8. Variable Types

Python is a dynamically typed language - which means you don’t have to declare the type of variable, or need to specify variable types. Python automatically detects the type from the value type at runtime.

# Python is a dynamically typed language. 
## Variable types are inferred at runtime, so you can write:
x = 5        # x is an integer
x = "hello"  # now x is a string

Common Built-in Data Types

Python has several built-in types for different kinds of data or values:

• Integer (int) - whole numbers (e.g., 5, -10, 0)
• Float (float) - decimal numbers (e.g., 3.14, -0.5, 2.0)
• String (str) - text inside quotes or enclosed in quotes (e.g., “hello”, ‘Python’)
• Boolean (bool) - logical values (True or False)
• list - Ordered, mutable collection [1, 2, 3]
• tuple - Ordered, immutable collection (1, 2, 3)
• dict - Key-value pairs {“name”: “Alice”, “age”: 25}
• set - Unordered collection of unique items {1, 2, 3}

Examples:

x = 10          # int
y = 3.14        # float
z = "Hello"     # str
is_ready = True # bool

You can check any variable’s type using the built-in type() function::

x = 10
print(type(x))   # Output: <class 'int'>

Output:

<class 'int'>

🧩 Try It Yourself

1. Create five variables of different data types.
2. Use type() to display each one’s type.

Example :

name = "Alice"
age = 30
height = 5.6
is_student = True
subjects = ["Math", "Science", "English"]

print(type(name))
print(type(age))
print(type(height))
print(type(is_student))
print(type(subjects))

Output:

<class 'str'>
<class 'int'>
<class 'float'>
<class 'bool'>
<class 'list'>

Summary

1. You don’t need to declare variable types — Python infers them.
2. Use type() to check data types.
3. Learn the basic built-in types — they’re the foundation of all Python programs.

Now that you understand Python variables, your next step is to learn about Assigning Values to Variables in Python in detail.