Convert dataframe column to list

In this post, you will learn how to convert Python dataframe column to list.

A DataFrame is a tabular-like data structure containing an ordered collection of columns. Each column can be of different data types, like numeric, boolean, strings, etc. It has both a row and a column index. It is basically used for analytical purposes.

A list is an arranged collection of elements. It is used to store collections of data. It can contain a list of various types of data objects with a comma separated and enclosed within a square bracket. It is mutable, which means we can change the order of elements. Individual elements can even be replaced after the list has been created. This is one of the leading reasons why lists are being widely used. Lists play an effective role in small projects as they consume more memory. Here, we have mentioned different ways to convert a dataframe to a list.

Python program to convert dataframe column to list using to_list()

In the given example, we have defined a dataframe from a dictionary of lists containing students data. With the help of to_list() method, we have converted the dataframe 'name' column to list.

import pandas as pd

# dictionary of lists  
stu_dict = {'Name': ["Smith", "Priska", "Kashyap", "Andy"]
        ,'Subject': ["Phy", "Maths", "Chm", "Bio"],
        'Marks': [90, 99, 92, 89]}  

# Create a DataFrame object
student_df = pd.DataFrame(stu_dict, columns=['Name', 'Subject', 'Marks'])

print(student_df)

list_of_names = student_df['Name'].to_list()
print('List of Names: ', list_of_names)
print('Type of listOfNames: ', type(list_of_names))

Name Subject  Marks
0    Smith     Phy     90
1   Priska   Maths     99
2  Kashyap     Chm     92
3     Andy     Bio     89
List of Names:  ['Smith', 'Priska', 'Kashyap', 'Andy']
Type of listOfNames:  <class 'list'>

Python program to convert dataframe column to list using list()

We can also use the list() function to convert a DataFrame column to a list.

stu_dict = {'Name': ["Smith", "Priska", "Kashyap", "Andy"]
        ,'Subject': ["Phy", "Maths", "Chm", "Bio"],
        'Marks': [90, 99, 92, 89]}  


print("Pandas DataFrame:\n\n",stu_dict,"\n")

list_of_subject = list(stu_dict['Subject'])

print("List of Subjects:\n",
        list_of_subject,
        "\n",
        type(list_of_subject))

List of Subjects:
 ['Phy', 'Maths', 'Chm', 'Bio'] 
 <class 'list'>

Related Articles