Implementation:Apache Kafka KafkaAdminClient DeleteTopics

Knowledge Sources	Apache Kafka
Domains	Administration, Data_Management
Last Updated	2026-02-09 12:00 GMT

Overview

Concrete tool for deleting Kafka topics via the AdminClient API provided by KafkaAdminClient.

Description

The KafkaAdminClient.deleteTopics method sends a DeleteTopicsRequest to the Kafka controller. It supports deletion by topic name or topic ID. The method returns futures that complete when the controller acknowledges the deletion.

Usage

Use via kafka-topics.sh --delete or programmatically through the Admin interface.

Code Reference

Source Location

• Repository: Apache Kafka
• File: clients/src/main/java/org/apache/kafka/clients/admin/KafkaAdminClient.java
• Lines: L1897-2100

Signature

public DeleteTopicsResult deleteTopics(
    final TopicCollection topics,
    final DeleteTopicsOptions options
)

Import

import org.apache.kafka.clients.admin.Admin;
import org.apache.kafka.clients.admin.DeleteTopicsResult;
import org.apache.kafka.common.TopicCollection;

I/O Contract

Inputs

Name	Type	Required	Description
topics	TopicCollection	Yes	TopicNameCollection or TopicIdCollection to delete
options	DeleteTopicsOptions	No	Options including retryOnQuotaViolation

Outputs

Name	Type	Description
DeleteTopicsResult	DeleteTopicsResult	Contains KafkaFuture<Void> per topic; completes when deletion is acknowledged

Usage Examples

Delete Topic via CLI

bin/kafka-topics.sh --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 --delete --topic my-topic
bin/kafka-topics.sh --bootstrap-server localhost:9092 --delete --topic my-topic --if-exists

Delete Topic Programmatically

try (Admin admin = Admin.create(props)) {
    admin.deleteTopics(
        TopicCollection.ofTopicNames(Set.of("my-topic"))
    ).all().get();
}

Related Pages

Implements Principle

• Principle:Apache_Kafka_Topic_Deletion