toString

toString() is a method from the Object class that returns a string representation of an object.
By default, it returns: ClassName@HashCode.

Example

class Car {}
 
Car car = new Car();
System.out.println(car); // Car@5e2de80c (not helpful)

Overriding toString()

class Car {
    String brand = "BMW";
    int year = 2020;
    
    @Override
    public String toString() {
        return "Car: " + brand + ", Year: " + year;
    }
}
 
Car car = new Car();
System.out.println(car); // "Car: BMW, Year: 2020"

Why Override It?

• Makes logs and debug output readable.
• Easier to test and inspect objects.
• Improves developer experience when printing or logging objects.

toString() in Collections

List<String> list = list.of("A", "B", "C");
System.out.println(list); // [A, B, C]

Java collections override toString() for human-readable output.

Tip

Mention that overriding toString() is a good practice for custom classes - especially for debugging, logging and displaying meaningful information.

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Parent: _Strings