To sort a dictionary by its values you use sorted with the custom key function: >>> d = dict(a=1, c=3, b=2) >>> sorted(d.items(), key=lambda item: item[1]) [('a', 1), ('b', 2), ('c', 3)] However, such function already exists in the operator module: >>> sorted(d.items(), key=itemgetter(1)) [('a', 1), ('b', 2), ('c', 3)] You can also sort keys instead of items: >>> sorted(d, key=lambda k: d[k]) ['a', 'b', 'c'] Again, this lambda can be replaced with the already existing method: >>> sorted(d, key=d.get) ['a', 'b', 'c']