CppCon 2026

How to Choose and Use the Right Container in Modern C++: Part 1, Classic Containers

Choosing the right container and using it correctly can have a profound impact on the performance of a program, but doing so is harder than you might think. In Part 1 we will survey the containers and adaptors in the C++17 Standard Library, and discuss how to choose the best tool for the job and extract the best performance from it. We will consider the abstractions they model and the practical limitations they impose, and find that choosing between them requires an understanding not only of the speed and size tradeoffs of each container, but also of the difference between algorithmic complexity and actual behavior. And we will flag aspects of the standard containers that, without this understanding, can lead you to the wrong choice.