Space Complexity

Time complexity tells you how long an algorithm takes. Space complexity tells you how much memory it uses. Both matter in practice. A data pipeline that is fast but uses 64 GB of RAM on a machine with 16 GB will crash before processing a single row. An algorithm that is memory-efficient but takes hours defeats the purpose of real-time analytics. Understanding space complexity helps you balance speed and memory to fit your system's resources. O(1) Space vs O(n) Space Space complexity measures the extra memory an algorithm allocates beyond the input itself. An algorithm that uses a fixed number of variables regardless of input size is O(1) space. An algorithm that creates a new list proportional to the input is O(n) space. Generators: 4,000x Less Memory Generators are the data engineer's sec