Python String to Hex [Explained with Code Examples]

Introduction to Python String to hex

Python string to hex conversion is basically transforming an ordinary string to a hexadecimal representation of its bytes. Each string in python is composed of Unicode characters so each character is represented by a different code point.

But when we need to transmit or store the string in a compact form, we can convert it to a sequence of bytes.

We can represent the value of each byte, which ranges from 0 to 255, in hexadecimal notation.

We convert Python strings to hex for the following reasons

• Data transfer: Hexadecimal representation can be used to encode data into a more compact and practical format for transmission.
• Data storage: Hexadecimal data storage can save disc usage and make data retrieval and manipulation simpler.
• Hexadecimal representation can be utilised to discover and diagnose problems that might be connected to data encoding during debugging.
• Hexadecimal format is sometimes used to encode data for use in cryptography.

It is simple to conduct string to hex conversions in Python because it has built-in functions and methods for doing so. We will explore how to perform Python string to hex conversion and its common use cases.

Example 1: Python String to Hex Conversion

# Define a string to convert to hex
string = "Goom"
# Convert the string to bytes
bytes = string.encode()
# Convert the bytes to a hexadecimal representation
hexadecimal = bytes.hex()
# Print the hexadecimal representation
print(hexadecimal)

From the example code defines a Python string variable string with the value “Goom”. We then use the encode() method on this string variable to convert it to bytes and store the result in a variable called bytes and that can be used for various purposes like data transmission or storage.

The hex() method cannot create a hexadecimal representation of a string without first converting it to bytes. The bytes are converted to a hexadecimal representation using the hex() method, and the output is saved in a variable named hexadecimal.

After printing the variable hexadecimal then we will get the output like this

Output

476f6f6d

This is a simple example of converting a string to hex in Python. You can modify the example by changing the string values. So, do try it out by yourself

Example 2: Python String to Hex Conversion

# Define a string to convert to hex
my_string = "I Love Python"
# Convert the string to bytes
bytes = my_string.encode()
# Convert the bytes to a hexadecimal representation
hexadecimal = bytes.hex()
# Print the hexadecimal representation
print(hexadecimal)

A Python string variable named my_string with the value “I Love Python” is defined in the example code. Then, we transform this string variable to bytes by using the encode() method, and the outcome is saved in a variable named bytes.

The bytes are then translated into a hexadecimal representation using the hex() method, and the output is saved in a variable named hexadecimal.

Finally, we use the print() function to output the hexadecimal variable to the console. The following hexadecimal representation of the string “I Love Python” in bytes is the program’s output:

Output

49204c6f766520507974686f6e

Common Error while converting Python String to Hex Value

When converting a Python string to hex value, a few errors could happen. Here are some illustrations:

1. Attribute error

When you try to use the hex() method on an object that doesn’t have it, this error message appears. For instance

# Trying to use the hex() method on a list
lst = [5,10,15]
hex_representation = lst.hex()
print(hex_representation)
# AttributeError: 'list' object has no attribute 'hex'

This example demonstrates trying to utilise the hex() method on a list that doesn’t have one. An AttributeError happens as a result.

2. Value error

This occurs when you try to convert a string to hexadecimal format using the bytes.fromhex() method with an invalid hexadecimal string.

For example

# Trying to convert an invalid hexadecimal string to bytes
my_string = "foo"
bytes_representation = bytes.fromhex(my_string)
# ValueError: non-hexadecimal number found in fromhex() arg at position 0

When we try to convert the string “foo” in this example to bytes using the fromhex() method, it throws a ValueError since it isn’t a legitimate hexadecimal string.

Conclusion

In Python, converting strings to hexadecimal format is a common operation. A string can be represented as hexadecimal data using the hex() function of the bytes object. Encoding problems must be resolved, and any hexadecimal strings utilised during the conversion process must be valid in order to prevent errors.

Strings can be successfully converted to hexadecimal format for a variety of use cases by adhering to best practises and managing mistakes correctly. Python network programming, data encoding, and cryptography all require the ability to convert strings to hexadecimal representation.