REST API Design Best Practices

Designing a good RESTful API is more than slapping CRUD endpoints on top of a database. A well-planned API reduces onboarding time for consumers, lowers the chance of breaking changes, and scales with your product roadmap.

Who is this for? Backend & full-stack developers who already know basic HTTP and are ready to level-up their API craftsmanship.

1. Start With Clear Resource Modeling

Identify nouns, not verbs – Stick to domain entities (users, orders, payments).
Use plural lowercase names – /users not /user or /getUsers.
Nest only when ownership is tight – /users/{id}/posts is OK, /orders/{id}/product/{id} is a smell.

2. Consistent HTTP Methods

Action	HTTP Verb	Example
Read	`GET`	`GET /users/42`
Create	`POST`	`POST /users`
Update	`PATCH`	`PATCH /users/42`
Delete	`DELETE`	`DELETE /users/42`

Avoid method tunnelling (POST /deleteUser). The semantics are built into HTTP already.

3. Pagination, Filtering & Sorting

Pagination – GET /users?page=2&pageSize=20
Filtering – GET /users?role=admin
Sorting – GET /users?sort=-createdAt (- for DESC)

Return metadata alongside data:

{
  "data": [/* ... */],
  "meta": {
    "page": 2,
    "pageSize": 20,
    "totalPages": 10,
    "totalItems": 194
  }
}

4. Robust Error Handling (Problem Details)

Adopt RFC-9457 Problem Details:

{
  "type": "https://example.com/errors/validation-error",
  "title": "Validation Failed",
  "status": 400,
  "detail": "Email field must be a valid address",
  "instance": "/users"
}

5. Versioning Strategies

URI versioning – /v1/users (quick & explicit)
Header versioning – Accept: application/vnd.myapp.v2+json (cleaner URLs)
Choose ONE and be consistent.

6. Security First

Always use HTTPS.
Implement rate-limiting & API keys/OAuth2.
Never expose raw database IDs if they leak business secrets.

7. Documentation & Tooling

OpenAPI (Swagger) remains the king. Pair it with Redoc or Stoplight for delightful dev-portal experiences.

REST API Design Best Practices: From URL Structure to Versioning