Where's the difference between self and $this-> in a PHP class or PHP method?

Question

Where\'s the difference between self and $this-> in a PHP class or PHP method?

Example:

I\'ve seen this code recently.

Answer 1

$this is used to reference methods and properties of the current instance of a class.

self us used to reference static methods and properties, shared by all instances (and even accessible outside of any instance) of a class.

You can take a look at Static Keyword (quoting a few lines) :

Declaring class properties or methods as static makes them accessible without needing an instantiation of the class. A property declared as static can not be accessed with an instantiated class object (though a static method can)

...

Static properties cannot be accessed through the object using the arrow operator ->.

And, from the page Properties (quoting) :

Within class methods the properties, constants, and methods may be accessed by using the form $this->property (where property is the name of the property) unless the access is to a static property within the context of a static class method, in which case it is accessed using the form self::$property.