Differences Between Iterative and Recursive Functions
In this lesson, we will highlight the key differences between Iterative and Recursive functions.
We'll cover the following
Iterative Vs. Recursive
Both recursion and iteration are used for executing some instructions repeatedly until some condition is satisfied.
So where does the difference actually lie between Iteration and Recursion? Let’s discuss a few factors that differentiate them from each other in this lesson.
Recursive
Iterative
Definition
Recursion refers to a situation where a function calls itself again and again until some base condition is not reached.
Iteration refers to a situation where some statements are executed again and again using loops until some condition is satisfied.
Application
Recursion is always called on a function, therefore it is called a process.
Iterative code is applied on variables and is a set of instructions that are called upon repeatedly.
Program Termination
Recursive code terminates due to the base case condition being satisfied.
Iterative code either runs for a particular number of loops or until a specified condition is met.
Code Size
Recursive code is smaller and neater in length.
Iterative code is usually extensive and cluttered.
Overhead Time
Recursive code has an overhead time for each recursive call it makes.
Iterative code has no overhead time.
Speed
Recursive code is slower than iterative code as it not only runs the program but also has to invoke stack memory.
Iterative code has a relatively faster runtime speed.
Stack Utilization
Recursion uses the stack to store the variable changes for each recursive call. The stack is used to store the set of new local variables and parameters each time the function is called.
Iterative code does not use the stack.
In the next lesson, we will learn how to convert iterative code to recursive code.