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Data Type Ranges and Their Macros in C++

Last Updated : 13 Jun, 2026

Every fundamental data type in C++ can store values only within a specific range. The standard library provides predefined macros that represent the minimum and maximum values of these types, making it easy to obtain their limits in a portable manner.

  • Integer type limits are defined in the <climits> header.
  • Floating-point type limits are defined in the <cfloat> header.
  • These macros help avoid hardcoding implementation-specific values.

Example: The following program displays the ranges of several built-in data types using predefined macros


Output
char ranges from: -128 to 127

short int ranges from: -32768 to 32767

int ranges from: -2147483648 to 2147483647

long int ranges from: -9223372036854775808 to 9223372036854775807

float ranges from:...

Common Data Type Range Macros

A list of some of the data type macros is mentioned below considering GCC compiler as of Dec 2024.

Data Type

Range

Macro for min value

Macro for max value

char

-128 to +127

CHAR_MIN

CHAR_MAX

signed char

-128 to +127

SCHAR_MIN

SCHAR_MAX

unsigned char

0 to 255

--

UCHAR_MAX

short int

-32768 to +32767

SHRT_MIN

SHRT_MAX

unsigned short int

0 to 65535

--

USHRT_MAX

int

-2147483648 to +2147483647

INT_MIN

INT_MAX

unsigned int

0 to 4294967295

--

UINT_MAX

long int

-9223372036854775808 to +9223372036854775807

LONG_MIN

LONG_MAX

unsigned long int

0 to 18446744073709551615

--

ULONG_MAX

long long int

-9223372036854775808 to +9223372036854775807

LLONG_MIN

LLONG_MAX

unsigned long long int

0 to 18446744073709551615

--

ULLONG_MAX

float

1.17549e-38 to 3.40282e+38

FLT_MIN

FLT_MAX

float (negative)

-3.40282e+38 to -1.17549e-38

-FLT_MIN

-FLT_MAX

double

2.22507e-308 to 1.79769e+308

DBL_MIN

DBL_MAX

double (negative)

-3.40282e+38 to -1.17549e-38

-DBL_MIN

-DBL_MAX

Note: Exact ranges depend on the compiler, platform, and architecture.

Data Type Limits Using numeric_limits

Modern C++ provides the numeric_limits class template as a type-safe alternative to range macros. It is defined in the <limits> header.


Output
short int ranges from: -32768 to 32767
int ranges from: -2147483648 to 2147483647
float ranges from: 1.17549e-38 to 3.40282e+38

Explanation: numeric_limits<T> provides information about the properties and limits of a data type T through member functions such as min() and max().

Advantages of numeric_limits

Compared to macros, numeric_limits offers several benefits:

  • Provides type-safe access to data type limits.
  • Works naturally with templates and generic programming.
  • Improves readability and maintainability.
  • Offers additional information beyond minimum and maximum values.
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