Understanding classmethod vs staticmethod in Python

Python offers two powerful decorators, @classmethod and @staticmethod, to define methods with specific use cases that differ from regular instance methods. Let’s explore their differences, usage, and see some examples.

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1. @classmethod

A class method is bound to the class and not the instance. It receives the class (cls) as its first parameter, allowing it to access class attributes and methods.

Use Cases:

• Factory methods for creating instances.
• Accessing or modifying class-level data.

Example:

class MyClass:
    class_variable = "class-level data"

    @classmethod
    def class_method(cls):
        return f"Accessing {cls.class_variable} from {cls}"

# Call without creating an instance
print(MyClass.class_method())  

# Output: Accessing class-level data from <class '__main__.MyClass'>

2. @staticmethod

A static method is bound to neither the instance nor the class. It behaves like a regular function but belongs to the class’s namespace. It doesn’t take…