# Effective Kotlin Item 1: Limit mutability

DevFeed: [Effective Kotlin Item 1: Limit mutability](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/effective-kotlin-item-1-limit-mutability-39284.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://kt.academy/article/ek-mutability>)

Published: 2022-09-28T00:00:00Z

Content type: tutorial

Language: en

Sources: [Kt. Academy](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/kt-academy.md>)

Topics: [Kotlin](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/kotlin.md>), [Code](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/code.md>), [test](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/test.md>)

Tags: [debug](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/debug.md>), [kotlin](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/kotlin.md>), [state-management](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/state-management.md>), [synchronization](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/synchronization.md>), [test](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/test.md>), [workshop-learning-programming](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/workshop-learning-programming.md>)

## AI overview

This Kotlin article explains why limiting mutability makes programs easier to understand, reason about, debug, synchronize, and test. It describes how mutable state can create dependencies, unintended side effects, additional possible states, and notification requirements when values change.

## Source excerpt

Why it is so important to limit mutability, and how Kotlin supports it.