Open In App

Python | Split string into list of characters

Improve
Improve
Improve
Like Article
Like
Save Article
Save
Share
Report issue
Report

Given a string, write a Python program to split the characters of the given string into a list using Python. In this article, we will explore various methods to split a string into a list of characters, allowing developers to manipulate and work with individual characters efficiently.

Input: geeks
Output : ['g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']
Input: Word
Output : ['W', 'o', 'r', 'd']
Explanation: In this, we are splitting the string into a list of characters in Python.

Python Split String in List Method

Below is the list of methods that we will use in this article:

  • Using unpack(*) method
  • Using a loop
  • Using List Comprehension
  • Using list() typecasting
  • Using extend() function
  • Using  itertools
  • Using List Slicing

Python Split String in List using unpack(*) method

The act of unpacking involves taking things out, specifically iterables like dictionaries, lists, and tuples.

Python3




string = "geeks"
print([*string])


Output

['g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']

Time complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the input word.
Auxiliary space: O(n)

Python Split String in List using a loop

Here, we are splitting the letters using the native way using the loop and then we are appending it to a new list.

Python3




string = 'geeksforgeeks'
lst = []
 
for letter in string:
    lst.append(letter)
 
print(lst)


Output

['g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's', 'f', 'o', 'r', 'g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']

Time complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the input word.
Auxiliary space: O(n)

Python Split String in List using List Comprehension

This approach uses list comprehension to convert each character into a list. Using the following syntax you can split the characters of a string into a list.

Python3




string = "Geeksforgeeks"
letter = [x for x in string]
print(letter)


Output

['G', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's', 'f', 'o', 'r', 'g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']

Time complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the input word.
Auxiliary space: O(n)

Python Split String using a list() typecasting

Python provides direct typecasting of strings into a list using Python list().

Python3




def split(word):
    return list(word)
     
# Driver code
word = 'geeks'
print(split(word))


Output

['g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']

Time complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the input word.
Auxiliary space: O(n), where n is the length of the input word.

Python Split String in List using Extend() Function

Extend() iterates over its input, expanding the list, and adding each member.

Python3




string = 'Geeks@for'
lst = []
lst.extend(string)
print(lst)


Output

['G', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's', '@', 'f', 'o', 'r']

Time complexity: O(n), where n is the length of the string.
Auxiliary space: O(n), where n is the length of the string.

Python Split String using  Itertools

In Python, you can split a string into a list of characters using the itertools module. You need to convert the string into an iterable sequence (e.g., a list, tuple, or string itself) of individual characters

Python3




import itertools
 
string = "Geeksforgeeks"
letter = list(itertools.chain.from_iterable(string))
print(letter)


Output

['G', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's', 'f', 'o', 'r', 'g', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's']

The time complexity : O(n), where n is the length of the input string.
The auxiliary space : O(n), as the list created by itertools.chain.from_iterable has a size of n.

Python Split String in List using List Slicing

In Python, you can split a string into a list of characters using list slicing. List slicing is a technique that allows you to extract a portion of a list (or string) by specifying the start and end indices.

Python




string = 'Geeks@for'
lst = []
lst[:] = string
print(lst)


Output

['G', 'e', 'e', 'k', 's', '@', 'f', 'o', 'r']

Time complexity: O(N), where N is the length of the input string.
Auxiliary space: O(N), Because a new list of N size is created. 



Last Updated : 01 Aug, 2023
Like Article
Save Article
Previous
Next
Share your thoughts in the comments
Similar Reads