Find a Character from a Given String in C Programming

Introduction

In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to find a character from a given string using a simple C program. This is a common task in string manipulation where you need to search for a specific character within a string entered by the user. Understanding this helps you build foundational string handling skills in C programming.

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C Program to Find a Character from a Given String

#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>

int main() {
    char str[100], ch;
    int found = 0;

    printf("Enter a string: ");
    fgets(str, sizeof(str), stdin);

    printf("Enter the character to find: ");
    scanf("%c", &ch);

    for (int i = 0; str[i] != '\0'; i++) {
        if (str[i] == ch) {
            printf("Character '%c' found at position %d\n", ch, i + 1);
            found = 1;
            break;
        }
    }

    if (!found) {
        printf("Character '%c' not found in the string.\n", ch);
    }

    return 0;
}

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Explanation

• fgets() is used to read the entire string including spaces.
• The loop iterates through each character of the string.
• If the target character matches, the index is printed.
• If the loop completes without finding the character, a not found message is displayed.

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Output Example

Enter a string: OpenAI GPT model
Enter the character to find: G
Character 'G' found at position 8

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Use Cases

• Searching a character in passwords, names, or data inputs.
• Useful in character filtering logic.
• Helps in understanding string traversal and condition checking.