getattr()

getattr(object, name[, default])

Returns: object · Updated March 13, 2026 · Built-in Functions

built-in attributes reflection

The getattr() function returns the value of a named attribute from an object. If the attribute does not exist and a default value is provided, it returns that default instead. If no default is given and the attribute is missing, AttributeError is raised. This function is essential for dynamic attribute access, allowing you to work with attribute names as strings at runtime.

Syntax

getattr(object, name[, default])

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`object`	object	—	Any Python object from which to retrieve the attribute
`name`	str	—	A string containing the attribute name to look up
`default`	object	(none)	Value to return if the attribute does not exist

Examples

Basic attribute access

class Person:
    def __init__(self, name, age):
        self.name = name
        self.age = age

person = Person("Alice", 30)

print(getattr(person, "name"))
# Alice

print(getattr(person, "age"))
# 30

Accessing a non-existent attribute

person = Person("Bob", 25)

# Without default - raises AttributeError
try:
    getattr(person, "email")
except AttributeError as e:
    print(e)
# 'Person' object has no attribute 'email'

# With default - returns the default value
print(getattr(person, "email", "not provided"))
# not provided

Using getattr with modules

import math

print(getattr(math, "pi"))
# 3.141592653589793

print(getattr(math, "UNKNOWN_CONSTANT", 0))
# 0

Common Patterns

Dynamic attribute access from user input

class Config:
    debug = True
    max_connections = 100
    timeout = 30

def get_config(key):
    return getattr(Config, key, None)

print(get_config("debug"))
# True

print(get_config("missing_key"))
# None

Working with dictionaries as objects

class DotDict(dict):
    def __getattr__(self, key):
        try:
            return self[key]
        except KeyError:
            raise AttributeError(f"'{type(self).__name__}' has no attribute '{key}'")

data = DotDict({"name": "test", "value": 42})
print(getattr(data, "name"))
# test

Factory pattern with attribute-based instantiation

class Shape:
    def draw(self):
        return "Drawing shape"

class Circle(Shape):
    def draw(self):
        return "Drawing circle"

class Square(Shape):
    def draw(self):
        return "Drawing square"

shapes = {"circle": Circle, "square": Square}

def create_shape(shape_type):
    shape_class = getattr(shapes, shape_type.capitalize(), Shape)
    return shape_class()

print(create_shape("circle").draw())
# Drawing circle

print(create_shape("triangle").draw())
# Drawing shape

Errors

AttributeError when attribute is missing

If the specified attribute does not exist on the object and no default is provided, getattr() raises an AttributeError. Always provide a default value when the attribute may not exist:

obj = object()

# This raises AttributeError
getattr(obj, "nonexistent")

# This returns None safely
getattr(obj, "nonexistent", None)

TypeError for invalid name type

The name parameter must be a string. Passing a non-string raises TypeError:

getattr(person, 123)  # TypeError: attribute name must be string