Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three Python/Java solution

In Python or Java, iterate through the array and compute num % 3 for each value. If the remainder is not zero, increment the operation counter by one. This straightforward loop achieves O(n) time and O(1) space while keeping the implementation concise.

What is the best approach for Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three?

The best approach is using modulo arithmetic. Iterate through the array, compute num % 3, and count how many elements have remainder 1 or 2. Each such element requires one adjustment (increment or decrement by 1). This gives an O(n) time and O(1) space solution.

Is Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three asked at Google/Amazon/Meta?

This specific problem is categorized as an easy array and math problem and is commonly used as a warm‑up question in coding platforms like LeetCode. Variations involving divisibility, modular arithmetic, and array traversal frequently appear in interviews at companies such as Amazon and Google.

What data structure is used in Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three?

The problem primarily uses a simple array traversal combined with modular arithmetic. No complex data structures are required, and the algorithm operates with constant extra space using a few counters or variables.

What is the time complexity of Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three?

The optimal solution runs in O(n) time because the algorithm scans the array once and performs constant-time arithmetic per element. Space complexity is O(1) since only a few counters or variables are maintained.

Description Hints 2 Solution Video 5:48

3190. Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three

Q: Is Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three easy or hard?

The problem is classified as Easy on LeetCode. It mainly tests understanding of modular arithmetic and linear array traversal rather than advanced data structures or algorithms.

Q: How to solve Find Minimum Operations to Make All Elements Divisible by Three in O(n)?

Traverse the array and compute the remainder of each element using num % 3. If the remainder is 1 or 2, add one operation to the result since either incrementing or decrementing by 1 makes the number divisible by 3. Continue until all elements are processed, resulting in a linear O(n) pass.

Easy90.9% acceptance3 companies

You are given an integer array nums. In one operation, you can add or subtract 1 from any element of nums.

Return the minimum number of operations to make all elements of nums divisible by 3.

Example 1:

Input: nums = [1,2,3,4]

Output: 3

Explanation:

All array elements can be made divisible by 3 using 3 operations:

Subtract 1 from 1.
Add 1 to 2.
Subtract 1 from 4.

Example 2:

Input: nums = [3,6,9]

Output: 0

Constraints:

1 <= nums.length <= 50
1 <= nums[i] <= 50

Asked at 3 companies

Google Amazon Bloomberg

Topics

Array Math

Hints open one at a time

Hint 1

If x % 3 != 0 we can always increment or decrement x such that we only need 1 operation.

Hint 2

Add min(nums[i] % 3, 3 - (num[i] % 3)) to the count of operations.

5:48

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