Create two widgets and read total
Input
Widget(), Widget(); Widget.get_total()
Output
2
After creating two Widget instances, the class attribute should be 2. Each Widget should have ids 1 and 2 respectively.
Full lesson preview
Count Objects Using a Class Attribute
Practice using a class attribute to track how many instances of a class have been created.
Python practice15 minClasses & Objects FundamentalsIntermediateLast updated April 7, 2026
Problem statement
Create a class named Widget that keeps track of how many Widget instances have been created so far using a class attribute. Each time a new Widget is constructed, the class attribute should increase by 1 and the instance should receive a unique id (starting at 1) stored in an instance attribute id. Provide a class method get_total() that returns the current total number of Widgets that have been created.
Notes:
- Use a class attribute (not a global variable) for the counter.
- Assign each instance an id equal to the value of the counter after it increments.
- get_total should be a class method (or a method that returns the class attribute) so it reflects the class-level count.
Task
Implement a class that maintains a class-level counter incremented each time a new instance is constructed and exposes the current count and a per-instance id.
Examples
Input format
No stdin. The learner implements the Widget class. Tests will create instances and call Widget.get_total() or inspect instance ids.
Output format
The tests evaluate expressions that return integers or tuples/other values. The harness compares the stringified result to the expected output.
Constraints
Do not use global variables outside the class. Use a class attribute to store the counter. The id for the first created instance must be 1.
Samples
Sample 1
Input
Widget(); Widget.get_total()
Output
1
One Widget created, total is 1.