Encolpe: Try-except versus if-else in Python 3.5

Today I ran again in the question why to use if-else when try-except is shorter?

There is a semantic part that we loose information on a try-except as we don’t know what the developer did expect in the most case and there is a performance part. I found a test for python 2 (Try / Except Performance in Python: A Simple Test) with simple assumptions: we try to get a value in a one keyed dictionary and make iterations to get a statistic on this access. I made it a little more complex with a dictionary with 10,001 keys.

Results analysis:

• if-else take the same amount of time in both case
• try-expect is 2 times faster than if-else when it no raise the exception
• try-expect is 5 times slower when the exception is raised

Then the if-else has a predictable comportment and help the maintainer.

I’m agree that the semantic part of the if-else can be replace by a comment but i still not recommend to try-except if it is not to raise an exception.

The results:

The case where the key does not exist: 
 
1,000 iterations: 
with_try (0.250 ms) 
with_try_exc (0.291 ms) 
without_try (0.119 ms) 
without_try_not (0.120 ms) 
 
1,000,000 iterations: 
with_try (231.647 ms) 
with_try_exc (263.633 ms) 
without_try (119.238 ms) 
without_try_not (118.602 ms) 
 
1,000,000,000 iterations: 
with_try (224659.381 ms) 
with_try_exc (260333.897 ms) 
without_try (109796.531 ms) 
without_try_not (111871.690 ms) 
 
 
The case where the key does exist: 
 
1,000 iterations: 
exists_with_try (0.066 ms) 
exists_with_try_exc (0.070 ms) 
exists_without_try (0.166 ms) 
exists_without_try_not (0.180 ms) 
 
1,000,000 iterations: 
exists_with_try (57.661 ms) 
exists_with_try_exc (56.909 ms) 
exists_without_try (113.633 ms) 
exists_without_try_not (116.340 ms) 
 
1,000,000,000 iterations: 
exists_with_try (57650.440 ms) 
exists_with_try_exc (57395.376 ms) 
exists_without_try (114659.023 ms) 
exists_without_try_not (117646.034 ms)

The code:

#!/usr/bin/env python3

import time

d = dict.fromkeys(range(0, 10000), 0)
d['somekey'] = 1

ITERATIONS = (1000, 1000*1000, 1000*1000*1000)

def time_me(function):
    def wrap(*arg):
        start = time.time()
        r = function(*arg)
        end = time.time()
        print("%s (%0.3f ms)" % (function.__name__, (end-start)*1000))
        return r
    return wrap


# Not Existing
@time_me
def with_try(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        try:
            get = d['notexist']
        except:
            pass

@time_me
def with_try_exc(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        try:
            get = d['notexist']
        except Exception:
            pass

@time_me
def without_try(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        if d.get('notexist'):
            pass
        else:
            pass

@time_me
def without_try_not(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        if not d.get('notexist'):
            pass
        else:
            pass



# Existing
@time_me
def exists_with_try(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        try:
            get = d['somekey']
        except:
            pass

@time_me
def exists_with_try_exc(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        try:
            get = d['somekey']
        except Exception:
            pass

@time_me
def exists_without_try(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        if d.get('somekey'):
            pass
        else:
            pass

@time_me
def exists_without_try_not(iterations):
    for i in range(0, iterations):
        if not d.get('somekey'):
            pass
        else:
            pass


print ("\n\nThe case where the key does not exist:")
for iteration in ITERATIONS:
    print ("\n%d iterations:" % iteration)
    with_try(iteration)
    with_try_exc(iteration)
    without_try(iteration)
    without_try_not(iteration)


print ("\n\nThe case where the key does exist:")
for iteration in ITERATIONS:
    print ("\n%d iterations:" % iteration)
    exists_with_try(iteration)
    exists_with_try_exc(iteration)
    exists_without_try(iteration)
    exists_without_try_not(iteration)