C Data Types
In C programming, data types are declarations for variables. This determines the type
and size of data associated with variables. For example,
1. int myVar;
Here, myVar is a variable of int (integer) type. The size of int is 4 bytes.
Basic types
Here's a table containing commonly used types in C programming for quick access.
Type Size (bytes) Format Specifier
int at least 2, usually 4 %d
char 1 %c
float 4 %f
double 8 %lf
short
int 2 usually %hd
int
Integers are whole numbers that can have both zero, positive and negative values but
no decimal values. For example, 0, -5, 10
We can use int for declaring an integer variable.
1. int id;
Here, id is a variable of type integer.
You can declare multiple variables at once in C programming. For example,
1. int id, age;
The size of int is usually 4 bytes (32 bits). And, it can take 232 distinct states from -
2147483648 to 2147483647.
float and double
float and double are used to hold real numbers.
1. float salary;
2. double price;
In C, floating-point numbers can also be represented in exponential. For example,
1. float normalizationFactor = 22.442e2;
What's the difference between float and double?
The size of float (single precision float data type) is 4 bytes. And the size
of double (double precision float data type) is 8 bytes.
char
Keyword char is used for declaring character type variables. For example,
1. char test = 'h';
The size of the character variable is 1 byte.
void
void is an incomplete type. It means "nothing" or "no type". You can think of void
as absent.
For example, if a function is not returning anything, its return type should be void.
Note that, you cannot create variables of void type.
short and long
If you need to use a large number, you can use a type specifier long. Here's how:
1. long a;
2. long long b;
3. long double c;
Here variables a and b can store integer values. And, c can store a floating-point
number.
If you are sure, only a small integer ([−32,767, +32,767] range) will be used, you can
use short.
short d;
You can always check the size of a variable using the sizeof() operator.
1. #include <stdio.h>
2. int main() {
3. short a;
4. long b;
5. long long c;
6. long double d;
7.
8. printf("size of short = %d bytes\n", sizeof(a));
9. printf("size of long = %d bytes\n", sizeof(b));
10. printf("size of long long = %d bytes\n", sizeof(c));
11. printf("size of long double= %d bytes\n", sizeof(d));
12. return 0;
13. }
signed and unsigned
In C, signed and unsigned are type modifiers. You can alter the data storage of a data
type by using them. For example,
1. unsigned int x;
2. int y;
Here, the variable x can hold only zero and positive values because we have used
the unsigned modifier.
Considering the size of int is 4 bytes, variable y can hold values from -231 to 231-1,
whereas variable x can hold values from 0 to 232-1.
Other data types defined in C programming are:
bool Type
Enumerated type
Complex types
Derived Data Types
Data types that are derived from fundamental data types are derived types. For
example: arrays, pointers, function types, structures, etc.
