements from a collection based on a specified key selector.
GroupBy() overloads: New overloads allow chaining with additional grouping, making complex queries easier to write.
Append() and Prepend(): Add elements to the end or the beginning of a collection without creating a new collection object.

How to Use the New Methods

Let’s take a closer look at how to utilize some of these new LINQ methods in your code:

MinBy() and MaxBy()

These methods make it easier to determine the minimum or maximum value in a collection based on specific criteria. Here’s an example:

var products = new List<Product> {
    new Product { Name = "Apple", Price = 1.00 },
    new Product { Name = "Banana", Price = 0.50 },
    new Product { Name = "Cherry", Price = 2.00 }
};

var cheapestProduct = products.MinBy(p => p.Price);
var mostExpensiveProduct = products.MaxBy(p => p.Price);

DistinctBy()

This allows you to filter a list by distinct values based on a specific property. Here’s an example:

var employees = new List<Employee> {
    new Employee { ID = 1, Name = "John" },
    new Employee { ID = 2, Name = "Jane" },
    new Employee { ID = 1, Name = "John" } // Duplicate
};

var distinctEmployees = employees.DistinctBy(e => e.ID).ToList();

Conclusion

The new LINQ methods introduced in .NET 6 to .NET 9 enhance the flexibility and efficiency of querying collections in

The New LINQ Methods from .NET 6 to .NET 9