Python String max() Method

The string max() method returns the largest character in a string based on its Unicode value.

Example:

s = "hello"
res = max(s)
print(res)

o

Explanation: In string "hello", the unicode values of the characters are compared and the character 'o' has the highest Unicode value.

Syntax of string max() Method

max(string)

Parameter:

• string: A string for which we want to find the largest character. It cannot be empty.

Return Type:

• Returns the largest character in the string based on Unicode. If the string is empty then it raises a ValueError.

Note: ASCII is a subset of Unicode. Unicode has many more characters like non-English letters and emojis. For ASCII characters from 0 to 127 their values are the same in Unicode.

Examples of string max() Method

Mixed Case String

s = "GeeksforGeeks"
print(max(s))

s

Explanation: Here, max() function evaluates ASCII values for uppercase and lowercase letters separately. Since lowercase letters have higher ASCII values than uppercase case. So, 's' is largest character.

String with Digits and Letters

s = "abc123"
print(max(s))

c

Explanation: The digits and letters are compared based on their ASCII values. Among the characters ('a', 'b', 'c', '1', '2', '3'), 'c' has the highest ASCII value.

String with Special Characters

s = "a!@#z"
print(max(s))

z

Explanation: Special characters and alphabets are compared based on ASCII values. Here, 'z' has the highest ASCII value.