# Logging

Algorand Python provides a [`log` method](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/algorand-python/api/api-algopy/#algopy.log) that allows you to emit debugging and event information as well as return values from your contracts to the caller.

This `log` method is a superset of the [AVM `log` method](https://dev.algorand.co/algokit/languages/python/lg-ops/) that adds extra functionality:

- You can log multiple items rather than a single item
- Items are concatenated together with an optional separator (which defaults to: `""`)
- Items are automatically converted to bytes for you
- Support for:
  - `int` literals / module variables (encoded as raw bytes, not ASCII)
  - `UInt64` values (encoded as raw bytes, not ASCII)
  - `str` literals / module variables (encoded as UTF-8)
  - `bytes` literals / module variables (encoded as is)
  - `Bytes` values (encoded as is)
  - `BytesBacked` values, which includes [`String`](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/algorand-python/api/api-algopy/#algopy.String), [`BigUInt`](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/algorand-python/api/api-algopy/#algopy.BigUInt), [`Account`](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/algorand-python/api/api-algopy/#algopy.Account) and all of the [ARC-4 types](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/algorand-python/api/api-algopyarc4/) (encoded as their underlying bytes values)

Logged values are [available to the calling client](https://dev.algorand.co/reference/rest-api/algod/#pendingtransactionresponse) and attached to the transaction record stored on the blockchain ledger.

If you want to emit ARC-28 events in the logs then there is a [purpose-built function for that](https://dev.algorand.co/algokit/languages/python/lg-arc28/).

Here’s an example contract that uses the log method in various ways:

```
from algopy import BigUInt, Bytes, Contract, log, op

class MyContract(Contract):

def approval_program(self) -> bool:

log(0)

log(b"1")

log("2")

log(op.Txn.num_app_args + 3)

log(Bytes(b"4") if op.Txn.num_app_args else Bytes())

log(

b"5",

6,

op.Txn.num_app_args + 7,

BigUInt(8),

Bytes(b"9") if op.Txn.num_app_args else Bytes(),

sep="_",

)

return True

def clear_state_program(self) -> bool:

return True
```