What are the Access Modifiers in Java?

Access modifiers control the visibility and scope of classes, methods, and variables. Java provides 4 access modifiers.

1. private

class Account {
    private double balance = 1000;
    
    private void showBalance() {
        System.out.println("Balance: $" + balance);
    }
    
    public void accessPrivate() {
        showBalance(); // Accessible within same class
    }
}

2. default (Package-Private)

package package1;

class Person {
    String name = "John";
    
    void sayHello() {
        System.out.println("Hello from " + name);
    }
}

3. protected

public class Parent {
    protected void display() {
        System.out.println("Protected method");
    }
}

class Child extends Parent {
    void test() {
        display(); // OK - inheritance access
    }
}

4. public

public class Utility {
    public static int add(int a, int b) {
        return a + b;
    }
}

Quick Reference

Modifier	Same Class	Same Package	Subclass	Anywhere
private	Yes	No	No	No
default	Yes	Yes	No	No
protected	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
public	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

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