Java Reflection Performance

Question

Does creating an object using reflection rather than calling the class constructor result in any significant performance differences?

Answer 1

"Significant" is entirely dependent on context.

If you're using reflection to create a single handler object based on some configuration file, and then spending the rest of your time running database queries, then it's insignificant. If you're creating large numbers of objects via reflection in a tight loop, then yes, it's significant.

In general, design flexibility (where needed!) should drive your use of reflection, not performance. However, to determine whether performance is an issue, you need to profile rather than get arbitrary responses from a discussion forum.