Selection Sort Visualizer
Watch how Selection Sort finds the minimum element in each pass and places it in the correct position.
Time: O(n²)
Space: O(1)
Stable: No
In-place: Yes
Fast (200ms)Slow (2000ms)
Progress: Step 1 of 0Pass 0 of 0
640
341
252
123
224
115
906
Unsorted
Current Position
Current Minimum
Comparing
Swapping
Sorted
Current Step:
Click Start to begin the Selection Sort visualization
Algorithm Details
Best Case:
O(n²)Average Case:
O(n²)Worst Case:
O(n²)Space:
O(1)Stable:No
In-place:Yes
When to Use Selection Sort
- ✓Small datasets where simplicity matters
- ✓When memory writes are costly (fewer swaps than bubble sort)
- ✓Educational purposes to understand algorithms
- ✗Large datasets (poor time complexity)
- ✗When stability is required
Key Characteristics
- •Always performs exactly n-1 swaps
- •Useful when write operations are expensive
- •Not adaptive (same performance regardless of input)
- •Can be made stable with careful implementation