How to Use putExtra() and getExtra() For String Data in Android?

Last Updated : 03 Jul, 2025

Many times in android applications we have to pass data from one activity to another for performing some operations. There are several different ways that are used to give data from one activity to another activity. In this article, we will specifically take a look at How to use putExtra() and getExtra() for passing and retrieving string data in the android application.

Note: This Android article covers in both Java and Kotlin languages.

Step by Step Implementation

Step 1: Create a New Project in Android Studio

To create a new project in Android Studio please refer to How to Create/Start a New Project in Android Studio.

Step 2: Working with the activity_main.xml file

Navigate to app > res > layout > activity_main.xml and add the below code to it. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.

activity_main.xml:

XML

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
    android:id="@+id/idRLContainer"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:orientation="vertical"
    android:gravity="center"
    android:padding="48dp"
    tools:context=".MainActivity">

    <EditText
        android:id="@+id/editText"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginBottom="32dp"
        android:hint="Enter your message" />

    <!--on below line we are creating a button-->
    <Button
        android:id="@+id/button"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:text="Pass Data" />

</LinearLayout>

Step 3: Creating a new activity

Navigate to app >java >{package-name}, Right click, New > Empty Activity and name it as MainActivity2 and click on finish to create a new activity.

Step 4: Working with the MainActivity file

Navigate to app > java > {package-name} > MainActivity file and add the code below. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.

MainActivity.java

package org.geeksforgeeks.demo;

import android.content.Intent;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.widget.Button;
import android.widget.EditText;
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

    // Declare views
    private EditText messageEditText;
    private Button sendMessageButton;

    @Override
    protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);

        // Initialize views
        messageEditText = findViewById(R.id.editText);
        sendMessageButton = findViewById(R.id.button);

        // Set click listener
        sendMessageButton.setOnClickListener(v -> {
            // Get user input
            String message = messageEditText.getText().toString();

            // Create intent to navigate to MainActivity2
            Intent intent = new Intent(MainActivity.this, MainActivity2.class);

            // Pass data with intent
            intent.putExtra("message", message);

            // Start the new activity
            startActivity(intent);
        });
    }
}

MainActivity.kt

package org.geeksforgeeks.demo

import android.content.Intent
import android.os.Bundle
import android.widget.Button
import android.widget.EditText
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity

class MainActivity : AppCompatActivity() {

    // declare variables for views
    private lateinit var messageEditText: EditText
    private lateinit var sendMessageButton: Button

    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main)

        // initialize variables
        sendMessageButton = findViewById(R.id.button)
        messageEditText = findViewById(R.id.editText)

        // adding on click listener to button
        sendMessageButton.setOnClickListener {
            // receiving user input
            val message = messageEditText.text.toString()

            // creating a new intent to open a new activity
            val intent = Intent(this@MainActivity, MainActivity2::class.java)

            // passing data to our new activity
            intent.putExtra("message", message)

            // starting a new activity.
            startActivity(intent)
        }
    }
}

Step 5: Working with the activity_main2.xml file

Navigate to app > res > layout > activity_main2.xml and add the below code to it. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.

activity_main2.xml:

XML

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:gravity="center"
    tools:context=".MainActivity2">

    <!--message text-->
    <TextView
        android:id="@+id/idTVMsg"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:text="Message"
        android:textColor="@color/black"
        android:textSize="24sp"
        android:textStyle="bold" />

</LinearLayout>

Step 6: Working with the MainActivity2 file

Navigate to app > java > {package-name} > MainActivity2 file and add the code below. Comments are added in the code to get to know in detail.

MainActivity2.java

package org.geeksforgeeks.demo;

import android.os.Bundle;
import android.widget.TextView;
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;

public class MainActivity2 extends AppCompatActivity {

    // Declare TextView
    private TextView messageTextView;

    @Override
    protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main2);

        // Initialize TextView
        messageTextView = findViewById(R.id.idTVMsg);

        // Get message from Intent
        String message = getIntent().getStringExtra("message");

        // Display message or fallback text
        if (message == null || message.trim().isEmpty()) {
            messageTextView.setText("No message received");
        } else {
            messageTextView.setText(message);
        }
    }
}

MainActivity2.kt

package org.geeksforgeeks.demo

import android.os.Bundle
import android.widget.TextView
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity

class MainActivity2 : AppCompatActivity() {

    // declaring variable for text view
    private lateinit var messageTextView: TextView

    override fun onCreate(savedInstanceState: Bundle?) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState)
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main2)

        // initializing variable
        messageTextView = findViewById(R.id.idTVMsg)

        // receiving data from intent
        val message = intent.extras?.getString("message")

        // setting received data to text view
        if (message.isNullOrBlank()) {
            messageTextView.text = "No message received"
        } else {
            messageTextView.text = message
        }
    }
}

Output:

How to Send Data From Activity to Fragment in Android?

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Article Tags :

Android