Which rendering method provides the ability to return JSON from Sitecore?

The method that specifically provides the ability to return JSON from Sitecore is JSON rendering. This approach is designed to produce JSON-formatted data directly, which is highly useful for scenarios where data needs to be consumed by client-side applications, such as Single Page Applications (SPAs) or when integrating with other systems that require JSON responses.

JSON rendering simplifies the interaction with the Sitecore backend by allowing developers to output data in a lightweight and easily consumable format, focusing purely on the data without the overhead of view templates or HTML. This is ideal for developers looking to implement API-like functionality directly from Sitecore items, making it a straightforward option for frontend developers who need to access Sitecore content as JSON.

Other rendering methods serve different purposes. For example, API rendering focuses more on exposing Sitecore content through a defined API, providing robust functionality for various applications but isn't tailored exclusively for outputting JSON. View rendering and controller rendering are primarily concerned with producing HTML output and structuring web page responses, not explicitly returning JSON data. Thus, JSON rendering stands out as the preferred choice for returning JSON from Sitecore.