REST (RESTful API)
REST (Representational State Transfer) is the most widely used architectural style for web APIs. A RESTful API exposes data and functions as “resources” (each with a URL) and uses the standard HTTP methods — GET (read), POST (create), PUT/PATCH (update) and DELETE (remove) — to operate on them, typically exchanging data as JSON over HTTPS.
REST became dominant because it is simple, stateless, scalable and easy to consume from virtually any programming language or platform, using the ordinary machinery of the web. In logistics, most modern carrier, tracking, rating and platform APIs are RESTful — a system calls a REST endpoint (for example to retrieve a container's status or book a shipment) and receives a structured JSON response. REST is usually contrasted with the older, heavier SOAP style. For anyone integrating logistics or ERP systems, understanding REST is essential, as it is the common language of the APIs that connect platforms, carriers and partners. It underpins the real-time, service-oriented connectivity of modern supply-chain software.
REST is the lingua franca of modern web APIs — simple, stateless and consumable from any platform, which is why nearly every carrier, tracking and rating API is RESTful. Knowing how REST endpoints and HTTP methods work is essential to integrating logistics and ERP systems, since REST is the style through which most real-time supply-chain connectivity happens.
What HTTP methods does REST use?
GET to read, POST to create, PUT/PATCH to update and DELETE to remove resources, typically exchanging JSON over HTTPS.
How does REST differ from SOAP?
REST is lightweight, stateless and JSON-based over standard HTTP; SOAP is an older, heavier, XML-based protocol with stricter standards.