Skip to main content
HomeTutorialsPython

Python .append() and .extend() Methods Tutorial

Learn how to use the .append() and .extend() methods to add elements to a list.
Updated Jun 2020  · 2 min read

You can add elements to a list using the append method. The append() method adds a single element towards the end of a list.

Example of the append() method

For example, let’s extend the string by adding “April” to the list with the method append(). Using append() will increase the length of the list by 1.

list.append() adds a single element to a list

months = ['January', 'February', 'March']
months.append('April')
print(months)
['January', 'February', 'March', 'April']

Using list methods to add data: append() vs. extend()

The .append() method increases the length of the list by one, so if you want to add only one element to the list, you can use this method.

x = [1, 2, 3]
x.append(4)
x
[1, 2, 3, 4]

The .extend() method increases the length of the list by the number of elements that are provided to the method, so if you want to add multiple elements to the list, you can use this method.

x = [1, 2, 3]
x.extend([4, 5])
x
[1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Interactive example of the append() and extend() methods

We start with the list names:

names =  ['Apple Inc', 'Coca-Cola', 'Walmart']
# Append a name to the list names
names.append('Amazon.com')
print(names)

When we run the above code, it produces the following result:

names =  ['Apple Inc', 'Coca-Cola', 'Walmart', 'Amazon.com']

We can then add two additional elements to the list names using extend() and the more_elements list.

# Extend list names
more_elements = ['DowDuPont', 'Alphabet Inc']
names.extend(more_elements)
print(names)

When we run the above code, it produces the following result:

['Apple Inc', 'Coca-Cola', 'Walmart', 'Amazon.com', 'DowDuPont', 'Alphabet Inc']

Try it for yourself.

To learn more about list methods and functions, please see this video from our course Introduction to Python for Finance.

This content is taken from DataCamp’s Introduction to Python for Finance course by Adina Howe.

Check out our Python For Finance Tutorial.

Topics

Python courses

Certification available

Course

Introduction to Python

4 hr
5.4M
Master the basics of data analysis with Python in just four hours. This online course will introduce the Python interface and explore popular packages.
See DetailsRight Arrow
Start Course
See MoreRight Arrow
Related

Python Absolute Value: A Quick Tutorial

Learn how to use Python's abs function to get a number's magnitude, ignoring its sign. This guide explains finding absolute values for both real and imaginary numbers, highlighting common errors.
Amberle McKee's photo

Amberle McKee

How to Check if a File Exists in Python

Learn how to check if a file exists in Python in this simple tutorial
Adel Nehme's photo

Adel Nehme

Writing Custom Context Managers in Python

Learn the advanced aspects of resource management in Python by mastering how to write custom context managers.
Bex Tuychiev's photo

Bex Tuychiev

How to Convert a List to a String in Python

Learn how to convert a list to a string in Python in this quick tutorial.
Adel Nehme's photo

Adel Nehme

A Comprehensive Tutorial on Optical Character Recognition (OCR) in Python With Pytesseract

Master the fundamentals of optical character recognition in OCR with PyTesseract and OpenCV.
Bex Tuychiev's photo

Bex Tuychiev

11 min

Encapsulation in Python Object-Oriented Programming: A Comprehensive Guide

Learn the fundamentals of implementing encapsulation in Python object-oriented programming.
Bex Tuychiev's photo

Bex Tuychiev

11 min

See MoreSee More