Comparison operators are applied to comparable objects and they return a Boolean value (True or False).
| Operator | Name | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| > | Greater Than | Returns True if the left operand is greater than the right operand | 3 > 2 == True |
| < | Less Than | Returns True if the left operand is smaller than the right operand | 3 < 2 == False |
| == | Equal To | Returns True if the left operand is the same as the right operand | (3 == 2) == False |
| != | Not Equal To | Returns True if the left operand is not the same as the right operand | (3 != 2) == True |
| >= | Greater Than or Equal To | Returns True if the left operand is greater than or equal to the right operand | (3 >= 3) == True |
| <= | Less Than or Equal To | Returns True if the left operand is less than or equal to the right operand | (3 <= 2) == False |
Python Comparison Operators on Integers and Floats
Python comparison operators can compare numerical values such as integers and floats in Python. The operators are: equal to ( == ), not equal to ( != ), greater than ( > ), less than ( < ), less than or equal to ( <= ), and greater than or equal to ( >= ).
Here are examples of comparing two numbers using each comparison operator:
# Greater Than print(1 > 2.0) # False # Less Than print(1 < 2.0) # True # Equal To print(1 == 2.0) # False # Not Equal To print(1 != 2.0) # True # Greater Than or Equal To print(1 >= 2.0) # False # Less Than or Equal To print(1 <= 2.0) # True
Python Comparison Operators on Strings
Python comparison operators can compare strings in Python. The comparison ordering is given by the ord() function that returns the Unicode integer for a given character c. The operators are: equal to ( == ), not equal to ( != ), greater than ( > ), less than ( < ), less than or equal to ( <= ), and greater than or equal to ( >= ).
Here are examples of comparing the string 'aaa' with 'aab' using each comparison operator:
# Greater Than
print('aaa' > 'aab')
# False
# Less Than
print('aaa' < 'aab')
# True
# Equal To
print('aaa' == 'aab')
# False
# Not Equal To
print('aaa' != 'aab')
# True
# Greater Than or Equal To
print('aaa' >= 'aab')
# False
# Less Than or Equal To
print('aaa' <= 'aab')
# True
Let’s dive into the Python comparison operators one by one—with video tutorials for each.
Python Greater Than
The Python greater than (left>right) operator returns True when its left operand exceeds its right operand. When the left operand is smaller than or equal to the right operand, the > operator returns False. For example, 3>2 evaluates to True, but 2>3 and 3>3 both evaluate to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the greater than operator.
Is 3 greater than 2 and 2?
>>> 3 > 2 True
What about 2 greater than 3?
>>> 2 > 3 False
Can you compare collections such as lists?
>>> [1, 2] > [99] False >>> [1, 2] > [0] True >>> [1, 2] > [1, 2, 3] False >>> [1, 2] > [1, 1, 3] True
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Greater Than
Python Less Than
The Python less than (left<right) operator returns True when its left operand is smaller than its right operand. When the left operand is greater than or equal to the right operand, the < operator returns False. For example, 2<3 evaluates to True, but 3<2 and 2<2 both evaluate to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the less than (or smaller than) operator.
Is 3 less than 2?
>>> 3 < 2 False
What about 2 less than 3?
>>> 2 < 3 True
Can you compare collections such as lists?
>>> [1, 2] < [99] True >>> [1, 2] < [0] False >>> [1, 2] < [1, 2, 3] True >>> [1, 2] < [1, 1, 3] False
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Less Than
Python Equal To
The Python equal to (left==right) operator returns True when its left operand is equal to its right operand. Otherwise, it returns False. For example, 3==3 evaluates to True, but 3==2 evaluates to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the equal to operator.
Is 3 equal to 2?
>>> 3 == 2 False
What about 'h' equal to 'h'?
>>> 'h' == 'h' True
Can you compare collections such as lists, strings, tuples?
>>> [1, 2] == [1, 2] True >>> [1, 2] == [1, 2, 3] False >>> (1, 1) == (1, 1, 1) False >>> 'hello' == 'hello' True
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Equal To
Python Not Equal To
The Python not equal to (left!=right) operator returns True when its left operand is not equal to its right operand as defined by the __ne__() magic method. Otherwise, it returns False. For example, 3!=2 evaluates to True, but 3!=3 evaluates to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the not equal to operator.
Is 3 not equal to 2?
>>> 3 != 2 True
What about 'h' not equal to 'h'?
>>> 'h' != 'h' False
Can you compare collections such as lists, strings, tuples?
>>> [1, 2] != [1, 2] False >>> [1, 2] != [1, 2, 3] True >>> (1, 1) != (1, 1, 1) True >>> 'hello' != 'hello!' True
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Not Equal To
Python Greater Than or Equal To
The Python greater than or equal to (left>=right) operator returns True when its left operand is not exceeded by its right operand. When the left operand is smaller than the right operand, the >= operator returns False. For example, 3>=2 and 3>=3 evaluate to True, but 2>=3 evaluates to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the greater than or equal to operator.
Is 3 greater than or equal to 2?
>>> 3 >= 2 True
What about 2 greater than or equal to 3?
>>> 2 >= 3 False
What about 2 greater than or equal to 2?
>>> 2 >= 2 True
Can you compare collections such as lists?
>>> [1, 2] >= [99] False >>> [1, 2] >= [0] True >>> [1, 2] >= [1, 2, 3] False >>> [1, 2] >= [1, 1, 3] True >>> [1, 2] >= [1, 2] True
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Greater Than or Equal To
Python Less Than or Equal To
The Python less than or equal to (left<=right) operator returns True when its left operand does not exceed the right operand. When the left operand is greater than the right operand, the <= operator returns False. For example, 2<=3 and 2<=2 evaluate to True, but 3<=2 and evaluates to False.
Let’s explore a couple of examples regarding the less than or equal to operator.
Is 3 less than or equal to 2?
>>> 3 <= 2 False
What about 2 less than or equal to 3?
>>> 2 <= 3 True
And 2 less than or equal to itself?
>>> 2 <= 2 True
Can you compare collections such as lists?
>>> [1, 2] <= [99] True >>> [1, 2] <= [0] False >>> [1, 2] <= [1, 2, 3] True >>> [1, 2] <= [1, 1, 3] False >>> [1, 2] <= [1, 2] True
Yes!
Dive deeper into this operator in our related tutorial!
Related Tutorial: Python Less Than or Equal To
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