propertyAccessNotation

Reports bracket notation property access when dot notation can be used.

✅ This rule is included in the ts stylistic and stylisticStrict presets.

Dot notation (obj.property) is generally preferred over bracket notation (obj["property"]) for accessing object properties. Dot notation is more concise and easier to read. Bracket notation should be reserved for cases where it is necessary, such as when the property name contains special characters, is a reserved word, or is computed dynamically.

Examples

❌ Incorrect

const value = obj["property"];

obj["value"] = 123;

const name = person["firstName"];

const nested = data["items"]["first"];

class Container {
  privateProperty = 123;
}

const container = new Container();
container["privateProperty"] = 123;

✅ Correct

const value = obj.property;

obj.value = 123;

const name = person.firstName;

const nested = data.items.first;

class Container {
  private privateProperty = 123;
}

const container = new Container();

// TypeScript allows private properties to be accessed with quotes
container["privateProperty"] = 123;

// Bracket notation is allowed for non-identifier keys
const value = obj["key with spaces"];

const dashed = obj["key-with-dashes"];

// Bracket notation is allowed for reserved words
const reserved = obj["class"];

const keyword = obj["import"];

// Bracket notation is allowed for computed keys
const dynamic = obj[variable];

const computed = obj[getKey()];

Options

allowIndexSignaturePropertyAccess

Whether to allow accessing properties matching an index signature with bracket notation.

Type: boolean Default: false

// eslint ts/propertyAccessNotation: ["error", { allowIndexSignaturePropertyAccess: true }]

interface Config {
  [key: string]: string;
}

const config: Config = {};
// ✅ OK with option enabled
const value = config["anyKey"];

When Not To Use It

Disable this rule if your codebase has a convention of using bracket notation for consistency, or if you frequently access properties with names that are reserved words or contain special characters.

Further Reading

• MDN: Property accessors
• JavaScript property access: dot notation vs. brackets

Equivalents in Other Linters

• Biome: useLiteralKeys
• ESLint: dot-notation@typescript-eslint/dot-notation