Can We Use Radix Sort?

James H. Sterling
James H. Sterling
• • 7 min read

Radix Sort Only Applies to Integers, Fixed Size Strings, Floating Points and to "Less Than", "Greater Than" or "Lexicographic Order" Comparison Predicates...

Can We Use Radix Sort?

Radix sort only applies to integers, fixed size strings, floating points and to "less than", "greater than" or "lexicographic order" comparison predicates, whereas comparison sorts can accommodate different orders. k can be greater than log N. Quick sort

Quick sort
Quicksort is a divide-and-conquer algorithm. It works by selecting a 'pivot' element from the array and partitioning the other elements into two sub-arrays, according to whether they are less than or greater than the pivot. ... The sub-arrays are then sorted recursively.
› wiki › Quicksort
can be done in place, radix sort becomes less efficient.

What can radix sort be used on?

Radix sort
  • In computer science, radix sort is a non-comparative sorting algorithm. ...
  • Radix sort can be applied to data that can be sorted lexicographically, be they integers, words, punch cards, playing cards, or the mail.
  • Radix sort dates back as far as 1887 to the work of Herman Hollerith on tabulating machines.

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What are the limitations of radix sort?

The disadvantages of Radix Sort are:
  • Since Radix Sort depends on digits or letters, Radix Sort is much less flexible than other sorts. ...
  • The constant for Radix sort is greater compared to other sorting algorithms.
  • It takes more space compared to Quicksort which is inplace sorting.
James H. Sterling

James H. Sterling

Environmental Science & Climate Journalist
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James Sterling reports on renewable energy developments, climate policy, ecological conservation, and green tech innovations around the globe.