{"id":4793,"date":"2022-09-15T02:58:11","date_gmt":"2022-09-15T02:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/?page_id=4793"},"modified":"2022-09-15T03:03:37","modified_gmt":"2022-09-15T03:03:37","slug":"python-max","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-built-in-functions\/python-max\/","title":{"rendered":"Python max() Function"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Summary<\/strong>: in this tutorial, you&#8217;ll learn how to use the Python <code>max()<\/code> function to return the maximum item of an iterable or maximum argument of two or more arguments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='introduction-to-the-python-max-function'>Introduction to the Python max() function <a href=\"#introduction-to-the-python-max-function\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"introduction-to-the-python-max-function\" title=\"Anchor for Introduction to the Python max() function\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The <code>max()<\/code> function returns the maximum argument of two or more arguments:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-1\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">max(arg1,arg2,*args&#91;,key])<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-1\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>In this syntax:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><code>arg1<\/code>, <code>arg2<\/code>, .. are the input arguments.<\/li><li><code>key<\/code> is an optional keyword-only parameter that specifies a key for comparing the arguments. It is similar to the key in the <code><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-sort-list\/\">sort()<\/a><\/code> function.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The <code>max()<\/code> function also accepts an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-iterables\/\">iterable<\/a> and returns the maximum item of the iterable:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-2\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">max(iterable, *&#91;, key, default])<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-2\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>In this syntax:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><code>iterable<\/code> is the input iterable.<\/li><li><code>key<\/code> is an optional keyword-only argument that specifies the key for comparing the items of the iterable.<\/li><li><code>default<\/code> is an optional keyword-only argument that specifies a value that the <code>max()<\/code> returns when the <code>iterable<\/code> is empty. If the <code>iterable<\/code> is empty and the <code>default<\/code> argument is not available, the <code>max()<\/code> function raises a <code>ValueError<\/code> exception.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If multiple items are maximal, the <code>max()<\/code> function will return the first one it encounters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='python-max-function-examples'>Python max() function examples <a href=\"#python-max-function-examples\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"python-max-function-examples\" title=\"Anchor for Python max() function examples\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Let&#8217;s take some examples of using the Python <code>max()<\/code> function.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='1-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-argument-of-multiple-arguments'>1) Using the Python max() function to find the maximum argument of multiple arguments <a href=\"#1-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-argument-of-multiple-arguments\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"1-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-argument-of-multiple-arguments\" title=\"Anchor for 1) Using the Python max() function to find the maximum argument of multiple arguments\">#<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The following example uses the <code>max()<\/code> function to get the largest number:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-3\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">result = max(<span class=\"hljs-number\">1<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">2<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">3<\/span>)\nprint(result) <span class=\"hljs-comment\"># 3<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-3\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>If you pass multiple string arguments, the <code>max()<\/code> function will return the maximal string based on alphabetical order:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-4\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">result = max(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'John'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'Alice'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'Jane'<\/span>)\nprint(result)  <span class=\"hljs-comment\"># John<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-4\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>The following example shows how to use the <code>max()<\/code> function with user-defined objects:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-5\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-class\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">class<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">Employee<\/span>:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__init__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self, name, salary)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        self.name = name\n        self.salary = salary\n\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__str__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">return<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-string\">f'Name:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.name}<\/span>, salary:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.salary:,}<\/span>'<\/span>\n\n\nresult = max(\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'John'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">210<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Alice'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">220<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Jane'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">200<\/span>_000),\n    key=<span class=\"hljs-keyword\">lambda<\/span> p: p.salary\n)\n\nprint(result)\n<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-5\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Output:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-6\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">Name:Alice, salary: <span class=\"hljs-number\">220<\/span>,<span class=\"hljs-number\">000<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-6\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>How it works.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>First, define the <code>Employee<\/code> class with two attributes, <code>name<\/code> and <code>salary<\/code>:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-7\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-class\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">class<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">Employee<\/span>:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__init__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self, name, salary)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        self.name = name\n        self.salary = salary\n\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__str__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">return<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-string\">f'Name:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.name}<\/span>, salary:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.salary:,}<\/span>'<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-7\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Second, use the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the employee with the highest salary:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-8\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">result = max(\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'John'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">210<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Alice'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">220<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Jane'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">200<\/span>_000),\n    key=<span class=\"hljs-keyword\">lambda<\/span> p: p.salary\n)<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-8\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Besides passing the <code>Employee<\/code> objects, we also specify the <code>salary<\/code> as the key for object comparisons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='2-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-item-of-an-iterable'>2) Using the Python max() function to find the maximum item of an iterable <a href=\"#2-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-item-of-an-iterable\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"2-using-the-python-max-function-to-find-the-maximum-item-of-an-iterable\" title=\"Anchor for 2) Using the Python max() function to find the maximum item of an iterable\">#<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The following example uses the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the largest number of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-list\/\">list<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-9\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">scores = &#91;<span class=\"hljs-number\">1<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">5<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">3<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">2<\/span>]\nmax_score = max(scores)\nprint(max_score)  <span class=\"hljs-comment\"># 5<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-9\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Similarly, this example uses the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the person with the maximal <code>name<\/code> based on alphabetical order:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-10\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">names = &#91;<span class=\"hljs-string\">'John'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'Alice'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'Jane'<\/span>]\nname = max(names)\nprint(name)  <span class=\"hljs-comment\"># John<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-10\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>This example shows how to use the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the employee with the highest salary from a list of employees:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-11\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-class\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">class<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">Employee<\/span>:<\/span>\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__init__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self, name, salary)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        self.name = name\n        self.salary = salary\n\n    <span class=\"hljs-function\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">def<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-title\">__str__<\/span><span class=\"hljs-params\">(self)<\/span>:<\/span>\n        <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">return<\/span> <span class=\"hljs-string\">f'Name:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.name}<\/span>, salary:<span class=\"hljs-subst\">{self.salary:,}<\/span>'<\/span>\n\n\nemployees = &#91;\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'John'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">210<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Alice'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">220<\/span>_000),\n    Employee(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Jane'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-number\">200<\/span>_000),\n]\n\nresult = max(employees, key=<span class=\"hljs-keyword\">lambda<\/span> p: p.salary)\n\nprint(result)\n<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-11\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Output:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-12\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\">Name:Alice, salary:<span class=\"hljs-number\">220<\/span>,<span class=\"hljs-number\">000<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-12\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>In this example, we pass a list of <code>Employee<\/code> objects and use the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the employee who has the highest salary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='summary'>Summary <a href=\"#summary\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"summary\" title=\"Anchor for Summary\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Use the <code>max()<\/code> function to find the maximum item of an iterable or the maximum argument of arguments.<\/li><li>Use the <code>key<\/code> parameter to specify the key to compare the objects.<\/li><\/ul>\n<div class=\"helpful-block-content\" data-title=\"\">\n\t<header>\n\t\t<div class=\"wth-question\">Was this tutorial helpful ?<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wth-thumbs\">\n\t\t\t<button\n\t\t\t\tdata-post=\"4793\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-built-in-functions\/python-max\/\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-title=\"Python max() Function\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-response=\"1\"\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"wth-btn-rounded 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the maximum item of an iterable or maximum argument of two or more 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