Queue<T> vs List<T>

.net, difference, list, performance, queue

Solution

Performance can be profiled. Though in this case of so few items, you may need to run the code millions of times to actually get worthwhile differences.

I will say this: `Queue<T>` will expose your intent more explicitly, people know how a queue works.

A list being used like a queue is not as clear, especially if you have a lot of needless indexing and `RemoveAt(magicNumber)` code. `Dequeue` is a lot more consumable from a code maintenance point of view.

If this then gives you measurable performance issues, you can address it. Don't address every potential performance issue upfront.

Problem

I'm currently using a `List<T>` as a queue (use `lst[0]` then `lst.removeAt(0)`) to hold objects. There's about 20 items max at a given time. I realized there was an actual `Queue<T>` class. I'm wondering if there's any benefit (performance, memory, etc.) to using a `Queue<T>` over a `List<T>` acting like a queue?

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