CODEWITHSUNDEEP
pythonpython-3.xrandom
user7511289
user7511289

Reputation:

Difference between randint and sample in python

I have tried to generate random codes and tried both

sample([0..9],x)

And

[randint(0,9) for i in range(x)]

When I first used sample I noticed that it doesn't generate numbers like "2222222" it generate more distributed numbers While randint is more likely to generate numbers like "2222222".

What's the difference between both? and how I can choose the best method to generate random numbers for different cases?

Upvotes: 0

Views: 244

Answers (2)

Aviv Yaniv
Aviv Yaniv

Reputation: 6298

  1. The sample method

Docs describe this function:

Return a k length list of unique elements chosen from the population sequence or set. Used for random sampling without replacement.

In our case, the method takes x unique elements from the given range (this is enough for the uniqueness of result), nonetheless, the range contains 10 different numbers - therefore you haven't seen repeating elements.

Note: A good question would be what happens if we pass sample population that is smaller than the amount of different elements requested. Well, in this case, an error will raise ValueError: Sample larger than population or is negative.

  1. The randint Loop

The [randint(0,9) for i in range(x)] generates random numbers, each iteration of the loop independently, so you witnessed repeating elements in the result.

Upvotes: 0

user12291970
user12291970

Reputation:

random.sample(x, num) always returns num unique element from a list x without repeating the output.

random.randint(x, y) returns a random number in the range x and y such that x < num < y.

You can read about them here

Upvotes: 0

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