Python: Compute the difference between two lists

Last update on April 19 2025 12:59:20 (UTC/GMT +8 hours)

Difference Between Two Lists

Write a Python program to compute the difference between two lists.

Sample Solution:

Python Code :

# Import the 'Counter' class from the 'collections' module
from collections import Counter

# Define two lists 'color1' and 'color2' containing color names
color1 = ["red", "orange", "green", "blue", "white"]
color2 = ["black", "yellow", "green", "blue"]

# Create Counter objects 'counter1' and 'counter2' for each list to count the occurrences of color names
counter1 = Counter(color1)
counter2 = Counter(color2)

# Print the elements that are in 'counter1' but not in 'counter2' (Color1-Color2)
print("Color1-Color2: ", list(counter1 - counter2))

# Print the elements that are in 'counter2' but not in 'counter1' (Color2-Color1)
print("Color2-Color1: ", list(counter2 - counter1))

Sample Output:

Color1-Color2:  ['red', 'white', 'orange']                                                                    
Color2-Color1:  ['black', 'yellow']

Flowchart:

For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

Write a Python program to compute the asymmetric difference between two lists.
Write a Python program to identify common elements and differences between two lists.
Write a Python program to get the elements that are unique to each list.
Write a Python program to remove elements from one list that appear in another list.

Go to:

Previous: Write a Python program to split a list every Nth element.
Next: Write a Python program to create a list with infinite elements.

Python Code Editor: