How Can I Sort a List of Dictionaries by a Specific Key's Value in Python?

Sorting a List of Dictionaries by Dictionary Value in Python

Sorting a list of dictionaries based on the value of a particular key can arise in various programming scenarios. Consider an example list of dictionaries representing individuals and their ages:

input_list = [{'name': 'Homer', 'age': 39}, {'name': 'Bart', 'age': 10}]

Sorting this list by name will result in the following output:

sorted_list = [{'name': 'Bart', 'age': 10}, {'name': 'Homer', 'age': 39}]

Solution:

Python's sorted() function provides a convenient way to sort data structures by applying a custom sorting rule. To sort a list of dictionaries by a specific key's value, use the key= parameter.

Method 1: Using a Lambda Function

The key= parameter expects a function that takes a dictionary as input and returns the value of the key used for sorting. The following code uses a lambda function:

sorted_list = sorted(input_list, key=lambda d: d['name'])

Method 2: Using itemgetter

As an alternative to defining a lambda function, you can use the operator.itemgetter() function:

from operator import itemgetter
sorted_list = sorted(input_list, key=itemgetter('name'))

Sorting in Descending Order

To sort in descending order, specify reverse=True in the sorted() function:

sorted_list = sorted(input_list, key=itemgetter('name'), reverse=True)

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