---
title: description
framework: foundation
role: symbol
role_heading: Instance Property
path: foundation/date/description
---

# description

The representation is useful for debugging only. There are a number of options to acquire a formatted string for a date including: date formatters (see NSDateFormatter and Data Formatting Guide), and the Date function description(locale:).

## Declaration

```swift
var description: String { get }
```

## See Also

### Describing Dates

- [description(with:)](foundation/date/description(with:).md)
- [customPlaygroundQuickLook](foundation/date/customplaygroundquicklook.md)