I have a class that I want to custom encode into JSON: class Declination: Decodable, Encodable { var asString: String var asDouble: Double init(_ asString: String) { self.asString = asString self.asDouble = raToDouble(asString) } required init(from decoder: Decoder) throws { let value = try decoder.singleValueContainer() self.asString = try value.decode(String.self) self.asDouble = declinationToDouble(asString) } } As you can see, I calculate the double form of the declination when I decode a JSON file containing the data. What I want to do now is ENCODE the class back out as a single string. Currently the standard JSON encode in Swift produces the following: "declination":{"asDouble":18.26388888888889,"asString":"+18:15:50.00"} what I want to produce is: declination:"+18:15:50.00" How can I easily do that? I've read up about custom encoders and such, and I get confused about the containers and what keys are being used. I think there might be a simple answer where I could just code: extension Coordinate: Encodable { func encode(to encoder: Encoder) throws { return encoder.encode(self.asString) } } But experienced Swift developers will immediately see that won't work. Should I do JSONSerialization instead? Can I just write a toString() extension and have JSON pick that up? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Robert