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How to improve Python code quality with 1 comma

Beck Moulton
4 min readAug 20, 2024

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Digging deeper into programming languages, there are all kinds of choices around us, from C to C++, to Python and more. Speaking of Python, it is a powerful programming language in its own right; this is because of the simplicity and versatility built into the language.

Python is widely popular for its simple syntax, extensive third-party libraries, and dynamic applicability. With these significant advantages, there is a small feature that can help improve code maintainability and minimize errors; however, even the best Python developers often overlook this feature. This feature is trailing commas.

This article will discuss how to improve Python code quality by trailing commas.

What is a trailing comma?

As the name suggests, a trailing comma is a comma included at the end of the last element in a list, tuple, or function.

#  "Charlie "
names = ['Alice', 'Bob', 'Charlie',]

In programming, trailing commas can improve code readability. When we view a list or tuple, trailing commas clearly indicate the end of the last element, making the code easier to read and understand. Especially when dealing with long lists containing multiple elements, the role of trailing commas is particularly evident.

In this example, the trailing comma is used after Charlie’s name. It should be noted that this is an optional syntax (not mandatory), but it is recommended to use it. The…

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Beck Moulton
Beck Moulton

Written by Beck Moulton

Focus on the back-end field, do actual combat technology sharing Buy me a Coffee if You Appreciate My Hard Work https://www.buymeacoffee.com/BeckMoulton

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