Kotlin Generics — Type Parameters, Variance & Reified Types

📰 Dev.to · myougaTheAxo

Master Kotlin generics with type parameters, variance, and reified types to write more flexible and type-safe code

intermediate Published 2 Mar 2026

Action Steps

Define a generic class using type parameters in Kotlin
Apply variance to ensure type safety and flexibility
Use reified types to access type information at runtime
Create a simple example to demonstrate the use of generics in Kotlin
Experiment with different variance modes (in, out, invariant) to understand their implications

Who Needs to Know This

Android app developers and Kotlin enthusiasts can benefit from understanding generics to improve code quality and reusability

Key Insight

💡 Kotlin generics enable type-safe and flexible code, but require careful consideration of variance and reified types