What is Negative Indexing in Python?

Last Updated : 1 Oct, 2026

Negative indexing in Python is used to access elements from the end of a sequence.

  • -1 represents the last element.
  • -2 represents the second-last element.
  • Negative indexing works with sequences such as lists, strings and tuples.

Example

Consider the following list:

[10, 20, 30, 40, 50]

The indexes are:

Positive: 0 1 2 3 4

10 20 30 40 50

Negative: -5 -4 -3 -2 -1

10 20 30 40 50

Accessing Via Negative Indexing

Elements can be accessed using a negative index inside square brackets.

Python 
numbers = [10, 20, 30, 40, 50]

print(numbers[-1])
print(numbers[-2])
print(numbers[-5])

Output
50
40
10

Explanation:

  • numbers[-1] returns the last element.
  • numbers[-2] returns the second-last element.
  • numbers[-5] returns the first element.
  • The index moves toward the beginning as the negative value decreases.

Negative Indexing with Lists

Lists support negative indexing, making it easy to access elements near the end.

Python 
fruits = ["Apple", "Banana", "Mango", "Orange"]

print(fruits[-1])
print(fruits[-3])

Output
Orange
Banana

Explanation:

  • fruits[-1] accesses Orange, the last element.
  • fruits[-3] accesses Banana, the third element from the end.
  • Length of the list does not need to be calculated.

Negative Indexing with Strings

It can also be used to access characters from the end, of a string.

Python 
text = "Python"

print(text[-1])
print(text[-2])
print(text[-6])

Output
n
o
P

Explanation:

  • text[-1] returns the last character.
  • text[-2] returns the second-last character.
  • text[-6] returns the first character.

Negative Indexing with Tuples

Tuples also support negative indexing because they are ordered sequences.

Python 
numbers = (10, 20, 30, 40, 50)

print(numbers[-1])
print(numbers[-3])

Output
50
30

Explanation:

  • numbers[-1] returns the last element.
  • numbers[-3] returns the third element from the end.
  • Indexing rule is the same as that of lists.

Negative Indexing in Nested Sequences

It can be applied at multiple levels when working with nested sequences.

Python 
data = [[10, 20], [30, 40], [50, 60]]

print(data[-1])
print(data[-1][-1])

Output
[50, 60]
60

Explanation:

  • data[-1] accesses the last nested list.
  • data[-1][-1] accesses the last element of that nested list.
  • Multiple indexes can be combined to reach nested elements.

Modifying Elements Using Negative Indexing

Negative indexing can also be used to modify elements of mutable sequences such as lists.

Python 
numbers = [10, 20, 30, 40]

numbers[-1] = 100

print(numbers)

Output
[10, 20, 30, 100]

Explanation:

  • numbers[-1] refers to the last element.
  • Assigning a new value replaces the existing element.
  • This works with lists because they are mutable.

Invalid Negative Index

A negative index must fall within the valid range of sequence. Otherwise, Python raises an IndexError.

Python 
numbers = [10, 20, 30]

print(numbers[-4])

Output

IndexError: List index out of range

Explanation:

  • List contains three elements.
  • Its valid negative indexes are -1, -2 and -3.
  • -4 is outside the valid range.

Negative Indexing vs Positive Indexing

Positive IndexingNegative Indexing
Starts from 0Starts from -1
Moves from beginning to endMoves from end to beginning
First element is at index 0Last element is at index -1
Example: numbers[0]Example: numbers[-1]
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