Object.GetType Method (System)

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.NET Framework Class Library
Object.GetType Method

Updated: December 2010

Gets the Type of the current instance.

Namespace:  System
Assembly:  mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)
Syntax
Visual Basic
Public Function GetType As Type
C#
public Type GetType()
Visual C++
public:
Type^ GetType()
F#
member GetType : unit -> Type

Return Value

Type: System.Type
The exact runtime type of the current instance.
Remarks

For two objects x and y that have identical runtime types, Object.ReferenceEquals(x.GetType(),y.GetType()) returns true. The following example uses the GetType method with the ReferenceEquals method to determine whether one numeric value is the same type as two other numeric values.

Visual Basic

Dim n1 As Integer = 12
Dim n2 As Integer = 82
Dim n3 As Long = 12

Console.WriteLine("n1 and n2 are the same type: {0}",
                  Object.ReferenceEquals(n1.GetType(), n2.GetType()))
Console.WriteLine("n1 and n3 are the same type: {0}",
                  Object.ReferenceEquals(n1.GetType(), n3.GetType()))
' The example displays the following output:
'       n1 and n2 are the same type: True
'       n1 and n3 are the same type: False
C#

int n1 = 12;
int n2 = 82;
long n3 = 12;

Console.WriteLine("n1 and n2 are the same type: {0}",
                  Object.ReferenceEquals(n1.GetType(), n2.GetType()));
Console.WriteLine("n1 and n3 are the same type: {0}",
                  Object.ReferenceEquals(n1.GetType(), n3.GetType()));
// The example displays the following output:
//       n1 and n2 are the same type: True
//       n1 and n3 are the same type: False
Note Note

To determine whether an object is a specific type, you can use your language's type comparison keyword or construct. For example, you can use the TypeOf…Is construct in Visual Basic or the is keyword in C#.

The Type object exposes the metadata associated with the class of the current Object.

Examples

The following code example demonstrates that GetType returns the runtime type of the current instance.

Visual Basic

' Define a base and a derived class.
Public Class MyBaseClass
End Class 

Public Class MyDerivedClass : Inherits MyBaseClass
End Class 

Public Class Test
    Public Shared Sub Main() 
        Dim base As New MyBaseClass()
        Dim derived As New MyDerivedClass()
        Dim o As Object = derived
        Dim b As MyBaseClass = derived

        Console.WriteLine("base.GetType returns {0}", base.GetType())
        Console.WriteLine("derived.GetType returns {0}", derived.GetType())
        Console.WriteLine("Dim o As Object = derived; o.GetType returns {0}", o.GetType())
        Console.WriteLine("Dim b As MyBaseClass = derived; b.Type returns {0}", b.GetType())
    End Sub 
End Class 
' The example displays the following output:
'    base.GetType returns MyBaseClass
'    derived.GetType returns MyDerivedClass
'    Dim o As Object = derived; o.GetType returns MyDerivedClass
'    Dim b As MyBaseClass = derived; b.Type returns MyDerivedClass
C#

using System;

public class MyBaseClass {
}

public class MyDerivedClass: MyBaseClass {
}

public class Test 
{
   public static void Main() 
   {
      MyBaseClass myBase = new MyBaseClass();
      MyDerivedClass myDerived = new MyDerivedClass();
      object o = myDerived;
      MyBaseClass b = myDerived;

      Console.WriteLine("mybase: Type is {0}", myBase.GetType());
      Console.WriteLine("myDerived: Type is {0}", myDerived.GetType());
      Console.WriteLine("object o = myDerived: Type is {0}", o.GetType());
      Console.WriteLine("MyBaseClass b = myDerived: Type is {0}", b.GetType());
   }
}
// The example displays the following output:
//    mybase: Type is MyBaseClass
//    myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass
//    object o = myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass
//    MyBaseClass b = myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass
Visual C++

using namespace System;

public ref class MyBaseClass {};

public ref class MyDerivedClass: MyBaseClass{};

int main()
{
   MyBaseClass^ myBase = gcnew MyBaseClass;
   MyDerivedClass^ myDerived = gcnew MyDerivedClass;
   Object^ o = myDerived;
   MyBaseClass^ b = myDerived;
   Console::WriteLine( "mybase: Type is {0}", myBase->GetType() );
   Console::WriteLine( "myDerived: Type is {0}", myDerived->GetType() );
   Console::WriteLine( "object o = myDerived: Type is {0}", o->GetType() );
   Console::WriteLine( "MyBaseClass b = myDerived: Type is {0}", b->GetType() );
}

/*

This code produces the following output.

mybase: Type is MyBaseClass
myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass
object o = myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass
MyBaseClass b = myDerived: Type is MyDerivedClass 

*/
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 4, 3.5, 3.0, 2.0, 1.1, 1.0

.NET Framework Client Profile

Supported in: 4, 3.5 SP1

Portable Class Library

Supported in: Portable Class Library
Platforms

Windows 7, Windows Vista SP1 or later, Windows XP SP3, Windows XP SP2 x64 Edition, Windows Server 2008 (Server Core not supported), Windows Server 2008 R2 (Server Core supported with SP1 or later), Windows Server 2003 SP2

The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.
See Also

Reference

Object Class
System Namespace
Type
Change History

Date

History

Reason

December 2010

Added a type comparison example to the Remarks section and added a Note.

Customer feedback.