---
title: "Can \"this\" keyword be used within a static method? Explain with examples."  
description: "Can \"this\" keyword be used within a static method? Explain with examples."  
author: "Revati S Misra"  
published: 2023-04-14  
updated: 2023-04-24  
canonical: https://www.mindstick.com/forum/157799/can-this-keyword-be-used-within-a-static-method-explain-with-examples  
category: "oops"  
tags: ["c#", "oops"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

# Can "this" keyword be used within a static method? Explain with examples.

Can "this" [keyword](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/33572/sql-inner-join-keyword) be used within a [static method](https://www.mindstick.com/blog/440/creating-static-methods-in-c-sharp)? [Explain](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/157854/what-is-system-debugging-explain-some-system-debugging-tools-used-in-modern-computer-systems) with examples.

## Replies

### Reply by Sanjay Goenka

In C#, the "this" keyword is used to refer to the current instance of a class. However, [static](https://www.mindstick.com/articles/12098/the-static-keyword-the-static-methods) methods do not have access to the current instance of a class, because they are not associated with any particular instance of the class. Therefore, you cannot use the "this" keyword within a static [method](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/166/webservice-method) to refer to the current instance of the class.

```cs
public class MyClass
{
  private static int count;
  public MyClass()
  {
      count++;
  }
  public static void PrintCount()
  {
      Console.WriteLine($"Count: {count}");
      // Can't use "this" keyword here, because "PrintCount" is a static method
  }
}
MyClass.PrintCount(); // Output: Count: 0
MyClass obj1 = new MyClass();
MyClass.PrintCount(); // Output: Count: 1
MyClass obj2 = new MyClass();
MyClass.PrintCount(); // Output: Count: 2
```

The static method "PrintCount" cannot use the "this" keyword to access the "count" field, which is a static field of the class. Instead, it accesses the static field directly using the class name "MyClass".\


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Original Source: https://www.mindstick.com/forum/157799/can-this-keyword-be-used-within-a-static-method-explain-with-examples

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