Object.getPrototypeOf()

The Object.getPrototypeOf() method returns the prototype (i.e. the value of the internal [[Prototype]] property) of the specified object.

Syntax

Object.getPrototypeOf(obj)

Parameters

obj
The object whose prototype is to be returned.

Return value

The prototype of the given object. If there are no inherited properties, null is returned.

Examples

var proto = {};
var obj = Object.create(proto);
Object.getPrototypeOf(obj) === proto; // true

Notes

In ES5, it will throw a TypeError exception if the obj parameter isn't an object. In ES2015, the parameter will be coerced to an Object.

Object.getPrototypeOf('foo');
// TypeError: "foo" is not an object (ES5 code)
Object.getPrototypeOf('foo');
// String.prototype                  (ES2015 code)

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
ECMAScript 5.1 (ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Object.getPrototypeOf' in that specification.
Standard Initial definition.
ECMAScript 2015 (6th Edition, ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Object.getProtoypeOf' in that specification.
Standard  
ECMAScript Latest Draft (ECMA-262)
The definition of 'Object.getProtoypeOf' in that specification.
Draft  

Browser compatibility

Feature Chrome Edge Firefox (Gecko) Internet Explorer Opera Safari
Basic support 5 (Yes) 3.5 (1.9.1) 9 12.10 5
Feature Android Chrome for Android Edge Firefox Mobile (Gecko) IE Mobile Opera Mobile Safari Mobile
Basic support ? ? (Yes) ? ? ? ?

Opera-specific notes

Even though older Opera versions don't support Object.getPrototypeOf() yet, Opera supports the non-standard __proto__ property since Opera 10.50.

See also

Document Tags and Contributors

 Last updated by: jameshkramer,