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C Data Types
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Data Types
As explained in the Variables chapter, a variable in C must be a specified data type, and you must use a format specifier
inside the printf() function to display it:

Example
// Create variables
int myNum = 5; // Integer (whole number)

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float myFloatNum = 5.99; // Floating point number

char myLetter = 'D'; // Character

// Print variables
printf("%d\n", myNum);
printf("%f\n", myFloatNum);
printf("%c\n", myLetter);

Try it Yourself »

Basic Data Types

The data type specifies the size and type of information the variable will store.

In this tutorial, we will focus on the most basic ones:

Data Type Size Description

int 2 or 4 bytes Stores whole numbers, without decimals

float 4 bytes Stores fractional numbers, containing one or more decimals. Sufficient for storing 7
decimal digits

double 8 bytes Stores fractional numbers, containing one or more decimals. Sufficient for storing 15
decimal digits

char 1 byte Stores a single character/letter/number, or ASCII values

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Basic Format Specifiers

There are different format specifiers for each data type. Here are some of them:

Format Specifier Data Type Try it

%d or %i int Try it »

%f float Try it »

%lf double Try it »

%c char Try it »

%s Used for strings (text), which you will learn more about in a later chapter Try it »

C Exercises

Test Yourself With Exercises

Exercise:
Add the correct data type for the following variables:

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myNum = 5;
myFloatNum = 5.99;
myLetter = 'D';

Submit Answer »

Start the Exercise

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