Question

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Python “is” operator behaves unexpectedly with integers

Usually I use the type(x) == type(y) to compare if the types are the same. And then usex==y to compare if the numerical values are equal.

However, someone proposed that one may just use z1 is z2 to compare if the z1 and z2 are containing the same type of numbers with exactly the same value. In many cases, it will be successful (especially for the positive ints).

However, sometimes the same number (mostly the negative ints) can have several different instances. Is this an expected behavior of python?

For example:

>>> for x in range(-20,125):
    z1=x
    z2=int(float(x))
    if z1 is not z2:
        print "z1({z1}; type = {typez1}; id={idz1}) is not z2({z2}; type = {typez2}; id={idz2})".format(z1=z1,typez1=type(z1),idz1=id(z1),z2=z2,typez2=type(z2),idz2=id(z2))


z1(-20; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869592) is not z2(-20; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-19; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870480) is not z2(-19; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-18; type = <type 'int'>; id=32981032) is not z2(-18; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-17; type = <type 'int'>; id=33871368) is not z2(-17; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-16; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869712) is not z2(-16; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-15; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869736) is not z2(-15; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-14; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869856) is not z2(-14; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-13; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869280) is not z2(-13; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-12; type = <type 'int'>; id=33868464) is not z2(-12; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-11; type = <type 'int'>; id=33868488) is not z2(-11; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-10; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869616) is not z2(-10; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-9; type = <type 'int'>; id=33871344) is not z2(-9; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-8; type = <type 'int'>; id=33869064) is not z2(-8; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
z1(-7; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870336) is not z2(-7; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870408)
z1(-6; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870360) is not z2(-6; type = <type 'int'>; id=33870384)
>>> x
124
>>> print x
124
>>> import sys
>>> print sys.version
2.7.2+ (default, Oct  4 2011, 20:06:09) 
[GCC 4.6.1]

Answer 1

Yes. Only a few numbers close to 0 (more positive than negative, as you’ve discovered) are interned by the compiler. Since an expression may result in a number outside this range, is should never be used to check for equality.