Getters and Setters in Dart Overview#

Getters and setters provide controlled access to class properties in Dart. They allow you to define computed properties and add validation logic while maintaining a field-like syntax. Dart provides both default implementations and custom implementations for fine-grained control.

Key Concepts#

1. Default Getters/Setters#

• Automatically generated for all fields
• Field-like access syntax
• No additional code required

2. Custom Getters/Setters#

• Explicit property access control
• Validation and computation
• Maintains field access syntax

3. Lazy Getters#

• Late initialization
• Memoization pattern
• Computed once when first accessed

4. Private Variable Access#

• Encapsulation with _ prefix
• Controlled exposure
• Validation before assignment

5. Best Practices#

• When to use custom accessors
• Performance considerations
• Read-only properties
• Documentation standards