Difference between list, tuple, set, and dictionary in Python

This article is created to differentiate the four built-in data structures in Python that are used to store collections of data. The four built-in data structures that are differentiated here are:

  1. list
  2. tuple
  3. set
  4. dictionary

The table below distinguishes between the four built-in data structures in Python.

List Tuple Dictionary Set
ordered ordered ordered unordered
mutable (changeable) immutable (unchangeable) mutable If created with set, it is mutable.
If created with frozenset, it is immutable.
allows duplicates allows duplicates does not allow duplicates does not allow duplicates
List items enclosed within [] Tuple items are enclosed within () Dictionary items enclosed within {} Set items enclosed within {}
Lists can be created using list() Tuples can be created using tuple() Dictionaries can be created using dict() Set can be created using set()

Lists are ordered sequences of elements that can be changed. This means that you can change, add, or remove items from a list after it has been made. Lists are made by putting a series of values separated by commas inside square brackets []. For instance:

my_list = [10, 20, "codes", "cracker"]

Tuples are like lists, but their values can't be changed once they're made. Tuples are made by putting a list of values separated by commas between parentheses (). For instance:

my_tuple = (10, 20, "codes", "cracker")

Unordered collections of distinct elements make up sets. This implies that every component of a set must be distinct. A comma-separated list of values is enclosed in curly braces to form sets. For instance:

my_set = {10, 20, "codes", "cracker"}

Dictionaries are collections of key-value pairs that are not ordered. A dictionary's keys must each uniquely correspond to a value. Curly braces are used to enclose key-value pairs in dictionaries, which are key-value pairs separated by commas. For instance:

my_dict = {"key1": "value1", "key2": "value2", "key3": "value3", "key4": "value4"}

Tuples and lists are both ordered sequences of elements, but tuples are immutable and lists are mutable. Dictionary entries are key-value pairs, while sets are unordered collections of distinct elements.

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