C# Switch

The switch Statement

A switch statement takes one expression and compares it against a list of case labels. When it finds a match, it runs the code for that case. This is ideal for menu choices, day names, status codes, and similar situations with a fixed set of values.

int day = 4;

switch (day)
{
    case 1:
        Console.WriteLine("Monday");
        break;
    case 4:
        Console.WriteLine("Thursday");
        break;
    default:
        Console.WriteLine("Another day");
        break;
}
// Output: Thursday

The break and default Keywords

The break keyword tells C# to stop and jump out of the switch once a matching case has run. The default label is optional and works like else, running when no case matches the value.

• Each case label ends with a colon (:).
• Every case that contains code must end with break (or return).
• The default case handles any value not covered by the other cases.
• You can list multiple case labels together to share the same block.

Grouping Cases

You can stack several case labels so they run the same code. This is handy when different values should be treated the same way, such as grouping weekend days together.

int day = 6;

switch (day)
{
    case 6:
    case 7:
        Console.WriteLine("Weekend");
        break;
    default:
        Console.WriteLine("Weekday");
        break;
}
// Output: Weekend

A switch is often easier to read than a long if...else chain when you are testing the same variable against many constant values. If your conditions involve ranges or complex comparisons, an if...else chain may still be the better choice.