What Are Data Structures

Short answer

Data structures are organized formats for storing and accessing data. They define relationships between data elements and the operations that can be performed.

How it works

• Arrays: Store elements in contiguous memory for fast index access.
• Linked Lists: Connect nodes with pointers for efficient insertion.
• Trees: Hierarchical structures for sorted data and fast lookups.
• Graphs: Networks of nodes and edges for relationships.

Example

A social network uses graphs to represent users as nodes and friendships as edges.

Why it matters

The choice of data structure affects performance and memory usage. Poor choices lead to slow queries and wasted resources.