+++
title = "Classes: Constructor"
description = "Construct your objects"
tags = ["php", "construct", "constructor", "new"]
slug = "classes-constructor"
previous = "classes-visibility.html"
next = "static.html"
+++
Whenever you create an object in PHP, you put parentheses after the class name.
In the previous examples, we always left the parentheses empty.
```php
<?php

class Hat
{
    public $color;

    public function setColor($color)
    {
        $this->color = $color;
    }
}

$hat = new Hat();
```

However, you can actually pass data into the parentheses like a function.
The data will be passed to a special function on the class called a constructor.
```php
class Ballcap
{
    public $color;

    public function __construct($color)
    {
        $this->color = $color;
    }
}
```

A constructor is not required, but can make creating a new object easier.
They are usually used to define the initial value of a property.
Instead of writing:
```php
$hat = new Hat();
$hat->setColor('Red');
```

You can write:
```php
$ballcap = new Ballcap('Blue');
```

Constructors do not return values because the return value is always a new object.
```php
class Tophat
{
    public function __construct($color)
    {
        return $color;
    }
}
```

`$tophat` now holds an instance of `Tophat`, not the string "Grey".
```php
$tophat = new Tophat('Grey');
```