How to Remove 0x from Hex in Python

Hexadecimal is a numerical system that uses 16 distinct symbols to represent values. While working with data in Python, you may encounter hexadecimal values that start with 0x.

Although this is a common representation for hexadecimal numbers in programming, there may be instances when you want to remove the leading ‘0x’. In this tutorial, we will guide you on how to easily achieve this task using Python.

Understanding Hexadecimal Notation

In Python, hexadecimal numbers are prefixed with ‘0x’ to denote that they are in base 16. For instance, the hexadecimal equivalent of the decimal number 255 is ‘0xFF’. When converting a number to hexadecimal, Python automatically adds this prefix. However, it can be removed using various pythonic techniques.

Using the hex() Function and Slicing

The first and perhaps the most straightforward method of removing the ‘0x’ from a hexadecimal number is by using the built-in hex() function in conjunction with slicing. Here’s how you can do it:

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num = 255
hex_value = hex(num)[2:]
print(hex_value)

The hex() function converts the integer to a hexadecimal string with a ‘0x’ prefix. The slice operation [2:] then removes the first two characters (‘0x’) from this string.

Using the format() Function

An alternative way to remove the ‘0x’ prefix is by using the format() function. Here’s an example:

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num = 255
hex_value = format(num, 'x')
print(hex_value)

The ‘x’ in the second argument of the format function stands for hexadecimal. It converts the integer to a lowercase hexadecimal string without the ‘0x’ prefix.

Full Code

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# Method 1: Using hex() function and slicing
num = 255
hex_value = hex(num)[2:]
print("Method 1 output:", hex_value)
 
# Method 2: Using format() function
num = 255
hex_value = format(num, 'x')
print("Method 2 output:", hex_value)

Output:

Method 1 output: ff
Method 2 output: ff

Conclusion

As demonstrated, there are simple ways to remove the ‘0x’ from hexadecimal values in Python. Note, however, that removing ‘0x’ is usually only necessary when you want to display the values to users or write them to a database or file. In most programming contexts, it’s better to keep the ‘0x’ prefix since it immediately shows that the number is a hexadecimal.