Timings of CPython Operations

Here are some very rough approximate timings of CPython interpreter operations:

• f(1) (empty function body): 70-90ns
• f(n=1) (empty function body): 90-110ns
• o.x: 30-40ns
• o.f(1) (empty method body): 80-160ns
• Cls(1) (initialize attribute in __init__): 290-330ns
• x + y (integers): 20-35ns
• a[i] (list) : 20-40ns
• [i] (also dealloc): 35-55ns
• a.append(i) (list, average over 5 appends): 70ns
• d[s] (dict, shared str key): 20ns
• d[s] = i (dict, shared str key): 40ns
• isinstance(x, A): 100ns
• (x, y): 20-35ns
• x, y = t (tuple expand): 10ns

Note that these results are very imprecise due to many factors, but these should give a rough idea of the relative costs of various operations.

Details: CPython 3.6.2, Macbook Pro 15" (Mid 2015), macOS Sierra