What makes a Java Object Immutable

Immutability is a powerful tool in creating highly concurrent, thread-safe applications.

Everything you need to consider is within the code below.

import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.List;

// 1. mark the class as final to prevent it from being extended
public final class ImmutableExample {
    
    // 2. mark all instance variables as private and final so they cannot be changed outside of constructor
    private final String myVariable;
    private final Integer myOtherVariable;
    private final List<String> myList;
    
    // 3. Everything set via constructor
    public ImmutableExample(String myVariable, Integer myOtherVariable, List<String> myList) {
        
        this.myVariable = myVariable;
        this.myOtherVariable = myOtherVariable;
        
        // 4. collections need to be copied so no references outside of this class can make changes
        this.myList = new ArrayList<>(myList);
    }
    
    // 5. implmenent getters only!
    public String getMyVariable() {
        return myVariable;
    }

    public Integer getMyOtherVariable() {
        return myOtherVariable;
    }

    public List<String> getMyList() {
        // 6. return a read only version of the collection or a copy so external references cant make changes
        return Collections.unmodifiableList(myList);
    }
}