Make A .NET Dictionary Key Case Insensitive

Introduction

In .NET, Dictionary keys can be made to be case insensitive for various methods and indexers. This comes in handy when you have the right number of characters but not the right case. You'll be able to relax the strict string equals that is done on a key of type string. But this has to be done on the dictionary creation. I'll show you how.

CurrentCultureIgnoreCase

For CurrentCultureIgnoreCase, it makes ignores the case for the current culture setting. This is good to know if the application is working in multiple languages or regions then you may need to switch to the current culture.

CurrentCultureIgnoreCase Code Example

This is a dictionary with animals and their lifespan. But for the animal name, I changed the case of the different characters to show that it will have a match in the dictionary and display value.

Dictionary<string, int> animalMaxAge = new Dictionary<string, int>(StringComparer.CurrentCultureIgnoreCase) {
{"Galapagos Tortoise", 190 },
{"Bowhead Whale", 211},
{"Koi Fish", 226},
{"Ocean Quahog Clam", 507},
{"Greenland Shark", 400},
{"Red Sea Urchin", 200}};

//Print the dictionary value by index using ignore case string comparer
Console.WriteLine($"key:GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe, value:{animalMaxAge["GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:BoWhEaD WhAlE, value:{animalMaxAge["BoWhEaD WhAlE"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:KoI FiSh, value:{animalMaxAge["KoI FiSh"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:OcEaN QuAhOg ClAm, value:{animalMaxAge["OcEaN QuAhOg ClAm"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:GrEeNlAnD ShArK, value:{animalMaxAge["GrEeNlAnD ShArK"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:ReD SeA UrChiN, value:{animalMaxAge["ReD SeA UrChiN"]}");

Code Output

key:GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe, value:190
key:BoWhEaD WhAlE, value:211
key:KoI FiSh, value:226
key:OcEaN QuAhOg ClAm, value:507
key:GrEeNlAnD ShArK, value:400
key:ReD SeA UrChiN, value:200

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CurrentCultureIgnoreCase Speed Test

This will be a test with a dictionary that has random strings of the length of 50 characters in the key and value. There will be 1 million entries in the dictionary and each entry will be accessed through the Indexer. It will be looped 100 times in 1 test. There will be 10 tests and the average over the 10 tests will be taken. That will be considered the performance and all the StringComparer with IgnoreCase will be tested. Test Parameters

CurrentCultureIgnoreCase Speed Test Code

Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.CurrentCultureIgnoreCase);

void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with CurrentCultureIgnoreCase
    }
}

Code Output

Test 1:Function Calls:100, In 1m 3s 501ms
Test 2:Function Calls:100, In 1m 3s 869ms
Test 3:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 341ms
Test 4:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 495ms
Test 5:Function Calls:100, In 1m 6s 557ms
Test 6:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 281ms
Test 7:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 815ms
Test 8:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 125ms
Test 9:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 663ms
Test 10:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 308ms
CurrentCultureIgnoreCase Average Speed:64896ms, In 10 Tests

This test completes in about one minute and 4 seconds. This will be the baseline in which we can compare against the other StringComparer types.

using System;
using System.Diagnostics;

int numberOfTests = 10;//Number of tests 
int numberOfFunctionCalls = 100;//Number of function calls made per test
int numberOfObjectsToCreate = 1000000;//Number test objects
int lengthOfRandomString = 50;
string testName = "CurrentCultureIgnoreCase";//Test name to print to average
List<string> keysList = new List<string>();
void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with CurrentCultureIgnoreCase
    }
}

List<double> testSpeedList = new List<double>();
for (int testIndex = 0; testIndex < numberOfTests; testIndex++)
{
    testSpeedList.Add(StartTest(testIndex));
}
Console.WriteLine($"{testName} Average Speed:{Math.Round(testSpeedList.Average())}ms, In {numberOfTests} Tests");

double StartTest(int testIndex)
{
    Stopwatch stopwatch = new Stopwatch();
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = GetDictionaryData();//Get intial random generated data
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfFunctionCalls; i++)
    {
        stopwatch.Start();//Start the Stopwatch timer
        TestMethod(testData);//
        stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    }
    stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    Console.WriteLine($"Test {testIndex + 1}:Function Calls:{numberOfFunctionCalls}, In {stopwatch.Elapsed.Minutes}m {stopwatch.Elapsed.Seconds}s {stopwatch.Elapsed.Milliseconds}ms");
    return stopwatch.Elapsed.TotalMilliseconds;
}

Dictionary<string, string> GetDictionaryData()
{
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.CurrentCultureIgnoreCase);
    keysList = new List<string>();
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfObjectsToCreate; i++)
    {
        string key = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
        if (!testData.ContainsKey(key))
        {
            string value = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
            testData[key] = value;
            keysList.Add(key);
        }
    }
    return testData;
}


string GenerateRandomString(int length)
{
    Random random = new Random();
    const string chars = "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz";
    return new string(Enumerable.Repeat(chars, length)
      .Select(s => s[random.Next(s.Length)]).ToArray());
}

InvariantCultureIgnoreCase

For InvariantCultureIgnoreCase, it makes ignores the case for the current culture setting. It is based on the English language but not on a particular country.

InvariantCultureIgnoreCase Code Example

This will be the same test as before with 50 random character strings in the key and value. The test parameters are below.

Dictionary<string, int> animalMaxAge = new Dictionary<string, int>(StringComparer.InvariantCultureIgnoreCase) {
            {"African Elephant", 70},
            {"Giant Galapagos Tortoise", 177},
            {"Blue Whale", 100},
            {"Aldabra Giant Tortoise", 152},
            {"Bottlenose Dolphin", 50},
            {"Orca", 90}
        };

////Print the dictionary value by index using ignore case string comparer
Console.WriteLine($"key:AfRiCaN ElEpHaNt, value:{animalMaxAge["AfRiCaN ElEpHaNt"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:GiAnT GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe, value:{animalMaxAge["GiAnT GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:BlUe WhAlE, value:{animalMaxAge["BlUe WhAlE"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:AlDaBrA GiAnT ToRtOiSe, value:{animalMaxAge["AlDaBrA GiAnT ToRtOiSe"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:BoTtLeNoSe DoLpHin, value:{animalMaxAge["BoTtLeNoSe DoLpHin"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:OrCa, value:{animalMaxAge["OrCa"]}");

Code Output

key:AfRiCaN ElEpHaNt, value:70
key:GiAnT GaLaPaGoS ToRtOiSe, value:177
key:BlUe WhAlE, value:100
key:AlDaBrA GiAnT ToRtOiSe, value:152
key:BoTtLeNoSe DoLpHin, value:50
key:OrCa, value:90

InvariantCultureIgnoreCase Test Code

Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.InvariantCultureIgnoreCase);

void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with InvariantCultureIgnoreCase
    }
}

Code Output

Test 1:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 440ms
Test 2:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 383ms
Test 3:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 641ms
Test 4:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 89ms
Test 5:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 5ms
Test 6:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 927ms
Test 7:Function Calls:100, In 1m 5s 569ms
Test 8:Function Calls:100, In 1m 7s 726ms
Test 9:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 820ms
Test 10:Function Calls:100, In 1m 4s 461ms
InvariantCultureIgnoreCase Average Speed:65207ms, In 10 Tests

This speed is around the same as CurrentCultureIgnoreCase, so we can consider them pretty much the same in performance. There's one more StringComparer to test.

using System.Diagnostics;

int numberOfTests = 10;//Number of tests 
int numberOfFunctionCalls = 100;//Number of function calls made per test
int numberOfObjectsToCreate = 1000000;//Number test objects
int lengthOfRandomString = 50;
string testName = "InvariantCultureIgnoreCase";//Test name to print to average
List<string> keysList = new List<string>();
void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with InvariantCultureIgnoreCase
    }
}

List<double> testSpeedList = new List<double>();
for (int testIndex = 0; testIndex < numberOfTests; testIndex++)
{
    testSpeedList.Add(StartTest(testIndex));
}
Console.WriteLine($"{testName} Average Speed:{Math.Round(testSpeedList.Average())}ms, In {numberOfTests} Tests");

double StartTest(int testIndex)
{
    Stopwatch stopwatch = new Stopwatch();
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = GetDictionaryData();//Get intial random generated data
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfFunctionCalls; i++)
    {
        stopwatch.Start();//Start the Stopwatch timer
        TestMethod(testData);//
        stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    }
    stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    Console.WriteLine($"Test {testIndex + 1}:Function Calls:{numberOfFunctionCalls}, In {stopwatch.Elapsed.Minutes}m {stopwatch.Elapsed.Seconds}s {stopwatch.Elapsed.Milliseconds}ms");
    return stopwatch.Elapsed.TotalMilliseconds;
}

Dictionary<string, string> GetDictionaryData()
{
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.InvariantCultureIgnoreCase);
    keysList = new List<string>();
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfObjectsToCreate; i++)
    {
        string key = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
        if (!testData.ContainsKey(key))
        {
            string value = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
            testData[key] = value;
            keysList.Add(key);
        }
    }
    return testData;
}

string GenerateRandomString(int length)
{
    Random random = new Random();
    const string chars = "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz";
    return new string(Enumerable.Repeat(chars, length)
      .Select(s => s[random.Next(s.Length)]).ToArray());
}

OrdinalIgnoreCase

This option is based on the binary value of the character so it's not based on a language.

OrdinalIgnoreCase Code Example

Dictionary<string, int> animalMaxAge = new Dictionary<string, int>(StringComparer.OrdinalIgnoreCase) {
            {"Mediterranean red coral", 500},
            {"Tuatara", 100},
            {"Lamellibrachia tube worm", 170},
            {"Hydra", 1},
            {"Greenland shark", 400},
            {"Macaw", 80}
        };

////Print the dictionary value by index using ignore case string comparer
Console.WriteLine($"key:MeDiTeRrAnEaN ReD CoRaL, value:{animalMaxAge["MeDiTeRrAnEaN ReD CoRaL"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:TuAtArA, value:{animalMaxAge["TuAtArA"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:LaMeLlIbRaChIa TuBe WoRm, value:{animalMaxAge["LaMeLlIbRaChIa TuBe WoRm"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:HyDrA, value:{animalMaxAge["HyDrA"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:GrEeNlAnD ShArK, value:{animalMaxAge["GrEeNlAnD ShArK"]}");
Console.WriteLine($"key:MaCaW, value:{animalMaxAge["MaCaW"]}");

Code Output

key: MeDiTeRrAnEaN ReD CoRaL, value: 500
key: TuAtArA, value: 100
key: LaMeLlIbRaChIa TuBe WoRm, value: 170
key: HyDrA, value: 1
key: GrEeNlAnD ShArK, value:400
key: MaCaW, value: 80

OrdinalIgnoreCase Speed Test

This test is the same as what was done the previous two times. You can see the test parameters below.

OrdinalIgnoreCase Speed Test Code

Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.OrdinalIgnoreCase);

void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with OrdinalIgnoreCase
    }
}

Code Output

Test 1:Function Calls:100, In 0m 8s 159ms
Test 2:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 392ms
Test 3:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 123ms
Test 4:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 429ms
Test 5:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 229ms
Test 6:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 147ms
Test 7:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 795ms
Test 8:Function Calls:100, In 0m 8s 191ms
Test 9:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 440ms
Test 10:Function Calls:100, In 0m 7s 933ms
OrdinalIgnoreCase Average Speed:7584ms, In 10 Tests

This is blazing fast compared to the other StringComparer options. Almost a full minute faster.

using System.Diagnostics;

int numberOfTests = 10;//Number of tests 
int numberOfFunctionCalls = 100;//Number of function calls made per test
int numberOfObjectsToCreate = 1000000;//Number test objects
int lengthOfRandomString = 50;
string testName = "OrdinalIgnoreCase";//Test name to print to average
List<string> keysList = new List<string>();
void TestMethod(Dictionary<string, string> dictionary)
{
    foreach (string key in keysList)
    {
        string value = dictionary[key];//Get data through the Indexer with OrdinalIgnoreCase
    }
}

List<double> testSpeedList = new List<double>();
for (int testIndex = 0; testIndex < numberOfTests; testIndex++)
{
    testSpeedList.Add(StartTest(testIndex));
}
Console.WriteLine($"{testName} Average Speed:{Math.Round(testSpeedList.Average())}ms, In {numberOfTests} Tests");

double StartTest(int testIndex)
{
    Stopwatch stopwatch = new Stopwatch();
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = GetDictionaryData();//Get intial random generated data
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfFunctionCalls; i++)
    {
        stopwatch.Start();//Start the Stopwatch timer
        TestMethod(testData);//
        stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    }
    stopwatch.Stop();//Stop the Stopwatch timer
    Console.WriteLine($"Test {testIndex + 1}:Function Calls:{numberOfFunctionCalls}, In {stopwatch.Elapsed.Minutes}m {stopwatch.Elapsed.Seconds}s {stopwatch.Elapsed.Milliseconds}ms");
    return stopwatch.Elapsed.TotalMilliseconds;
}

Dictionary<string, string> GetDictionaryData()
{
    Dictionary<string, string> testData = new Dictionary<string, string>(StringComparer.OrdinalIgnoreCase);
    keysList = new List<string>();
    for (int i = 0; i < numberOfObjectsToCreate; i++)
    {
        string key = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
        if (!testData.ContainsKey(key))
        {
            string value = GenerateRandomString(lengthOfRandomString);
            testData[key] = value;
            keysList.Add(key);
        }
    }
    return testData;
}


string GenerateRandomString(int length)
{
    Random random = new Random();
    const string chars = "ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz";
    return new string(Enumerable.Repeat(chars, length)
      .Select(s => s[random.Next(s.Length)]).ToArray());
}

Conclusion

The best StringComparer method for case-insensitive dictionaries is OrdinalIgnoreCase. It is almost a full minute faster than the other two types. If your application is not considering different cultures and languages then this is the way to go.

CurrentCultureIgnoreCase and InvariantCultureIgnoreCase are almost the same speed and both are over a minute in this test so they can consider equal in performance. It would just depend on the culture setting.

Know any other ways to create a case-insensitive dictionary? Let me know in the comments below.