> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://deflatedpickle.gitbook.io/python-somewhat-of-a-guide/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://deflatedpickle.gitbook.io/python-somewhat-of-a-guide/good-practice/type-hinting.md).

# Type Hinting

### What is Type Hinting?

Type hinting is where you specify the class type that a variable will be, for instance, `str`.

This is mostly for documentation, though it will help with readability and understanding of the code.

## Argument Type

To specify the type of an argument, add a colon after the name and then the class type.

```python
def greet(name: str):
    print("Hello, " + name + "!")

greet("Monty")
```

## Return Type

The type of the returned value can be specified by adding an arrow after the function, followed by the class type and then the colon.

```python
def sum(num1, num2) -> int:
    return num1 + num2

print(sum(1, 2))
```

## Variable Type

Defining the variable type is very similar to an argument type, in fact, exactly the same.

```python
my_var: str = "Hello"
```