Previously, compound assignment operators like += and -= were always desugared by the compiler into the corresponding binary operator and assignment. For example, x += y became x = x + y. This meant the type had no control over the compound assignment and could not optimize it.

C# 14 allows types to define compound assignment operators directly, enabling in-place mutation that avoids allocating a new instance.

Code

Now

using System.Text;

var buffer = new TextBuffer("Hello");
buffer += " World"; // Calls the custom += operator, mutates in place

public class TextBuffer
{
    private StringBuilder sb;

    public TextBuffer(string text) => sb = new StringBuilder(text);

    // Custom compound assignment: an instance method that appends in place
    public void operator +=(string right)
        => sb.Append(right);

    // Binary operator still needed for x = a + b
    public static TextBuffer operator +(TextBuffer left, string right)
        => new TextBuffer(left.sb.ToString() + right);
}

Before

using System.Text;

var buffer = new TextBuffer("Hello");
buffer = buffer + " World"; // Always creates a new instance

public class TextBuffer
{
    private StringBuilder sb;

    public TextBuffer(string text) => sb = new StringBuilder(text);

    // += always desugared to: buffer = buffer + " World"
    public static TextBuffer operator +(TextBuffer left, string right)
        => new TextBuffer(left.sb.ToString() + right);
}

Notes

• Compound assignment operators are void-returning instance methods with a single parameter (not static), so they mutate this
• Defining += does not define +; if a type only declares +, then x += y still falls back to x = x + y
• Instance ++ and -- operators can also be declared, e.g. public void operator ++()
• Particularly useful for collection-like types or builders where creating a new instance per operation is wasteful
• See Checked user-defined operators ^{C# 11.0} for the checked and unchecked behaviour that carries over to the compound assignment form.

More information

• What's new in C# 14.0
• Specification