Property is private and only accessible within class in TS

# Property is private and only accessible within class in TS

The error "Property is private and only accessible within class" occurs when we try to access a private property outside of a class.

To solve the error, declare the class property as public if you need to access it from outside the class.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

index.ts

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class Employee {
  // 👇️ private if you need to access only from inside this class
  private salary: number = 100;

  logSalary() {
    console.log(this.salary);
  }
}

const employee = new Employee();

// ⛔️ Error: Property 'salary' is private and
// only accessible within class 'Employee'.ts(2341)
employee.salary;

console.log(employee.logSalary()); // 👉️ 100

property is private and only accessible within class

The salary property has private member visibility, so it can only be accessed from within the Employee class.

# Declare the class property as `public`

To solve the error, assign the property with public visibility.

index.ts

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class Employee {
  // 👇️ public if you need to access from outside the class
  public salary: number = 100;
}

const employee = new Employee();

console.log(employee.salary); // 👉️ 100

declare class property as public

The code for this article is available on GitHub

Class properties have public visibility by default. Public members can be accessed from anywhere.

The same approach can be used when declaring a constructor function's parameters.

index.ts

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class Employee {
  // 👇️ public if you need to access from outside the class
  constructor(public salary: number) {
    this.salary = salary;
  }
}

const employee = new Employee(200);

console.log(employee.salary); // 👉️ 200

declaring constructor function parameters

The code for this article is available on GitHub

# Private properties can only be accessed from inside the class

If you set the class property to have private visibility in the constructor, it can only be accessed from inside the class.

index.ts

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class Employee {
  // 👇️ should be public if you need to access
  // from outside the class
  constructor(private salary: number) {
    this.salary = salary;
  }
}

const employee = new Employee(200);

// ⛔️ Error: Property 'salary' is private and only accessible within class 'Employee'.ts(2341)
console.log(employee.salary);

# Getting the error when working with protected properties

You might also get this error when using class properties with protected visibility.

index.ts

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class Employee {
  // 👇️ protected
  constructor(protected salary: number) {
    this.salary = salary;
  }

}

const employee = new Employee(200);

// ⛔️ Property 'salary' is protected and only accessible
// within class 'Employee' and its subclasses.ts(2445)
console.log(employee.salary);

Protected properties can only be accessed from within the class and its subclasses.

# Additional Resources

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Property is private and only accessible within class in TS