Format Specifiers in C: Syntax and Examples

Why Do We Use C Format Specifiers?

Format specifiers in C are used to take inputs and print the output of a type. The symbol we use in every format specifier is %. Format specifiers tell the compiler about the type of data that must be given or input and the type of data that must be printed on the screen.

Now that you have a brief idea of format specifiers in C, we have a few lists of format specifiers moving ahead.  

The Most Commonly Used Format Specifiers in C

The Most commonly used format specifiers are given below:

We will go through a few examples that will help you understand how to use format specifiers in printf() and scanf() functions for a better understanding.

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%d (Decimal Integer) Format Specifier 

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    int a=50;

    printf("The integer value of a is %d \n",a);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%c (Character) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    char s;

    printf("Enter the character \n");

    scanf("%c",&s);

    printf("The character is: %c",s);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%f (Floating Point) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    float a=3;

    printf("The floating point of a is %f \n",a);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%e (Floating Pointer Number) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    float a=12.5;

    printf("The floating-point of a is %e \n",a);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%s (String) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    char s[15]="simplilearn";

    printf("The string value of s is %s \n",s);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%lf (Double) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    double d=12.5;

    printf("The double value of d is %lf \n",d);

    return 0;

}

Output:

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%o (octal integer) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    int oct=11;

    printf("The octal integer value of oct is %o \n",oct);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%x (Hexadecimal Integer) Format Specifier

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    int h=14;

    printf("The hexadecimal value of h is %x \n",h);

    return 0;

}

Output:

%p (Prints Memory Address) Format Specifier

To find the memory address that holds values of a variable, we use the %p format specifier, and it prints in hexadecimal form.

#include <stdio.h>

int main()

{

    int sum=0;

    printf("The memory address of sum is %p \n",&sum);

    return 0;

}

output:

With that, you can conclude this tutorial on Format Specifiers in C

Next Steps

"Data Structures in C" can be your next topic. So far, you have learned why we use format specifiers in C. The next fundamentals will be the data structures and the varieties in data structures used for different purposes.

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