# .NET API Guide: Returning Enum Values as Strings

I was recently asked to return an enum as a string instead of an int from an API call. At first, I considered how to override the framework's behavior, but after some research, I found the solution was easier than I expected.

The easiest way to resolve this is by adding a `JsonStringEnumConverter()` in the `.AddJsonOptions()` method of the Startup class:

```csharp
     .AddNewtonsoftJson(options =>
     {
         options.SerializerSettings.Converters = new List<Newtonsoft.Json.JsonConverter> { new StringEnumConverter() };
     })
     .AddJsonOptions(options =>
     {
         options.JsonSerializerOptions.Converters.Add(new JsonStringEnumConverter());
     });
```

The first part adds a `StringEnumConverter` to the `SerializerSettings.Converters` list for Newtonsoft.Json. The second part adds a `JsonStringEnumConverter` to the `JsonSerializerOptions.Converters` list for the built-in JSON serializer. This ensures that enums are serialized as strings instead of integers.