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DSA Interview Prep · Lesson

Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method

Trace recursive calls into trees, apply the Master Theorem, and derive time complexities for merge sort, factorial, and Fibonacci variants.

Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method is a free DSA Interview Prep lesson on CoddyKit — lesson 3 of 4. You can read the complete lesson below for free — then practise it hands-on in the browser with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the DSA Interview Prep learning path, one of 4 lessons in the course, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app.

Recursion and the Call Stack

When a function calls itself, each call adds a stack frame, piling up until a base case is hit and they unwind. Picturing this is step one in analyzing recursion.

def factorial(n):
    if n == 0:       # base case
        return 1
    return n * factorial(n - 1)  # recursive call

# Call chain: factorial(4)
#   4 * factorial(3)
#     3 * factorial(2)
#       2 * factorial(1)
#         1 * factorial(0) -> 1
# Unwinds: 1, 2, 6, 24
print(factorial(5))  # 120

The Recursion Tree for Fibonacci

A recursion tree expands each call into its sub-calls. Naive Fibonacci splits into two every time, making a tree of about 2^n nodes — that is O(2^n). See the code.

call_count = [0]

def fib_naive(n):
    call_count[0] += 1
    if n <= 1:
        return n
    return fib_naive(n-1) + fib_naive(n-2)

for n in [5, 10, 15, 20]:
    call_count[0] = 0
    result = fib_naive(n)
    print(f'fib({n})={result}, calls={call_count[0]}')
# Calls roughly double each time n increases by 1

Identifying Repeating Sub-Problems

In that tree, the same calls like fib(3) repeat across branches. These overlapping sub-problems are the signal for memoization, which collapses O(2^n) down to O(n).

# Memoised: each unique sub-problem computed once
def fib_memo(n, memo={}):
    if n in memo: return memo[n]
    if n <= 1:    return n
    memo[n] = fib_memo(n-1, memo) + fib_memo(n-2, memo)
    return memo[n]

call_count2 = [0]
def fib_counted(n, memo={}):
    call_count2[0] += 1
    if n in memo: return memo[n]
    if n <= 1:    return n
    memo[n] = fib_counted(n-1, memo) + fib_counted(n-2, memo)
    return memo[n]

fib_counted(20)
print(f'calls with memo: {call_count2[0]}')  # only 21

Merge Sort Recursion Tree

Merge sort's tree has log n levels, and each level does O(n) work total — every element touched once. Multiply them for O(n log n). See the code.

# Merge sort: at each level, n total elements are merged
# Level 0:  1 merge of n elements    -> n work
# Level 1:  2 merges of n/2 each     -> n work
# Level 2:  4 merges of n/4 each     -> n work
# ...log(n) levels...
# Total: n * log(n)

# Verify with operation counter:
def merge_sort_counted(arr):
    ops = [0]
    def _sort(a):
        if len(a) <= 1: return a
        m = len(a) // 2
        l, r = _sort(a[:m]), _sort(a[m:])
        result, i, j = [], 0, 0
        while i < len(l) and j < len(r):
            ops[0] += 1
            if l[i] <= r[j]: result.append(l[i]); i+=1
            else:             result.append(r[j]); j+=1
        return result + l[i:] + r[j:]
    return _sort(arr), ops[0]

_, c = merge_sort_counted(list(range(64, 0, -1)))
print(f'Merge ops: {c}')  # ~384 ~ 64*log2(64)=384

The Master Theorem

The Master Theorem solves T(n) = a*T(n/b) + O(n^d) with three cases. For merge sort (a=2, b=2, d=1) it gives O(n log n). Memorize the three cases for the exam.

# Merge sort: T(n) = 2*T(n/2) + O(n)
# a=2, b=2, d=1, log_b(a)=log2(2)=1=d  => O(n log n)

# Binary search: T(n) = 1*T(n/2) + O(1)
# a=1, b=2, d=0, log2(1)=0=d  => O(log n)

# Strassen matrix mult: T(n) = 7*T(n/2) + O(n^2)
# a=7, b=2, d=2, log2(7)~2.81 > 2 => O(n^log2(7)) ~ O(n^2.81)

import math
print('log2(7) =', math.log2(7))  # 2.807...

Drawing Recursion Trees: Step by Step

To draw a recursion tree: put T(n) at the top, expand each call, sum the work on each level, then multiply by the number of levels. Practice until it is automatic.

# Factorial: T(n) = T(n-1) + O(1)
# Tree is a chain: n levels, O(1) each -> O(n)

# Fibonacci: T(n) = T(n-1) + T(n-2) + O(1)
# Binary tree of depth n, ~2^n nodes -> O(2^n)

# Merge sort: T(n) = 2*T(n/2) + O(n)
# Log levels, n work each -> O(n log n)

def count_recursive_calls(n, results=[]):
    if n <= 1:
        results.append(n)
        return n
    return count_recursive_calls(n-1, results) + count_recursive_calls(n-2, results)

results = []
count_recursive_calls(8, results)
print(f'fib(8) leaf calls: {len(results)}')

Exponential Recursion: Subsets

Generating all subsets is O(2^n) — there are exactly 2^n of them, so you cannot beat it. Each element is either in or out, building a binary tree of choices. See the code.

def subsets(nums):
    result = []
    def backtrack(start, current):
        result.append(list(current))  # O(n) copy
        for i in range(start, len(nums)):
            current.append(nums[i])
            backtrack(i + 1, current)
            current.pop()
    backtrack(0, [])
    return result

nums = [1, 2, 3]
ss = subsets(nums)
print(len(ss))  # 8 = 2^3
print(ss)

Tail Recursion and Optimisation

Tail recursion is when the recursive call is the very last step. Some languages reuse the frame for it, but Python does not — so deep ones still overflow. Loop instead.

# Tail-recursive factorial (accumulator pattern)
def fact_tail(n, acc=1):
    if n == 0:
        return acc
    return fact_tail(n - 1, n * acc)  # tail call

# Python does NOT TCO, so this overflows for large n
# Instead, convert to iterative:
def fact_iter(n):
    acc = 1
    while n > 0:
        acc *= n
        n -= 1
    return acc

print(fact_tail(10))  # 3628800
print(fact_iter(10))  # 3628800

Space Complexity of Recursion

Each recursive call holds a frame, so recursion costs O(depth) space. Linear recursion is O(n); balanced tree DFS is O(log n). Go too deep and you hit RecursionError.

import sys
print(sys.getrecursionlimit())  # default 1000

# Increase limit for deep problems
sys.setrecursionlimit(10000)

# Track max depth manually
def max_depth_tracker(n, depth=0, max_seen=[0]):
    max_seen[0] = max(max_seen[0], depth)
    if n <= 0:
        return
    max_depth_tracker(n - 1, depth + 1, max_seen)
    return max_seen[0]

print(max_depth_tracker(50))  # 50  => O(n) stack frames

Recursion Tree for Quick Sort

Quick sort is O(n log n) with a good pivot, but a bad pivot on sorted input degrades it to O(n^2). That is why randomizing the pivot matters. See the code.

import random

def quick_sort(arr):
    if len(arr) <= 1:
        return arr
    pivot = random.choice(arr)  # randomised -> O(n log n) expected
    less    = [x for x in arr if x < pivot]
    equal   = [x for x in arr if x == pivot]
    greater = [x for x in arr if x > pivot]
    return quick_sort(less) + equal + quick_sort(greater)

print(quick_sort([3, 6, 8, 10, 1, 2, 1]))  # sorted

Power Function: Log n Recursion

Naive x^n takes O(n) multiplications, but squaring halves the work each step: x^n = (x^(n/2))^2. That gives a clean O(log n) — halving in action. See the code.

def fast_pow(x, n):
    if n == 0: return 1
    if n < 0:  return 1 / fast_pow(x, -n)
    if n % 2 == 0:
        half = fast_pow(x, n // 2)
        return half * half          # O(log n) calls
    return x * fast_pow(x, n - 1)

print(fast_pow(2, 10))   # 1024
print(fast_pow(3, 5))    # 243
# Only log2(10)=3-4 recursive calls for n=10

Quick Check

Quick check — show what the recursion-tree method taught you. One question, take your time. 🌳

Lesson Recap

Recap: a recursion tree reveals total work, the Master Theorem solves divide-and-conquer recurrences, and recursion costs O(depth) stack space.

Frequently asked questions

Is the “Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method” lesson free?

Yes — the full text of “Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method” is free to read here on the web, and the DSA Interview Prep course includes 4 lessons in total. To practise it interactively (a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor) and unlock the rest of the DSA Interview Prep course, upgrade to CoddyKit PRO.

What will I learn in “Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method”?

Trace recursive calls into trees, apply the Master Theorem, and derive time complexities for merge sort, factorial, and Fibonacci variants. You practise DSA Interview Prep with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.

Do I need any experience to start DSA Interview Prep?

No prior experience is required. DSA Interview Prep on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners; this is — lesson 3 of 4, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace.

How long does the “Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method” lesson take?

Most CoddyKit lessons take about 5–10 minutes. Each one is bite-sized and interactive, so you make steady progress and pick up exactly where you left off across the web and the app.

Can I write and run code in this DSA Interview Prep lesson?

Yes. Every DSA Interview Prep lesson includes a built-in code editor, so you write and run real code right in your browser and get instant AI feedback — no local setup required.

All lessons in this course

  1. Big-O Notation from Scratch
  2. Analysing Loops and Nested Loops
  3. Recursion and the Recursion Tree Method
  4. Space Complexity and Trade-offs
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