Dataford
Interview QuestionsInterview GuidesExperiencesMock InterviewsPricing
Get started
Binary Search in Sorted Array
00:00
5 left

Binary Search in Sorted Array

EasyPython

Problem

At Stripe, a service stores sorted numeric IDs in memory and needs fast lookups. Implement binary search to find the index of a target value in a sorted array.

Given a sorted list of integers nums in ascending order and an integer target, return the index of target if it exists. Otherwise, return -1.

Formal Specification

  • Input: nums (list of integers sorted in ascending order), target (integer)
  • Output: Integer index of target, or -1 if not found

Constraints

  • 1 <= len(nums) <= 10^5
  • -10^9 <= nums[i], target <= 10^9
  • nums is sorted in ascending order
  • All values in nums are distinct

Function Signature

def binary_search(nums, target):
Interviewer

Your question is Binary Search in Sorted Array. Start with the requirements in the Question tab.

Run and submit as often as you like. When you're ready, talk me through your approach or go straight to the code.

You need to log in / sign up to run or submit.
CodePython 3
You need to log in / sign up to run or submit.Ln 2
Run your code to see test output here.