Python Split String

The split() method breaks a string into a list of smaller strings. By default, it splits on whitespace. You can also pass a separator such as comma, colon, pipe, or newline when your data uses a fixed delimiter.

Tested on: Python 3.13.3; kernel 6.14.0-37-generic.

Quick answer: split a string in Python

Use text.split() to split by whitespace. Use text.split(",") to split by comma. Use text.split(",", maxsplit=1) to split only once.

text = "red,green,blue"

print(text.split())
print(text.split(","))
print("name:Deepak:admin".split(":", maxsplit=1))

The first call splits on whitespace in a sentence. The second returns ['red', 'green', 'blue']. The third returns ['name', 'Deepak:admin'] because only the first colon is used.

Python split string quick reference

Python string split() syntax

Syntax: string.split(sep=None, maxsplit=-1)

• sep is the separator (delimiter).
• maxsplit limits the number of splits.
• split() returns a list.
• The original string is not changed.

If sep is not given, Python splits on whitespace. When sep is provided, consecutive delimiters can produce empty strings—for example, "1,,2".split(",") returns ['1', '', '2'].

Split string by whitespace

text.split() splits on spaces, tabs, and other whitespace. Consecutive whitespace counts as one separator. Leading and trailing whitespace does not create empty strings at the ends.

text = "  This is  Python  Tutorial  "
parts = text.split()

print(parts)
print(type(parts))

You get ['This', 'is', 'Python', 'Tutorial']—a list, not a string.

Split string by comma

Use text.split(",") for CSV-like values, tags, IDs, and simple config strings.

colors = "red,green,blue"
ids = "101,102,103"

print(colors.split(","))
print(ids.split(","))

split(",") does not remove spaces automatically. "apple, banana" becomes ['apple', ' banana'].

Split string by comma and remove spaces

Split first, then strip each part when input may include spaces after commas:

fruits = "apple, banana, cherry"
clean = [part.strip() for part in fruits.split(",")]

print(clean)

This turns "apple, banana, cherry" into ['apple', 'banana', 'cherry'].

Split string with maxsplit

maxsplit limits how many splits are performed. text.split(",", 1) returns at most two parts.

line = "name:Deepak:admin"
pair = "key=value=extra"

print(line.split(":", maxsplit=1))
print(pair.split("=", maxsplit=1))

Useful for key-value strings, headers, and log lines where only the first separator should split.

Split string from the right using rsplit()

rsplit() works like split(), but starts from the right. Use it when you care about the last separator.

path = "/home/user/report.csv"
filename = "archive.tar.gz"

print(path.rsplit("/", maxsplit=1))
print(filename.rsplit(".", maxsplit=1))

The path example returns ['/home/user', 'report.csv']. The filename example returns ['archive.tar', 'gz'].

split() vs rsplit()

Split string by newline

text.split("\n") splits only on the newline character. splitlines() is usually better for general line splitting.

text = "line one\nline two\nline three\n"

by_split = text.split("\n")
by_lines = text.splitlines()

print(by_split)
print(by_lines)

split("\n") can leave a trailing empty string. splitlines() avoids that extra item after a final newline.

split() vs splitlines()

text = "a\r\nb\r"

print(text.splitlines())
print(text.splitlines(keepends=True))

Split string by multiple delimiters

str.split() accepts one separator string. For comma, semicolon, or pipe, use re.split():

import re

text = "apple,banana;cherry|date"
parts = re.split(r"[,;|]", text)

print(parts)

Keep regex examples short. For complex CSV files, prefer the csv module instead of manual splitting. See Python regex for more pattern-based splitting.

Split string by multiple spaces

Use text.split() for normal whitespace splitting. Avoid text.split(" ") unless you specifically want empty strings from repeated spaces.

text = "a  b"

print(text.split())
print(text.split(" "))

split() gives ['a', 'b']. split(" ") can include empty strings between the words.

Split string and convert to numbers

split() returns strings. Convert with int() or float() when you need numbers. A list comprehension keeps the conversion compact:

text = "10,20,30"
numbers = [int(x) for x in text.split(",")]

print(numbers)
print(sum(numbers))

Common for comma-separated numeric input from users or config files.

Split string into words

text.split() works for simple whitespace-separated words. It does not remove punctuation automatically.

sentence = "Hello, world! Welcome to Python."
words = sentence.split()

print(words)

For punctuation-heavy text, consider regex or dedicated text processing. See Python substring and slicing for related string operations.

Split string into key and value

Use split("=", 1) or split(":", 1) so extra separators stay in the value:

config = "host=localhost:8080"
header = "Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8"

print(config.split("=", maxsplit=1))
print(header.split(":", maxsplit=1))

maxsplit=1 prevents accidental extra splitting on later delimiters.

Split URL, path, or filename

For simple strings, rsplit() can isolate the last path segment:

path = "/var/log/nginx/access.log"
print(path.rsplit("/", maxsplit=1))

For real filesystem paths, use pathlib.Path. For URLs, use urllib.parse. Manual split() is fine for quick examples, not production URL or path logic.

Summary

Use split() to break a string into a list. Call it with no argument to split on whitespace, or pass a separator for delimiter-based splitting. Use maxsplit to limit splits, rsplit() to split from the right, and splitlines() for line-based text. Use re.split() for multiple delimiters or regex patterns. Strip parts or convert types after splitting when your input needs cleanup. Join parts again with separator.join(parts)—the inverse of splitting in Python concatenate strings.

References

• Python str.split() documentation
• Python str.rsplit() documentation
• Python str.splitlines() documentation
• Python sorting and splitting HOWTO
• Python re.split() documentation