A class is a blueprint or template for creating objects in object-oriented programming. It defines properties (attributes) and methods (functions) that objects created from the class will have. A class does not hold data directly; instead, it defines the structure and behavior.
An object is an instance of a class. It is a concrete representation that holds actual data for the attributes defined by the class. Each object can have unique values for its attributes but shares the same methods defined in the class.
In summary, a class defines the structure, while an object represents a specific instance of that structure.