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Center String in Width

Center a string within a specified width using the standard library.

9 snippets available in this sub-category.

Simple

Center string with spaces

string center width spaces alignment text

Center string within specified width

def center_string(text, width):
    """Center string within specified width using spaces."""
    return text.center(width)


text = "Hello"
result = center_string(text, 15)
print(f"'{result}'")  # '     Hello     '

Notes

  • Uses str.center() method
  • Pads with spaces by default
  • Simple centering operation
  • Common text formatting

Center with custom character

string center custom character width text

Center string with custom padding character

def center_with_char(text, width, char=" "):
    """Center string with custom padding character."""
    return text.center(width, char)


text = "Hello"
result = center_with_char(text, 15, "*")
print(result)  # "*****Hello*****"

Notes

  • Uses custom padding character
  • Visual separation
  • Maintains centering
  • Useful for formatting

Complex

Center with truncation

string center truncate width ellipsis text

Center string or truncate if too long

def center_or_truncate(text, width, char=" ", truncate_char="..."):
    """Center string or truncate if too long."""
    if len(text) > width:
        # Truncate from middle
        half_width = (width - len(truncate_char)) // 2
        start = text[:half_width]
        end = text[-(half_width):]
        return start + truncate_char + end
    else:
        return text.center(width, char)


text = "This is a very long string that needs truncation"
result = center_or_truncate(text, 20, "*")
print(result)  # "This is...truncation"

Notes

  • Handles strings longer than width
  • Truncates from middle
  • Uses ellipsis indicator
  • Prevents overflow

Center with custom alignment bias

string center bias alignment width text

Center string with alignment bias

def center_with_bias(text, width, char=" ", bias="left"):
    """Center string with bias towards left or right."""
    padding_needed = width - len(text)
    if padding_needed <= 0:
        return text

    if bias == "left":
        # Bias towards left (more padding on right)
        left_pad = padding_needed // 2
        right_pad = padding_needed - left_pad
    elif bias == "right":
        # Bias towards right (more padding on left)
        right_pad = padding_needed // 2
        left_pad = padding_needed - right_pad
    else:  # bias == 'center'
        # Perfect centering
        left_pad = padding_needed // 2
        right_pad = padding_needed - left_pad

    return char * left_pad + text + char * right_pad


text = "Hello"
result = center_with_bias(text, 15, "*", "left")
print(result)  # "*****Hello******"

Notes

  • Custom centering bias
  • Left/right/center bias options
  • Manual padding calculation
  • Flexible positioning

Center with multiple lines

string center multiline lines width text

Center each line of multiline text

def center_multiline(text, width, char=" "):
    """Center each line of multiline text."""
    lines = text.split("\n")
    centered_lines = [line.center(width, char) for line in lines]
    return "\n".join(centered_lines)


text = "Hello\nWorld\nPython"
result = center_multiline(text, 20, "*")
print(result)
# "*******Hello********"
# "*******World********"
# "******Python********"

Notes

  • Processes each line separately
  • Maintains line breaks
  • Consistent width per line
  • Useful for text blocks

Center with word wrapping

string center wrap textwrap width text

Center text with word wrapping

import textwrap


def center_wrapped_text(text, width, char=" "):
    """Center text with word wrapping."""
    # Wrap text to fit width
    wrapped_lines = textwrap.wrap(text, width=width)

    # Center each wrapped line
    centered_lines = []
    for line in wrapped_lines:
        # Calculate actual width needed for this line
        line_width = max(len(line), width)
        centered_lines.append(line.center(line_width, char))

    return "\n".join(centered_lines)


text = "This is a long text that needs to be wrapped and centered properly"
result = center_wrapped_text(text, 30, "*")
print(result)

Notes

  • Combines wrapping and centering
  • Handles long text gracefully
  • Maintains readability
  • Complex text formatting

Center with color preservation

string center color codes ansi text

Center string while preserving color codes

def center_with_color(text, width, char=" "):
    """Center string while preserving color codes."""
    import re

    # Remove color codes for length calculation
    clean_text = re.sub(r"\x1b\[[0-9;]*m", "", text)

    # Calculate padding needed
    padding_needed = width - len(clean_text)
    if padding_needed <= 0:
        return text

    # Create padding
    left_pad = padding_needed // 2
    right_pad = padding_needed - left_pad

    return char * left_pad + text + char * right_pad


# Example with ANSI color codes
colored_text = "\033[32mHello\033[0m"  # Green text
result = center_with_color(colored_text, 15)
print(f"'{result}'")  # '     Hello     ' (with color preserved)

Notes

  • Preserves ANSI color codes
  • Calculates length without codes
  • Maintains visual formatting
  • Useful for terminal output

Center with Unicode support

string center unicode characters width text

Center string with Unicode character support

def center_unicode(text, width, char=" "):
    """Center string with proper Unicode handling."""
    return text.center(width, char)


text = "Hello世界"  # Contains Unicode
result = center_unicode(text, 15, "·")
print(result)  # "····Hello世界····"

Notes

  • Handles Unicode characters correctly
  • Uses built-in str.center()
  • Supports Unicode padding chars
  • International text support

Center with custom width calculation

string center custom width function text

Center string using custom width calculation

def center_custom_width(text, width, char=" ", width_func=len):
    """Center string using custom width calculation."""
    # Calculate width using custom function
    text_width = width_func(text)

    # Calculate padding
    padding_needed = width - text_width
    if padding_needed <= 0:
        return text

    left_pad = padding_needed // 2
    right_pad = padding_needed - left_pad

    return char * left_pad + text + char * right_pad


# Example: Center with visual width (ignoring control characters)
def visual_width(text):
    """Calculate visual width ignoring control characters."""
    import re

    clean_text = re.sub(r"\x1b\[[0-9;]*m", "", text)
    return len(clean_text)


colored_text = "\033[32mHello\033[0m"
result = center_custom_width(colored_text, 15, width_func=visual_width)
print(f"'{result}'")  # '     Hello     '

Notes

  • Custom width calculation
  • Flexible width function
  • Useful for special cases
  • Advanced formatting control

🔗 Cross-References

🏷️ Tags

string, center, justify, alignment, width, text

📝 Notes

  • Use str.center() for centering text
  • Useful for formatting tables and output
  • Related: justifying and padding text