Python Data Types
Python Data types are the classification or categorization of data items. It represents the kind
of value that tells what operations can be performed on a particular data. Since everything is
an object in Python programming, Python data types are classes and variables are instances
(objects) of these classes. The following are the standard or built-in data types in Python:
Numeric - int, float, complex
Sequence Type - string, list, tuple
Mapping Type - dict
Boolean - bool
Set Type - set, frozenset
Binary Types - bytes, bytearray, memoryview
Data Types
This code assigns variable 'x' different values of few Python data types - int, float, list, tuple
and string. Each assignment replaces the previous value, making 'x' take on the data type and
value of the most recent assignment.
# int, float, string, list and set
x = 50
x = 60.5
x = "Hello World"
x = ["united", "is", "university"]
x = ("united", "is", "university")
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1. Numeric Data Types in Python
The numeric data type in Python represents the data that has a numeric value. A numeric
value can be an integer, a floating number, or even a complex number. These values are
defined as Python int, Python float and Python complex classes in Python.
Integers - This value is represented by int class. It contains positive or negative whole
numbers (without fractions or decimals). In Python, there is no limit to how long an
integer value can be.
Float - This value is represented by the float class. It is a real number with a floating-
point representation. It is specified by a decimal point. Optionally, the character e or E
followed by a positive or negative integer may be appended to specify scientific
notation.
Complex Numbers - A complex number is represented by a complex class. It is
specified as (real part) + (imaginary part)j . For example - 2+3j
a=5
print(type(a))
b = 5.0
print(type(b))
c = 2 + 4j
print(type(c))
Output
<class 'int'>
<class 'float'>
<class 'complex'>
2. Sequence Data Types in Python
The sequence Data Type in Python is the ordered collection of similar or different Python
data types. Sequences allow storing of multiple values in an organized and efficient fashion.
There are several sequence data types of Python:
Python String
Python List
Python Tuple
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String Data Type
Python Strings are arrays of bytes representing Unicode characters. In Python, there is no
character data type Python, a character is a string of length one. It is represented by str class.
Strings in Python can be created using single quotes, double quotes or even triple quotes. We
can access individual characters of a String using index.
s = 'Welcome to United University'
print(s)
# check data type
print(type(s))
# access string with index
print(s[1])
print(s[2])
print(s[-1])
Output
Welcome to United University
<class 'str'>
e
l
y
List Data Type
Lists are just like arrays, declared in other languages which is an ordered collection of data. It
is very flexible as the items in a list do not need to be of the same type.
Creating a List in Python
Lists in Python can be created by just placing the sequence inside the square brackets[].
# Empty list
a = []
# list with int values
a = [1, 2, 3]
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print(a)
# list with mixed int and string
b = ["United", "Is", "University", 4, 5]
print(b)
Output
[1, 2, 3]
[‘United’, ‘Is’, ‘University’, 4, 5]
Access List Items
In order to access the list items refer to the index number. In Python, negative sequence
indexes represent positions from the end of the array. Instead of having to compute the offset
as in List[len(List)-3], it is enough to just write List[-3]. Negative indexing means beginning
from the end, -1 refers to the last item, -2 refers to the second-last item, etc.
a = ["United", "Is", "University"]
print("Accessing element from the list")
print(a[0])
print(a[2])
print("Accessing element using negative indexing")
print(a[-1])
print(a[-3])
Output
Accessing element from the list
United
University
Accessing element using negative indexing
University
United
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Tuple Data Type
Just like a list, a tuple is also an ordered collection of Python objects. The only difference
between a tuple and a list is that tuples are immutable. Tuples cannot be modified after it is
created.
Creating a Tuple in Python
In Python Data Types, tuples are created by placing a sequence of values separated by a
‘comma’ with or without the use of parentheses for grouping the data sequence. Tuples can
contain any number of elements and of any datatype (like strings, integers, lists, etc.).
Note: Tuples can also be created with a single element, but it is a bit tricky. Having one
element in the parentheses is not sufficient, there must be a trailing ‘comma’ to make it a
tuple.
# initiate empty tuple
tup1 = ()
tup2 = ('United', 'University')
print("\nTuple with the use of String: ", tup2)
Output
Tuple with the use of String: ('United', 'University')
Note - The creation of a Python tuple without the use of parentheses is known as Tuple
Packing.
Access Tuple Items
In order to access the tuple items refer to the index number. Use the index operator [ ] to
access an item in a tuple.
tup1 = tuple([1, 2, 3, 4, 5])
# access tuple items
print(tup1[0])
print(tup1[-1])
print(tup1[-3])
Output
1
5
3
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3. Boolean Data Type in Python
Python Data type with one of the two built-in values, True or False. Boolean objects that are
equal to True are truthy (true), and those equal to False are falsy (false). However non-
Boolean objects can be evaluated in a Boolean context as well and determined to be true or
false. It is denoted by the class bool.
Example: The first two lines will print the type of the boolean values True and False, which
is <class 'bool'>. The third line will cause an error, because true is not a valid keyword in
Python. Python is case-sensitive, which means it distinguishes between uppercase and
lowercase letters.
print(type(True))
print(type(False))
print(type(true))
Output:
<class 'bool'>
<class 'bool'>
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/home/7e8862763fb66153d70824099d4f5fb7.py", line 8, in
print(type(true))
NameError: name 'true' is not defined
4. Set Data Type in Python
In Python Data Types, Set is an unordered collection of data types that is iterable, mutable,
and has no duplicate elements. The order of elements in a set is undefined though it may
consist of various elements.
Create a Set in Python
Sets can be created by using the built-in set() function with an iterable object or a sequence
by placing the sequence inside curly braces, separated by a ‘comma’. The type of elements in
a set need not be the same, various mixed-up data type values can also be passed to the set.
Example: The code is an example of how to create sets using different types of values, such
as strings , lists , and mixed values
# initializing empty set
s1 = set()
s1 = set("UnitedUniversity")
print("Set with the use of String: ", s1)
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s2 = set(["United", "is", "United"])
print("Set with the use of List: ", s2)
Output
Set with the use of String: {'U', 'n', 'i', 't', 'e', 'd', 'v',’s’,’y’,’i’}
Set with the use of List: {'United', 'is'}
Access Set Items
Set items cannot be accessed by referring to an index, since sets are unordered the items have
no index. But we can loop through the set items using a for loop, or ask if a specified value is
present in a set, by using the in the keyword.
set1 = set(["United", "Is", "University"]
print(set1)
# loop through set
for i in set1:
print(i, end=" ")
# check if item exist in set
print("United" in set1)
Output
{'Geeks', 'For'}
Geeks For True
5. Dictionary Data Type
A dictionary in Python is a collection of data values, used to store data values like a map,
unlike other Python Data Types that hold only a single value as an element, a Dictionary
holds a key: value pair. Key-value is provided in the dictionary to make it more optimized.
Each key-value pair in a Dictionary is separated by a colon : , whereas each key is separated
by a ‘comma’.
Create a Dictionary in Python
Values in a dictionary can be of any datatype and can be duplicated, whereas keys can’t be
repeated and must be immutable. The dictionary can also be created by the built-in
function dict().
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Note - Dictionary keys are case sensitive, the same name but different cases of Key will be
treated distinctly.
# initialize empty dictionary
d = {}
d = {1: 'United', 2: 'Is', 3: 'University'}
print(d)
# creating dictionary using dict() constructor
d1 = dict({1: 'United', 2: 'Is', 3: 'University'})
print(d1)
Output
{1: 'United', 2: 'Is', 3: 'University'}
{1: 'United', 2: 'Is', 3: 'University'}
Accessing Key-value in Dictionary
In order to access the items of a dictionary refer to its key name. Key can be used inside
square brackets. Using get() method we can access the dictionary elements.
d = {1: 'United', 'name': 'Is', 3: 'University'}
# Accessing an element using key
print(d['name'])
# Accessing a element using get
print(d.get(3))
Output
Is
University
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