C Academy · Lesson

calloc and realloc

Zeroed and resized memory.

Lesson 2 of 413 steps

calloc and realloc is a free C Academy lesson on CoddyKit. This is lesson 2 of 4. You can read the complete lesson below for free — then practise it hands-on in the browser with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the C Academy learning path, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app. The C Academy course includes 4 lessons in total.

Beyond malloc

Besides malloc, the standard library offers calloc for zeroed memory and realloc for resizing an existing block.

Both live in <stdlib.h>.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *p = calloc(3, sizeof(int));
    printf("%d %d %d\n", p[0], p[1], p[2]);
    free(p);
    return 0;
}

calloc Zeroes Memory

calloc(count, size) allocates room for count elements of size bytes and sets every byte to zero.

This is convenient when you need a clean slate.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = calloc(5, sizeof(int));
    int sum = 0;
    for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++) sum += a[i];
    printf("sum of zeroed array = %d\n", sum);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

calloc Has Two Arguments

Unlike malloc, calloc takes the count and the element size separately.

It also guards against overflow when multiplying count by size.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    double *d = calloc(4, sizeof(double));
    d[2] = 1.5;
    printf("%f %f\n", d[0], d[2]);
    free(d);
    return 0;
}

malloc vs calloc

Use malloc when you will overwrite every byte anyway, and calloc when you rely on the memory starting at zero.

calloc costs a little more because of the zeroing.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *m = malloc(2 * sizeof(int));
    int *c = calloc(2, sizeof(int));
    m[0] = 5; m[1] = 6;
    printf("malloc: %d %d\n", m[0], m[1]);
    printf("calloc: %d %d\n", c[0], c[1]);
    free(m); free(c);
    return 0;
}

Growing with realloc

realloc(ptr, newsize) changes the size of a block, preserving its existing contents up to the smaller of the old and new sizes.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = malloc(2 * sizeof(int));
    a[0] = 1; a[1] = 2;
    a = realloc(a, 4 * sizeof(int));
    a[2] = 3; a[3] = 4;
    for (int i = 0; i < 4; i++) printf("%d ", a[i]);
    printf("\n");
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

realloc May Move the Block

realloc might return a different address if it relocates the block to find room.

Always assign the result back, and never keep using the old pointer.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = malloc(sizeof(int));
    a[0] = 42;
    int *bigger = realloc(a, 100 * sizeof(int));
    printf("first element still %d\n", bigger[0]);
    free(bigger);
    return 0;
}

Safe realloc Pattern

If realloc fails it returns NULL but leaves the original block intact.

Assign to a temporary first so you do not lose the old pointer on failure.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = malloc(2 * sizeof(int));
    int *tmp = realloc(a, 8 * sizeof(int));
    if (tmp == NULL) {
        free(a);
        return 1;
    }
    a = tmp;
    a[7] = 99;
    printf("%d\n", a[7]);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

Shrinking a Block

realloc can also make a block smaller. The leading elements are preserved; the rest is released.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = malloc(6 * sizeof(int));
    for (int i = 0; i < 6; i++) a[i] = i;
    a = realloc(a, 3 * sizeof(int));
    printf("%d %d %d\n", a[0], a[1], a[2]);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

A Growing Buffer

A common pattern doubles the capacity when an array fills up, amortizing the cost of growth.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int cap = 2, len = 0;
    int *a = malloc(cap * sizeof(int));
    for (int v = 0; v < 5; v++) {
        if (len == cap) {
            cap *= 2;
            a = realloc(a, cap * sizeof(int));
        }
        a[len++] = v;
    }
    printf("len=%d cap=%d last=%d\n", len, cap, a[len-1]);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

realloc with NULL

realloc(NULL, size) behaves exactly like malloc(size).

This lets a grow routine handle the very first allocation uniformly.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = realloc(NULL, 3 * sizeof(int));
    a[0] = 7;
    printf("%d\n", a[0]);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

Combining Them

You can start with calloc for a zeroed buffer and later grow it with realloc. New bytes after a grow are not zeroed.

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>

int main(void) {
    int *a = calloc(2, sizeof(int));
    a = realloc(a, 4 * sizeof(int));
    a[2] = 0; a[3] = 0;
    printf("%d %d %d %d\n", a[0], a[1], a[2], a[3]);
    free(a);
    return 0;
}

Quick Check

Test your knowledge of calloc and realloc.

Answer it in the interactive lesson

Recap

You learned two more allocation tools:

calloc(count, size) allocates zeroed memory and guards against multiply overflow.
realloc(ptr, newsize) resizes a block, possibly moving it.
Always assign realloc's result to a temporary to avoid leaks on failure.
realloc(NULL, size) acts like malloc.

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