Both REST and GraphQL are APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) used to fetch and manipulate data over the internet, but they have different principles and structures.

In REST, you typically fetch data from a specific URL:

GET /users/12345  <--- to get user details
GET /users/12345/posts  <--- to get posts by that user

On the other hand, in GraphQL you specify exactly what data you need in a single query, regardless of the resources involved. This avoids over-fetching and under-fetching of data.

{
  user(id: 12345) {
    name
    posts {
      title
    }
  }
}

Some of the key diffs:

Versioning:

• REST offers a good versioning strategy if there are major changes in you code. (e.g., v1, v2).
• GraphQL usually doesn’t offer versioning, instead you would just updated your schema.

Error Handling

• In REST you handle errors by returning specific HTTP Status Codes,
  to indicate various types of errors (eg. 400, 500)
• GraphQL typically returns a 200 OK status even if there’s an error,
  but errors are provided in the response body – you return a response that includes the “errors” field, an array of one or more error objects.

They both have pros and cons, and the right tool depends on the specific needs of the project. Generally speaking, REST is still widely used and may be simpler for some applications, while GraphQL is more suitable in complex systems where flexibility and data efficiency are paramount.

Both REST and GraphQL are APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) used to fetch and manipulate data over the internet, but they have different principles and structures.

In REST, you typically fetch data from a specific URL:

GET /users/12345  <--- to get user details
GET /users/12345/posts  <--- to get posts by that user

On the other hand, in GraphQL you specify exactly what data you need in a single query, regardless of the resources involved. This avoids over-fetching and under-fetching of data.

{
  user(id: 12345) {
    name
    posts {
      title
    }
  }
}

Some of the key diffs:

Versioning:

• REST offers a good versioning strategy if there are major changes in you code. (e.g., v1, v2).
• GraphQL usually doesn’t offer versioning, instead you would just updated your schema.

Error Handling

• In REST you handle errors by returning specific HTTP Status Codes,
  to indicate various types of errors (eg. 400, 500)
• GraphQL typically returns a 200 OK status even if there’s an error,
  but errors are provided in the response body – you return a response that includes the “errors” field, an array of one or more error objects.

They both have pros and cons, and the right tool depends on the specific needs of the project. Generally speaking, REST is still widely used and may be simpler for some applications, while GraphQL is more suitable in complex systems where flexibility and data efficiency are paramount.