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Asked: 2026-05-19T10:00:42+00:00

We all know (more or less) about difference between String.Empty and null. I still

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We all know (more or less) about difference between String.Empty and null. I still didn’t decided what is better for me in “usual” development (I mean development of server side part of ASP.NET application, WinForms application – everything that is C#.NET code), but I saw and read a lot of articles about.

But I didn’t see comparison what is better to use when you are returning string values from the services (ASP.NET WebService or WCF service).

What is your suggestion should I return null or String.Empty:

  1. When I need to return ‘Error’ message (null or empty will mean ‘there are no errors’);
  2. When I need to return ‘Email’ field value (null or empty will mean ’email was not specified).

Any thoughts are welcome.

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    This is all a matter of taste, style and consistency. Do you have other services that return null/empty already? If so, it’s best to match them. Otherwise in my personal opinion null is better than empty. As null serves as a better sentinel value. An empty string could be perceived as an error did occur but no error details were returned.

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