TypeError: float object cannot be interpreted as an integer

# Table of Contents

1. TypeError: 'FLOAT' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
2. TypeError: 'STR' object cannot be interpreted as an integer

# TypeError: float object cannot be interpreted as an integer

The Python "TypeError: 'float' object cannot be interpreted as an integer" occurs when we pass a float to a function that expects an integer argument.

To solve the error, use the floor division operator, e.g. for i in range(my_num // 5):.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

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my_num = 50

print(my_num / 5)  # 👉️ 10.0 (float)

# ⛔️ TypeError: 'float' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
for i in range(my_num / 5):
    print(i)

The division operator / always produces a float value but the range() function expects an integer.

Floating point numbers have one or more digits after the decimal, whereas integers don't have a decimal.

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print(type(10.0))  # 👉️ <class 'float'>
print(type(10.5))  # 👉️ <class 'float'>

print(type(5))  # 👉️ <class 'int'>
print(type(13))  # 👉️ <class 'int'>

# Use the floor division operator to solve the error

To solve the error, use the floor division operator // instead of the division / operator.

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my_num = 50

# ✅ Using floor division
for i in range(my_num // 5):
    print(i)

print(my_num / 5)  # 👉️ 10.0 (float)
print(my_num // 5)  # 👉️ 10 (int)

# ✅ Or convert to int
print(int(10.0)) # 👉️ 10 (int)

Division / of integers yields a float, while floor division // of integers results in an integer.

# Convert the float to an integer when calling the function

Alternatively, you can convert the float to an int by passing it to the int() constructor.

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my_num = 50

# ✅ Convert float to int
for i in range(int(my_num / 5)):
    print(i)

print(int(10.0))  # 👉️ 10
print(int(5.0))  # 👉️ 5

The int() class returns an integer object constructed from the provided number or string argument.

The constructor returns 0 if no arguments are given.

The range() function is commonly used for looping a specific number of times in for loops and takes the following parameters:

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print(list(range(5))) # 👉️ [0, 1, 2, 3, 4]
print(list(range(1, 5))) # 👉️ [1, 2, 3, 4]

If you only pass a single argument to the range() constructor, it is considered to be the value for the stop parameter.

# Convert the float to an integer by rounding

You can also convert the float to an integer by rounding.

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my_float = 3.51

for i in range(round(my_float)):
    print(i) # 0, 1, 2, 3

print(round(my_float)) # 👉️ 4

The round() function takes the following 2 parameters:

The round function returns the number rounded to ndigits precision after the decimal point.

If ndigits is omitted, the function returns the nearest integer.

You can use the math.ceil() or math.floor() method if you need to round the float up or down.

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import math

my_float = 3.51

rounded_up = math.ceil(my_float)
print(rounded_up)  # 👉️ 4

rounded_down = math.floor(my_float)
print(rounded_down)  # 👉️ 3

The math.ceil() method returns the smallest integer greater than or equal to the provided number.

The math.floor() method returns the largest integer less than or equal to the provided number.

# Using numpy.arange to solve the error

The native range() function cannot be called with a floating-point number, but you can call the numpy.arange method with one.

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import numpy as np

my_float = 3.5

for i in np.arange(my_float):
    # 0.0
    # 1.0
    # 2.0
    # 3.0
    print(i)

The numpy.arange() method takes the start, stop and step values as parameters, just like the range() function.

However, numpy.arange handles floating-point values.

If you need to install numpy, open your terminal in your project's root directory and run the following command.

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pip install numpy

pip3 install numpy

# Reassigning a variable by mistake

Make sure you aren't declaring a variable that stores an integer initially and overriding it somewhere in your code.

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my_int = 50

# 👇️ reassigned variable to a float by mistake
my_int = 5.6

# ⛔️ TypeError: 'float' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
for i in range(my_int):
    print(i)

We initially set the my_int variable to an integer but later reassigned it to a float which caused the error.

# TypeError: 'str' object cannot be interpreted as an integer

The Python "TypeError: 'str' object cannot be interpreted as an integer" occurs when we pass a string to a function that expects an integer argument.

To solve the error, convert the string to an integer in the call to the function.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

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# 👇️ this is a string
my_num = '5'

# ⛔️ TypeError: 'str' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
for i in range(my_num):
    print(i)

We passed a string to the range() constructor which expects an integer argument.

# Convert the string to an integer in the call to the function

To solve the error, use the int() class to convert the string to an integer.

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my_num = '5'

for i in range(int(my_num)):
    print(i)

The int() class returns an integer object constructed from the provided number or string argument.

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print(int('5')) # 👉️ 5 (integer)
print(int('3')) # 👉️ 3 (integer)

# The input() function always returns a string

The error often occurs when taking input from the user with the built-in input() function.

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# 👇️ this is a string
num = input('Enter your fav number: ')
print(num)
print(type(num))  # 👉️ <class 'str'>

# ⛔️ TypeError: 'str' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
for i in range(num):
    print(i)

The input function converts the supplied value to a string and returns it.

The input() function is guaranteed to return a string even if the user enters an integer.

Use the int() constructor to convert the value to an integer to solve the error.

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num = input('Enter your fav number: ')
print(num)
print(type(num))  # 👉️ <class 'str'>

# ✅ Convert str to integer
for i in range(int(num)):
    print(i)

The int() class returns an integer object constructed from the provided number or string argument.

The constructor returns 0 if no arguments are given.

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print(int('10'))  # 👉️ 10
print(int('5'))  # 👉️ 5

The range constructor is commonly used for looping a specific number of times in for loops and takes the following parameters:

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print(list(range(3))) # 👉️ [0, 1, 2]
print(list(range(1, 4))) # 👉️ [1, 2, 3]

If you only pass a single argument to the range() constructor, it is considered to be the value for the stop parameter.

# Reassigning a variable to a string by mistake

Make sure you aren't declaring a variable that stores an integer initially and overriding it somewhere in your code.

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my_int = 10

# 👇️ reassigned variable to a string by mistake
my_int = '30'

# ⛔️ TypeError: 'str' object cannot be interpreted as an integer
for i in range(my_int):
    print(i)

We initially set the my_int variable to an integer but later reassigned it to a string.

In this case, you have to track down where the variable got set to a string and correct the assignment.