What are the best ways to handle multiline strings in Java?

General Discussions
1

Coming from languages like Perl, I really miss the “here-document” style of creating a multiline string in Java. In Perl, I could easily define a string across multiple lines like this:

$string = <<"EOF"
text
text
text
EOF

However, in Java, I find myself using cumbersome quotes and plus signs for each line, manually concatenating my multiline string Java style.

I’ve come across suggestions like using StringBuilder.append() instead of using + for concatenation, but I don’t see how that makes things any better for readability and maintainability.

So, my question is:

  • What are the best ways to define multiline strings in Java?
  • Is storing them in a properties file a better alternative?
  • Why do some developers prefer StringBuilder.append() over simple concatenation?

I’m not worried about performance, but I do want to find a more maintainable and readable way to work with multiline strings in Java.

2

If you’re looking for better ways to handle multiline strings in Java, you’re not alone—Java’s lack of native support for them has always been a bit of a hassle. But don’t worry! Use Text Blocks (Java 13+).

If you’re using Java 13 or later, you’re in luck! Java introduced text blocks, which allow you to create multiline strings without ugly concatenation.

String multilineText = """
        This is a multiline string in Java.
        No need for '+' or '.append()'!
        It's much cleaner and readable.
        """;

This is by far the best approach if you’re using a modern Java version.

3

If you’re stuck on an older Java version, you can still make things neater using String.join():

String multilineText = String.join("\n",
        "This is a multiline string in Java.",
        "String.join() makes it cleaner.",
        "Less concatenation, more readability."
);

This helps avoid messy plus signs and makes it easy to add or modify lines.

4

If your multiline string is dynamically built at runtime, StringBuilder is a good choice:

StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
sb.append("This is a multiline string in Java.\n")
  .append("StringBuilder works well for dynamic content.\n")
  .append("But for static text, text blocks are better!");

String multilineText = sb.toString();

This is useful if you’re looping through data and appending lines dynamically.