Python Data Types Explained with Examples

Python Data Types with Examples

Python data types: It has several built-in data types that are used to store different kinds of data. Here’s an explanation of the main data types with examples:

Python Data Types: Numeric Types

Integer (int)

Whole numbers, positive or negative, without decimals.

x = 10
y = -5
print(type(x))  # Output: <class 'int'>

Float (float)

Numbers with decimal points or in exponential form.

a = 3.14
b = -0.5
c = 2.5e2  # 2.5 × 10² = 250.0
print(type(a))  # Output: <class 'float'>

Complex (complex)

Numbers with real and imaginary parts (j or J for imaginary part).

z = 3 + 4j
print(type(z))  # Output: <class 'complex'>
print(z.real)   # Output: 3.0
print(z.imag)   # Output: 4.0

Python Data Types: Sequence Types

String (str)

Ordered sequence of characters enclosed in single, double, or triple quotes.

s1 = 'Hello'
s2 = "Python"
s3 = '''Multi-line
string'''
print(type(s1))  # Output: <class 'str'>

List (list)

Mutable, ordered sequence of elements enclosed in square brackets.

my_list = [1, 2.5, 'apple', True]
print(type(my_list))  # Output: <class 'list'>
my_list[0] = 10  # Lists are mutable

Tuple (tuple)

Immutable, ordered sequence of elements enclosed in parentheses.

my_tuple = (1, 2.5, 'apple', True)
print(type(my_tuple))  # Output: <class 'tuple'>
# my_tuple[0] = 10  # This would raise an error (tuples are immutable)

Python Data Types: Mapping Type

Dictionary (dict)

Unordered collection of key-value pairs enclosed in curly braces.

my_dict = {'name': 'Alice', 'age': 25, 'city': 'New York'}
print(type(my_dict))  # Output: <class 'dict'>
print(my_dict['name'])  # Output: Alice

Python Data Types: Set Types

Set (set)

Unordered collection of unique elements enclosed in curly braces.

my_set = {1, 2, 3, 3, 2}  # Duplicates are removed
print(type(my_set))  # Output: <class 'set'>
print(my_set)  # Output: {1, 2, 3}

Frozen Set (frozenset)

Immutable version of a set.

f_set = frozenset([1, 2, 3])
print(type(f_set))  # Output: <class 'frozenset'>

Python Data Types: Boolean Type (bool)

Represents truth values: True or False.

is_valid = True
is_empty = False
print(type(is_valid))  # Output: <class 'bool'>

Python Data Types: Binary Types

Bytes (bytes)

Immutable sequence of bytes (0-255).

b = b'hello'
print(type(b))  # Output: <class 'bytes'>

Bytearray (bytearray)

Mutable sequence of bytes.

ba = bytearray(b'hello')
print(type(ba))  # Output: <class 'bytearray'>

Memoryview (memoryview)

Memory view object of a byte-based object.

mv = memoryview(b'hello')
print(type(mv))  # Output: <class 'memoryview'>

Checking Data Types

You can check the type of any object using the type() function:

x = 42
print(type(x))  # Output: <class 'int'>

Python Data Types: Type Conversion

Python allows you to convert between types using constructor functions:

# int to float
x = float(5)  # 5.0

# float to int (truncates decimal)
y = int(3.9)  # 3 (not rounded)

# string to int
z = int("10")  # 10

# int to string
s = str(25)  # "25"

Understanding these data types is fundamental to Python programming as they determine what operations can be performed on the data.