In this lesson, you will learn about the data union in C, its usage, along with examples to better understand the topic.

What are unions in C?

A union in C is a particular data type that allows storing different data types in the same memory location. A union is similar to a struct with few differences; a set of members with different data types grouped together under one entity. However, a struct allocates storage space to all its elements separately. In contrast, a union allocates shared storage space for all its elements. Also, in a struct, all elements’ values can be accessed simultaneously, while in a union, only one element can be accessed at a time.

Example of a union in C

#include <stdio.h>

#include <string.h>

union EmployeeInfo {

  char name[30];

  int id;

  int age;

  char department[20];

  float salary;

};

int main() {

  union EmployeeInfo employeeInfo1;

  union EmployeeInfo employeeInfo2;

  // asign values to union employeeInfo1
  strcpy(employeeInfo1.name, "Fred");

  employeeInfo1.id = 1;

  employeeInfo1.age = 31;

  strcpy(employeeInfo1.department, "Engineering");

  employeeInfo1.salary = 5000.00;

  printf("Union employeeInfo1 values:\n");

  printf("Name: %s \n", employeeInfo1.name);

  printf("ID: %d \n", employeeInfo1.id);

  printf("Age: %d \n\n", employeeInfo1.age);
  printf("Department: %s \n\n", employeeInfo1.department);
  printf("Salary: %f \n\n", employeeInfo1.salary);

  // asign values to union employeeInfo2

  printf("Union employeeInfo2 values:\n");

  strcpy(employeeInfo2.name, "Alex");

  printf("Name: %s \n", employeeInfo2.name);

  employeeInfo2.age = 28;

  printf("Age: %d \n", employeeInfo2.age);

  employeeInfo2.salary = 70000.00;

  printf("salary: %f \n", employeeInfo2.salary);

  return 0;

}

Output

Union employeeInfo1 values:
Name: Fred

ID: 1

Age: 31

Department: Engineering
Salary: 5000.00

Union employeeInfo2 values:

Name: Alex

Age: 28

salary: 70000.00

Point to remember