Returns the name of the class of an object

get_class_vars
get_declared_classes
Classes/Object Functions
PHP Manual

# get_class

(PHP 4, PHP 5)

get_class — Returns the name of the class of an object

### Description

string get_class ([ object `$object` = `NULL` ] )

Gets the name of the class of the given `object`.

### Parameters

`object`

  The tested object. This parameter may be omitted when inside a class.

### Return Values

Returns the name of the class of which `object` is an instance. Returns `FALSE` if `object` is not an object.

If `object` is omitted when inside a class, the name of that class is returned.

### Errors/Exceptions

If get_class() is called with anything other than an object, an `E_WARNING` level error is raised.

### Changelog

Version | Description
--- | ---
5.3.0 | `NULL` became the default value for `object`, so passing `NULL` to `object` now has the same result as not passing any value.
5.0.0 | The class name is returned in its original notation.
5.0.0 | The `object` parameter is optional if called from the object's method.

### Examples

Example #1 Using get_class()

`<?php
class foo {
function name()
{
echo "My name is " , get_class($this) , "\n";
}
}
// create an object
$bar = new foo();
// external call
echo "Its name is " , get_class($bar) , "\n";
// internal call
$bar->name();
?>`

The above example will output:

    Its name is foo
    My name is foo

Example #2 Using get_class() in superclass

`<?php
abstract class bar {
public function __construct()
{
var_dump(get_class($this));
var_dump(get_class());
}
}
class foo extends bar {
}
new foo;
?>`

The above example will output:

    string(3) "foo"
    string(3) "bar"

### See Also

- get_called_class() - the "Late Static Binding" class name
- get_parent_class() - Retrieves the parent class name for object or class
- gettype() - Get the type of a variable
- is_subclass_of() - Checks if the object has this class as one of its parents

get_class_vars
get_declared_classes
Classes/Object Functions
PHP Manual