Can you explain what happens when hash codes of different objects match in the hashCode() method?

When hash codes of different objects in Java match, it results in a situation called a hash collision. This is normal and expected because a hash code is a fixed-size integer value, and the number of possible objects is usually much larger.

In collections that use hashing (such as HashMap), objects with the same hash code are placed in the same "bucket." The equals() method is used to distinguish objects within the bucket. If equals() returns true, the objects are considered equal; otherwise, they are different.

Therefore, matching hash codes do not mean the objects are equal, only that an additional check via equals() is necessary.