Python Program to Find Largest Number in a List

Given a list of numbers, the task is to find the largest number in the list. For Example:

Input: [10, 24, 76, 23, 12]
Output: 76

Below are the different methods to perform this task:

Using max() Function

The max() function compares all elements in the list internally and returns the one with the highest value.

a = [10, 24, 76, 23, 12]
res = max(a)
print(res)

76

Using reduce() from functools

Applies a function cumulatively to the list elements to compute a single result, here used to find the largest number.

from functools import reduce
a = [10, 24, 76, 23, 12]
res = reduce(lambda x, y: x if x > y else y, a)
print(res)

76

Explanation: reduce(lambda x, y: x if x > y else y, a) compares each pair of elements in the list a and keeps the larger one, cumulatively returning the maximum value.

Using a Loop

A native approach that iterates through the list and updates a variable if a larger number is found.

a = [10, 24, 76, 23, 12]

res = a[0]
for n in a:
    if n > res:
        res = n
print(res)

76

Explanation: Each element is compared to the current largest, and the variable is updated when a bigger number is found.

Using sort()

Sorts the list in ascending order so that the largest element can be accessed at the end.

a = [10, 24, 76, 23, 12]
a.sort()
res = a[-1]
print(res)

76

Related Articles:

• Find positions of maximum element in list in Python
• Maximum and Minimum value from two lists
• Find the maximum and minimum element in a NumPy array
• Elements Maximum till current index in List