Display console output

Completed

The most fundamental thing a program can do is communicate with you. In C#, you display output to the console using the Console.WriteLine() method.

Using Console.WriteLine()

The Console.WriteLine() method outputs text to the console. You call it by passing the text you want to display inside parentheses, enclosed in double quotes:

Console.WriteLine("Hello, world!");

Output:

Hello, world!

You can run this code yourself in the C# Code Editor.

Double quotes are required

In C#, text must always be enclosed in double quotes ("). Single quotes (') won't work for text. Make sure you use the straight quotes (") and not curly quotes.

The semicolon is important

Notice the semicolon (;) at the end of the line. In C#, every instruction must end with a semicolon. It tells the computer you've finished entering the command.

Printing multiple items

You can pass multiple values to Console.WriteLine() by separating them with commas. C# automatically inserts a space between each item:

Console.WriteLine("Hello", "world!");

Output:

Hello world!

Using escape characters

Sometimes you need more control over formatting—like starting a new line, adding a tab space, or including quotation marks inside your text. You can't just press Enter or Tab inside your quotes. Instead, C# uses escape characters, which are special combinations that start with a backslash (\):

Escape sequence	What it does	Example	Output
\n	Moves text to a new line	Console.WriteLine("Line 1\nLine 2");	Line 1 Line 2
\t	Adds a tab space	Console.WriteLine("Name:\tAlex");	Name: Alex
\\	Prints a literal backslash	Console.WriteLine("Path: C:\\Users");	Path: C:\Users
\"	Prints a double quote	Console.WriteLine("She said, \"Hi!\"");	She said, "Hi!"

Make sure to use the backslash (\) and not the forward slash (/).

Console.Write() vs. Console.WriteLine()

There's another method called Console.Write() that works similarly to Console.WriteLine(), but with one important difference:

• Console.WriteLine() adds a line break at the end, moving the next output to a new line
• Console.Write() prints to the current line without adding a line break

Example:

Console.Write("Hello");
Console.Write(" ");
Console.Write("world!");

Output:

Hello world!

If you used Console.WriteLine() instead, the output would be:

Hello

world!