REST API URI Naming Conventions and Best Practices

Designing RESTful APIs is not just about functionality; it’s about clarity, consistency, and scalability. A well-structured API improves usability, maintenance, and developer experience.

This guide covers the best practices for REST API URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) naming, including:

✔ General URI Design Principles
✔ Best Practices for Resource Naming
✔ Common Mistakes to Avoid

🔹 What is a REST API URI?

A URI (Uniform Resource Identifier) uniquely identifies resources in a REST API.

📌 Example of a well-structured API endpoint:

GET /users/1

Here:

• /users represents a collection of user resources.
• /1 represents a specific user resource.

A good API URI should be descriptive, predictable, and easy to understand.

🔹 1️⃣ REST API URI Best Practices

1. Use Nouns, Not Verbs

A RESTful API should represent resources using nouns instead of actions (verbs).

✅ Good Example:

GET /products   → Retrieve all products
GET /products/10  → Retrieve product with ID 10
POST /products  → Create a new product