Python MongoDB Sort

Last modified on: October 20, 2024

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<h3><strong>Sorting Documents in MongoDB Using Python</strong></h3>
<p>You can sort the results of your queries in MongoDB using the <code>sort()</code> method in the <code>pymongo</code> library. This guide will show you how to sort documents based on specific fields.</p>
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<h3><strong>1. Prerequisites</strong></h3>
<p>Ensure you have:</p>
<ul>
<li>MongoDB installed and running locally or access to a cloud MongoDB service (e.g., MongoDB Atlas).</li>
<li>The <code>pymongo</code> library installed. If you haven&rsquo;t done this yet, run:</li>
</ul>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>pip install pymongo
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>2. Import Required Libraries</strong></h3>
<p>Start by importing <code>pymongo</code>:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>import pymongo
from pymongo import MongoClient
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>3. Connecting to MongoDB</strong></h3>
<p>Connect to your MongoDB instance. For a local database, use:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>client = MongoClient("mongodb://localhost:27017/")
</code></pre>
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<p>For a cloud-based MongoDB instance (like MongoDB Atlas), use your MongoDB URI:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>client = MongoClient("your_mongodb_atlas_uri")
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>4. Creating or Accessing a Database and Collection</strong></h3>
<p>Create or access a database and a collection:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>db = client["mydatabase"]
collection = db["mycollection"]
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>5. Inserting Sample Documents (if needed)</strong></h3>
<p>You can insert some sample documents for sorting:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>if collection.count_documents({}) == 0:
    documents = [
        { "name": "Alice", "age": 30, "city": "New York" },
        { "name": "Bob", "age": 25, "city": "Los Angeles" },
        { "name": "Charlie", "age": 35, "city": "Chicago" },
        { "name": "Diana", "age": 28, "city": "New York" },
    ]
    collection.insert_many(documents)
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>6. Sorting Documents</strong></h3>
<p>You can sort documents based on one or more fields using the <code>sort()</code> method:</p>
<h4><strong>a. Sort by a Single Field</strong></h4>
<p>To sort documents by age in ascending order:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>sorted_documents = collection.find().sort("age", pymongo.ASCENDING)

print("Documents sorted by age (ascending):")
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)
</code></pre>
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<p>To sort by age in descending order:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>sorted_documents = collection.find().sort("age", pymongo.DESCENDING)

print("\nDocuments sorted by age (descending):")
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)
</code></pre>
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<h4><strong>b. Sort by Multiple Fields</strong></h4>
<p>You can also sort by multiple fields. For example, to sort by city and then by age within each city:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>sorted_documents = collection.find().sort([("city", pymongo.ASCENDING), ("age", pymongo.ASCENDING)])

print("\nDocuments sorted by city and age:")
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>7. Closing the Connection</strong></h3>
<p>After performing your operations, close the connection:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>client.close()
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>Complete Example</strong></h3>
<p>Here&rsquo;s a complete script demonstrating how to sort documents in a MongoDB collection:</p>
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<pre class="language-python"><code>import pymongo
from pymongo import MongoClient

# Connect to MongoDB
client = MongoClient("mongodb://localhost:27017/")

# Create or access a database
db = client["mydatabase"]

# Create or access a collection
collection = db["mycollection"]

# Insert sample documents (if collection is empty)
if collection.count_documents({}) == 0:
    documents = [
        { "name": "Alice", "age": 30, "city": "New York" },
        { "name": "Bob", "age": 25, "city": "Los Angeles" },
        { "name": "Charlie", "age": 35, "city": "Chicago" },
        { "name": "Diana", "age": 28, "city": "New York" },
    ]
    collection.insert_many(documents)

# Sort by age (ascending)
print("Documents sorted by age (ascending):")
sorted_documents = collection.find().sort("age", pymongo.ASCENDING)
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)

# Sort by age (descending)
print("\nDocuments sorted by age (descending):")
sorted_documents = collection.find().sort("age", pymongo.DESCENDING)
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)

# Sort by city and then by age (ascending)
print("\nDocuments sorted by city and age:")
sorted_documents = collection.find().sort([("city", pymongo.ASCENDING), ("age", pymongo.ASCENDING)])
for doc in sorted_documents:
    print(doc)

# Close the connection
client.close()
</code></pre>
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<h3><strong>Conclusion</strong></h3>
<p>In this guide, you learned how to:</p>
<ol>
<li>Connect to MongoDB using Python.</li>
<li>Sort documents based on one or more fields.</li>
<li>Retrieve and display sorted documents.</li>
</ol>
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