How to Convert Bytes to String in Python ?

We are given data in bytes format and our task is to convert it into a readable string. This is common when dealing with files, network responses, or binary data. For example, if the input is b'hello', the output will be 'hello'.

This article covers different ways to convert bytes into strings in Python such as:

• Using decode() method
• Using str() function
• Using codecs.decode() method
• Using map() without using the b prefix
• Using pandas to convert bytes to strings

Let's explore them one by one:

Using .decode() method

This method is used to convert from one encoding scheme, in which the argument string is encoded to the desired encoding scheme. This works opposite to the encode.

s = b'GeeksForGeeks'

res = s.decode()

print(res, type(res))

GeeksForGeeks <class 'str'>

Explanation:

• decode() converts byte sequences into human-readable strings.
• It assumes the byte object is UTF-8 encoded unless specified otherwise.

Using str() function

The str() function of Python returns the string version of the object.

s = b'GeeksForGeeks'
print(type(s))

res = str(s, 'utf-8')

print(res, type(res))

<class 'bytes'>
GeeksForGeeks <class 'str'>

Explanation:

• str() constructor works similarly to decode() when passed with an encoding.
• It’s a useful alternative, especially when you're not calling it on a byte object directly.

Using codecs.decode() method

The codecs module provides an alternative way to decode bytes, especially useful when dealing with different encodings.

import codecs

s = b'GeeksForGeeks'

res = codecs.decode(s)

print(res, type(res))

GeeksForGeeks <class 'str'>

Using map() without using the b prefix

If you have a list of ASCII values, you can manually convert them into characters and join them into a string.

ascII = [103, 104, 105]

string = ''.join(map(chr, ascII))
print(string)

ghi

Explanation:

• Each ASCII value is converted into its character using chr().
• Then characters are then joined into a complete string using .join() method.

Using pandas to convert bytes to strings 

In this example, we are importing a pandas library, and we will take the input dataset and apply the decode() function. 

import pandas as pd
dic = {'column' : [ b'Book', b'Pen', b'Laptop', b'CPU']}
data = pd.DataFrame(data=dic)
 
x = data['column'].str.decode("utf-8")
print(x)

0      Book
1       Pen
2    Laptop
3       CPU
Name: column, dtype: object

Explanation:

• str.decode() is applied element-wise to each entry in the column.
• Especially useful when handling data from binary files or APIs in pandas.