Python Code
Samples
Copy-ready Python snippets by topic and difficulty — short, focused, and runnable in the browser editor.
How to Sort Dictionary Keys Alphabetically in Python
This code returns a list of dictionary keys sorted alphabetically, using a case-insensitive comparison while preserving the original insertion order for keys that are equal.
data = {
"banana": 3,
"apple": 1,
"Cherry": 5,
"date": 2,
"apple": 4,
"Fig": 6,
"banana": 2,
}
def sort_dict_keys_alphabetically(d):
"""Return a list of keys sorted alphabetically (case-insensitive), stable for duplicates."""
return sorted(d.keys(), key=lambda k: k.lower())
if __n…How to Sort a List of Dictionaries by Key in Python
Sort a list of dictionaries by various keys (grade, age, name) using lambda, itemgetter, and extract unique sorted names into a set.
from operator import itemgetter
# Sample data: a list of dictionaries representing students
students = [
{"name": "Alice", "grade": 88, "age": 23},
{"name": "Bob", "grade": 95, "age": 22},
{"name": "Charlie", "grade": 78, "age": 24},
{"name": "Diana", "grade": 92, "age": 21}
]
# Sort by grade (descen…How to Use defaultdict(list) to Group Words by First Letter in Python
This code groups a list of words by their first letter using a defaultdict with a list factory, then prints each group sorted by initial.
from collections import defaultdict
def group_by_initial(words):
groups = defaultdict(list)
for word in words:
groups[word[0].upper()].append(word)
return dict(groups)
if __name__ == "__main__":
words = ["apple", "banana", "apricot", "blueberry", "cherry"]
result = group_by_initial(words)…How to Sort Data in Python with a Class Helper
This beginner-friendly class wraps the built-in sorted() function to sort numbers, strings ignoring case, and dictionaries by a specified key.
class DataSorter:
def __init__(self, data):
self.data = data
def sort_numbers(self, reverse=False):
return sorted(self.data, reverse=reverse)
def sort_strings_ignore_case(self, reverse=False):
return sorted(self.data, key=str.lower, reverse=reverse)
def sort_dicts_by_key(self…Find All Triplets with Sum Zero in Python
This code finds all unique triplets in an array that sum to zero using a sorted array and two-pointer technique.
def find_triplets(nums):
nums.sort()
n = len(nums)
triplets = []
for i in range(n - 2):
if i > 0 and nums[i] == nums[i - 1]:
continue
left, right = i + 1, n - 1
while left < right:
total = nums[i] + nums[left] + nums[right]
if total == 0:
…Find Longest Consecutive Run in an Unsorted List in Python
Find the length of the longest sequence of consecutive integers in an unsorted list using a set and a linear scan.
def longest_run(nums):
if not nums:
return 0
num_set = set(nums)
longest = 0
for num in num_set:
# Only start counting from the smallest number in a sequence
if num - 1 not in num_set:
current = num
length = 1
while current + 1 in num_set:
…Find Longest Consecutive Sequence in Python
Find the length of the longest consecutive elements sequence in an unsorted array using a set for O(n) lookups.
def longest_consecutive_length(nums):
num_set = set(nums)
longest = 0
for num in num_set:
if num - 1 not in num_set:
current = num
current_streak = 1
while current + 1 in num_set:
current += 1
current_streak += 1
…Find Median of Two Sorted Arrays in Python
Merges two sorted arrays with a two-pointer walk and returns the median of the combined sorted sequence.
def median_of_two_sorted_arrays(nums1, nums2):
merged = []
i = j = 0
while i < len(nums1) and j < len(nums2):
if nums1[i] <= nums2[j]:
merged.append(nums1[i])
i += 1
else:
merged.append(nums2[j])
j += 1
merged.extend(nums1[i:])
merged.…Find Minimum in Rotated Sorted List in Python
Uses binary search to find the minimum element in a rotated sorted list in O(log n) time.
def find_min(nums):
left, right = 0, len(nums) - 1
while left < right:
mid = (left + right) // 2
if nums[mid] > nums[right]:
left = mid + 1
else:
right = mid
return nums[left]
if __name__ == "__main__":
rotated = [4, 5, 6, 7, 0, 1, 2]
print(f"Minimu…Find Peak Element in Python Using Binary Search
A binary search solution that finds any peak element (an element strictly greater than its neighbors) in an unsorted array in O(log n) time.
def find_peak_element(nums):
left, right = 0, len(nums) - 1
while left < right:
mid = (left + right) // 2
if nums[mid] > nums[mid + 1]:
right = mid
else:
left = mid + 1
return left
if __name__ == "__main__":
test1 = [1, 2, 3, 1]
tes…How to Find Four Sum Quadruplets in Python (Sorted Demo)
Find all unique quadruplets in a sorted array that sum to a target, with duplicate skipping.
def four_sum(nums, target):
nums.sort()
result = []
n = len(nums)
for i in range(n - 3):
if i > 0 and nums[i] == nums[i - 1]:
continue
for j in range(i + 1, n - 2):
if j > i + 1 and nums[j] == nums[j - 1]:
continue
left, right = j + 1…How to Find Gaps Between Sorted Intervals in Python
This code finds gap ranges between sorted intervals using pairwise iteration, returning ranges where no interval covers.
from itertools import pairwise
def find_gaps(intervals):
intervals = sorted(intervals)
gaps = []
for prev, curr in pairwise(intervals):
if prev[1] < curr[0]:
gaps.append((prev[1] + 1, curr[0] - 1))
return gaps
if __name__ == "__main__":
intervals = [(1, 3), (5, 7), (10, 12), (…How to Find Intersection of Two Sorted Interval Lists in Python
A two-pointer algorithm that finds all overlapping intervals between two sorted lists of intervals.
def interval_intersection(list1, list2):
i = j = 0
result = []
while i < len(list1) and j < len(list2):
# Find the overlap between current intervals
lo = max(list1[i][0], list2[j][0])
hi = min(list1[i][1], list2[j][1])
# If there's an overlap, add it to result
…How to Find the Nearest Value to a Target in a Sorted List in Python
Use bisect to binary-search a sorted list and return the element closest to a target value.
import bisect
def nearest_value(sorted_list, target):
if not sorted_list:
return None
pos = bisect.bisect_left(sorted_list, target)
if pos == 0:
return sorted_list[0]
if pos == len(sorted_list):
return sorted_list[-1]
before = sorted_list[pos - 1]
after = sorted_list[po…How to Search a Rotated Sorted List in Python
Binary search a pivot-rotated sorted list for a target value and return its index in O(log n) time.
from typing import List
def search_rotated(nums: List[int], target: int) -> int:
left, right = 0, len(nums) - 1
while left <= right:
mid = (left + right) // 2
if nums[mid] == target:
return mid
# left half is sorted
if nums[left] <= nums[mid]:
if nums[…How to compress consecutive numbers into range strings in Python
Convert a sorted list of consecutive integers into compact range strings like '1-3', '5-6', and '15'.
def compress_ranges(nums):
"""Convert a list of sorted consecutive numbers into range strings."""
if not nums:
return []
ranges = []
start = prev = nums[0]
for num in nums[1:]:
if num == prev + 1:
prev = num
else:
if start == prev:
…Insert Multiple Values Into a Sorted List in Python
Insert multiple values into an already-sorted list while keeping it sorted using the bisect.insort function.
import bisect
def insert_sorted(sorted_list, values):
for value in values:
bisect.insort(sorted_list, value)
return sorted_list
if __name__ == "__main__":
original = [1, 3, 5, 7, 9]
new_values = [4, 6, 2, 8, 0]
result = insert_sorted(original, new_values)
print(f"Original: {original}"…Merge Two Sorted Arrays Without Extra Space in Python
Merge two sorted arrays in-place from the end, using the trailing zeros in the first array to avoid extra space.
def merge_sorted(arr1, arr2):
m, n = len(arr1), len(arr2)
i, j = m - 1, n - 1
while j >= 0:
if i >= 0 and arr1[i] > arr2[j]:
arr1[i + j + 1] = arr1[i]
i -= 1
else:
arr1[i + j + 1] = arr2[j]
j -= 1
return arr1
if __name__ == "__main__":
…Merge k sorted lists in Python using a heap
Merge k individually sorted lists into one sorted list in Python using a min-heap.
import heapq
def merge_k_sorted_lists(lists):
heap = []
# Push the first element of each list onto the heap
for i, lst in enumerate(lists):
if lst:
heapq.heappush(heap, (lst[0], i, 0))
result = []
while heap:
val, list_idx, elem_idx = heapq.heappop(heap)
re…Quickselect in Python: Find the kth Smallest Element
Python implementation of the Quickselect algorithm to find the kth smallest element in an unsorted list with average O(n) time complexity.
def quickselect(arr, k):
"""
Returns the k-th smallest element (0-indexed) using Quickselect.
Average: O(n), Worst: O(n^2)
"""
if len(arr) == 1:
return arr[0]
pivot = arr[-1]
left = [x for x in arr[:-1] if x <= pivot]
right = [x for x in arr[:-1] if x > pivot]
if k < len(l…Rearrange array alternately max min in Python
Rearranges a sorted list so its elements alternate between the current maximum and current minimum using two pointers in O(n) time.
def rearrange_alternately(arr):
"""
Rearrange sorted array so elements alternate: max, min, next max, next min...
Returns a new list in O(n) time using O(n) space.
"""
n = len(arr)
result = []
left, right = 0, n - 1
while left <= right:
if left == right:
result.appen…Stable merge two lists by custom comparator in Python
Merge two lists into one sorted output using a custom comparator while maintaining the original order of equal elements.
from functools import cmp_to_key
def compare(x, y):
# Custom comparator: sorts by length first, then by original index for stability
if len(x) != len(y):
return len(x) - len(y)
return 0 # Equal keys preserve original order (stable)
def merge_stable(left, right, cmp_func):
result = []
i =…Merge Sorted Iterators with a Heap Generator in Python
Merge multiple sorted iterators into a single sorted stream using a heap and generator, yielding values lazily in order.
import heapq
def merge_sorted_iterators(*iterators):
heap = []
for idx, iterator in enumerate(iterators):
try:
value = next(iterator)
heapq.heappush(heap, (value, idx, iterator))
except StopIteration:
continue
while heap:
value, idx, iterator = …Aggregate Log Errors Count by Hour in Python
Counts ERROR log lines per hour using regex and Counter, returning a sorted dictionary of hourly totals.
import re
from collections import Counter
from datetime import datetime
def aggregate_errors_by_hour(log_lines):
pattern = re.compile(r'^(\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2} \d{2}):\d{2}:\d{2}.*ERROR')
hourly_counts = Counter()
for line in log_lines:
match = pattern.match(line)
if match:
ho…Browse by section
Each section groups closely related Python snippets.
Guide: free Python code samples library
Copy-ready Python snippets for learners and developers
PythonSkillset code samples are short, focused examples organised by topic and difficulty. Every snippet is server-rendered HTML — readable by search engines and easy to copy. Open any sample, read the notes, copy the code, then press Try in editor to run it in the browser with Pyodide.
How to use this library
- Pick a topic section — strings, lists, files, functions, and more
- Open a sample, read How it works, and copy the code block
- Run it in the IDE, tweak values, then take a related quiz or tutorial lesson
Samples vs tutorials and challenges
Samples are quick reference — one concept per page. For step-by-step teaching, use our Python tutorials. To test yourself, try quizzes or coding challenges. Clean up style with the Python formatter.