Algorithms
Algorithms by Robert Sedgewickby Robert Sedgewick
Shares rank 2 of 4 algorithms textbooks by recommenders
People recommend it as a practical, readable algorithms reference, useful even for programmers without a computer science degree.
People recommend it as a practical, readable algorithms reference, useful even for programmers without a computer science degree.
5 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Useful for practical algorithmic programming
“So useful for a non-CS grad doing any kind of algorithmic programming.”
Comment from 10 Jul 2026 in “Computation as a Universal and Fundamental Concept” Good for learning graph algorithms
“Robert Sedgewick's courses were very good. Learned a lot about graphs.”
Comment from 13 May 2026 in “Coursera and Udemy are now one company” Readable enough to finish cover to cover
“I read Sedgewick's Algorithms cover to cover for fun”
Comment from 26 May 2026 in “Nobody cracks open a programming book anymore” Forty-year effort by its authors
“Algorithms books and material by Robert Sedgewick and Kevin Wayne is 40 year effort too.”
Comment from 5 Sep 2026 in “People that worked on the same idea for decades”
Other algorithms textbooks people recommend
The three most recommended other algorithms textbooks, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Algorithmsby Thomas H. Cormen and Charles E. Leiserson and Ronald L. Rivest and Clifford Stein | 10 | 1 | 91% | 7 | — | Approved |
| Algorithmsby Robert SedgewickThis page | 5 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
| The Algorithm Design Manualby Steven S. Skiena | 5 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
| Foundations of Multidimensional and Metric Data Structuresby Hanan Samet | 2 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
4 of the 5 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Algorithms books and material by Robert Sedgewick and Kevin Wayne is 40 year effort too.”
“So useful for a non-CS grad doing any kind of algorithmic programming.”
“I read Sedgewick's Algorithms cover to cover for fun”
“Robert Sedgewick's courses were very good. Learned a lot about graphs.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.