What is the difference between breadth-first search and depth-first search?

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What is the difference between breadth-first search and depth-first search?

The main difference between breadth-first search (BFS) and depth-first search (DFS) lies in the order in which they explore nodes in a graph or tree.

BFS explores all the nodes at the current depth level before moving on to the nodes at the next depth level. It starts at the root node and explores all its neighbors before moving to the next level. This means that BFS visits nodes in a level-by-level manner, moving horizontally across the tree or graph.

On the other hand, DFS explores as far as possible along each branch before backtracking. It starts at the root node and explores as deep as possible along each branch before backtracking to explore other branches. This means that DFS visits nodes in a depth-first manner, moving vertically down the tree or graph.

In summary, BFS explores nodes level by level, while DFS explores nodes branch by branch.