If you are learning data structures, a linked list is one data structure you should know. If you do not really understand it or how it is implemented in JavaScript, this article is here to help you. In this article, we will discuss what a linked list is, how it is different from an array and how to implement in JavaScript. Let’s get started.

What is a Linked List?

A linked list is a linear data structure similar to an array. However, unlike arrays, elements are not stored in a particular memory location or index. Rather each element is a separate object that contains a pointer or a link to the next object in that list.

Each element(which are commonly called nodes) contains two items: the data stored and a link to the next node. The data can be any valid data type. You can see this illustrated in the diagram below.

The entry point to a linked list is called the head. The head is a reference to the first node in the linked list. The last node on the list points to null. If a list is empty, the head is a null reference.

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