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  • Post last modified:March 27, 2024
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You are currently viewing Pandas Delete Last Row From DataFrame

You can delete the last row from the pandas DataFrame using either drop(), iloc[] and head() methods. In this article, I will explain how to delete/drop the last row of data from Pandas DataFrame with examples.

  • drop() method is used to remove columns or rows from DataFrame;
  • Use axis param to specify what axis you would like to remove. By default axis=0 meaning to remove rows. Use axis=1 or columns param to remove columns.
  • Use inplace=True to remove row/column in place meaning on existing DataFrame with out creating copy.

Key Points –

  • The drop() method in Pandas can be used to delete the last row from a DataFrame by specifying the index of the row to be removed.
  • The iloc[] indexing method allows for row selection in a DataFrame, making it possible to drop the last row by excluding it through slicing.
  • The head() function can be employed to drop the last row by specifying the desired number of rows to include, effectively excluding the last row.
  • Both drop() and head() methods provide an inplace parameter that, when set to True, modifies the original DataFrame directly without the need to reassign the result.
  • Inspecting the DataFrame using print() or other visualization methods helps visually confirm whether the last row has been successfully deleted.

1. Quick Examples of Delete Last Row From DataFrame

If you are in a hurry, below are some quick examples of how to drop/delete the last row from Pandas DataFrame.


# Quick examples of delete last row from DataFrame

# By using iloc[] to select all rows except the last row
df2 = df.iloc[:-1 , :]

# Using drop() function to delete last row
df.drop(index=df.index[-1],axis=0,inplace=True)

# Using DataFrame.head() function to drop last row
df2 = df.head(df.shape[0] -1)

Now, let’s create a DataFrame with a few rows and columns and execute some examples and validate results. Our DataFrame contains column names Courses, Fee, Duration, and Discount.


# Create DataFrame
import pandas as pd
technologies = {
    'Courses':["Spark","PySpark","Python","pandas"],
    'Fee' :[20000,25000,22000,24000],
    'Duration':['30day','40days','35days','60days'],
    'Discount':[1000,2300,2500,2000]
              }
index_labels=['r1','r2','r3','r4']
df = pd.DataFrame(technologies,index=index_labels)
print(df)

Yields below output.


# Output:
    Courses    Fee Duration  Discount
r1    Spark  20000    30day      1000
r2  PySpark  25000   40days      2300
r3   Python  22000   35days      2500
r4   pandas  24000   60days      2000

2. Drop Last Row of Pandas DataFrame Using iloc[]

To drop the last row of a Pandas DataFrame using iloc[]. By using DataFrame.iloc[] you can drop the rows from DataFrame and use -1 to drop the last row.


# By using iloc[] 
# To select all rows except the last row
df2 = df.iloc[:-1 , :]
print(df2)

In the above example, use df.iloc[:-1,:] to select all rows except the last one and then assign it back to the original variable which ideally drops the last row from DataFrame. As a result, the last row is effectively dropped from the DataFrame. This example yields the below output.


# Output:
    Courses    Fee Duration  Discount
r1    Spark  20000    30day      1000
r2  PySpark  25000   40days      2300
r3   Python  22000   35days      2500

3. Using drop() Function to Delete Last Row of Pandas DataFrame

Alternatively, you can also use drop() method to remove the last row. Use index param to specify the last index and inplace=True to apply the change on the existing DataFrame. In the below example, df.index[-1] returns r3 which is the last row from our DataFrame.


# Using drop() function to delete last row
df.drop(index=df.index[-1],axis=0,inplace=True)
print(df)

Yields the same output as above.

4. Drop Last Row of Pandas DataFrame Using head() Function

The head() function in Pandas returns the first n rows of a DataFrame. If you want to drop the last row using head(), you can use it in combination with the length of the DataFrame to exclude the last row.


# Use head() to drop the last row
df = df.head(len(df) - 1)
print(df)

In the above example, df.head(len(df) - 1) returns all rows except the last one, effectively dropping the last row from the DataFrame.

Similarly, using DataFrame.head() in combination with DataFrame.shape[0] to drop the last row from the DataFrame. The df.shape[0] gives you the number of rows in the DataFrame, and by subtracting 1, you get all rows except the last one.


# Using DataFrame.head() function 
# To drop last row
df2 = df.head(df.shape[0] - 1)
print(df2)

Yields the same output as above.

Frequently Asked Questions on Delete Last Row of Data of DataFrame

How can I delete the last row from a Pandas DataFrame?

There are multiple ways to delete the last row from a Pandas DataFrame. Two common approaches include using the drop() method or using iloc[] indexing.

Can I achieve the same result using head() function?

The head() function can be used to exclude the last row by specifying the number of rows to include. You can subtract 1 from the total number of rows in the DataFrame.

Are these methods modifying the original DataFrame in place?

The default behavior for these methods is to return a new DataFrame with the specified rows removed, and they do not modify the original DataFrame in place. If you want to modify the original DataFrame, you can use the inplace=True argument.

Is there a difference between these methods in terms of performance?

The performance difference is likely to be negligible for small to medium-sized DataFrames. Choose the method that aligns with your coding style and preference. For very large DataFrames, performance considerations might become more relevant.

How can I verify that the last row has been successfully deleted?

You can print the DataFrame or check its length before and after the deletion to verify that the last row has been removed.

Conclusion

In this article, you have learned how to drop the last row data of Pandas DataFrame using DataFrame.iloc[], DataFrame.drop(), and DataFrame.head() function with examples.

Happy Learning !!

References

Naveen Nelamali

Naveen Nelamali (NNK) is a Data Engineer with 20+ years of experience in transforming data into actionable insights. Over the years, He has honed his expertise in designing, implementing, and maintaining data pipelines with frameworks like Apache Spark, PySpark, Pandas, R, Hive and Machine Learning. Naveen journey in the field of data engineering has been a continuous learning, innovation, and a strong commitment to data integrity. In this blog, he shares his experiences with the data as he come across. Follow Naveen @ LinkedIn and Medium

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