Class isInstance() method in Java with Examples
Last Updated :
12 Jul, 2025
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The isInstance() method of java.lang.Class class is used to check if the specified object is compatible to be assigned to the instance of this Class. The method returns true if the specified object is non-null and can be cast to the instance of this Class. It returns false otherwise.
Syntax:
Java
Java
public boolean isInstance(Object object)Parameter: This method accepts object as parameter which is the specified object to checked for compatibility to this Class instance. Return Value: This method returns true if the specified object is non-null and can be cast to the instance of this Class. It returns false otherwise. Below programs demonstrate the isInstance() method. Example 1:
// Java program to demonstrate isInstance() method
public class Test {
public static void main(String[] args)
throws ClassNotFoundException
{
// returns the Class object for this class
Class myClass = Class.forName("Test");
System.out.println("Class represented by myClass: "
+ myClass.toString());
// get the Class instance using forName() method
Class c = Class.forName("java.lang.String");
System.out.println("Class represented by c: "
+ c.toString());
// Check if object c is compatible
// using isInstance() method
System.out.println("Is c compatible: "
+ myClass.isInstance(c));
}
}
// Java program to demonstrate isInstance() methodpublic class Test { public static void main(String[] args) throws ClassNotFoundException { // returns the Class object for this class Class myClass = Class.forName("Test"); System.out.println("Class represented by myClass: " + myClass.toString()); // get the Class instance using forName() method Class c = Class.forName("java.lang.String"); System.out.println("Class represented by c: " + c.toString()); // Check if object c is compatible // using isInstance() method System.out.println("Is c compatible: " + myClass.isInstance(c)); }}
Output:
Example 2:
Class represented by myClass: class Test Class represented by c: class java.lang.String Is c compatible: false
// Java program to demonstrate isInstance() method
public class Test {
public static void main(String[] args)
throws ClassNotFoundException
{
// returns the Class object for this class
Class myClass = Class.forName("Test");
System.out.println("Class represented by myClass: "
+ myClass.toString());
// get the Class instance using forName() method
Class c = Class.forName("Test");
System.out.println("Class represented by c: "
+ c.toString());
// Check if object c is compatible
// using isInstance() method
System.out.println("Is c compatible: "
+ myClass.isInstance(c));
}
}
// Java program to demonstrate isInstance() methodpublic class Test { public static void main(String[] args) throws ClassNotFoundException { // returns the Class object for this class Class myClass = Class.forName("Test"); System.out.println("Class represented by myClass: " + myClass.toString()); // get the Class instance using forName() method Class c = Class.forName("Test"); System.out.println("Class represented by c: " + c.toString()); // Check if object c is compatible // using isInstance() method System.out.println("Is c compatible: " + myClass.isInstance(c)); }}
Output:
Reference: https://docs.oracle.com/javase/9/docs/api/java/lang/Class.html#isInstance-java.lang.Object-
Class represented by myClass: class Test Class represented by c: class Test Is c compatible: false
