Web APIs are interfaces that allow web applications to communicate with external services or data sources over the internet.
1. REST API
REST APIs use standard HTTP methods & are stateless. They
typically return data in JSON or XML format.Used for web services, where resources are accessed via URLs. Commonly used for CRUD operations on data.
Example: GitHub API, Twitter API.
fetch('https://api.github.com/users/octocat')
.then(responce => responce.json())
.then(data => console.log(data))
.catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));
2. SOAP API
SOAP is a protocol that uses XML for message format & typically relies on HTTP or SMTP for message negotiation & transmission.
Enterprise-level applications requiring security, reliability, and
formal contracts (WSDL).Example: Payment gateways, financial services APIs.
const soap = require('soap');
const url = 'https://www.example.com/service?wsdl';
soap.createClient(url, (err, client) => {
if (err) throw err;
client.MyFunction({ param: 'value' }, (err, result) => {
if (err) throw err;
console.log(result);
});
});
3. GraphQL API
GraphQL allows clients to request exactly the data they
need, and nothing more. It uses a single endpoint and
provides more flexibility compared to REST.When you need efficient querying of complex datasets, or when working with mobile applications where bandwidth
is a concern.Example: Facebook's GraphQL API, Shopify API.
const { request, gql } = require('graphql-request');
const query = gql`
{
user(login: "octocat"){
name
bio
}
}
`;
request('https://api.github.com/graphql', query)
.then(data => console.log(data))
.catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));
4. WebSocket API
WebSocket's enable real-time, two-way communication between client and server over a single, long-lived connection.
Real-time applications like chat applications, live sports updates, and online games.
Example: Slack API, trading platforms.
const socket = new WebSocket('wss://example.com/socket');
socket.onopen = ()=>{
console.log('Connected');
socket.send(JSON.stringify({type: 'follow', channel: 'news'}));
};
socket.onmessage = event =>{
console.log('Message from server', event.data);
};
socket.onclose = () =>{
console.log('Disconnected');
}
5. OAuth API
OAuth is a protocol that allows third-party applications to grant limited access to user accounts on an HTTP service, typically used for authentication and authorization.
Used for single sign-on (SSO) and authorization across different services.
Example: Google OAuth 2.0, Facebook Login API
const axios = require('axios');
const token = 'your_oauth_token';
axios.get('https://api.example.com/userinfo', {
headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token}` }
})
.then(responce => console.log(responce.data))
.catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));
6. Batch API
Batch APIs allow clients to make multiple API calls in a single HTTP request, often improving performance by reducing the number of network requests.
When a client needs to perform multiple actions at once or when working with large datasets.
Example: Facebook Graph API batch requests
fetch('https://graph.facebook.com/v11.0', {
method: 'POST',
headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
body: JSON.stringify({
batch: [
{ method: 'GET', relative_url: 'me' },
{ method: 'GET', relative_url: 'me/friends' }
],
access_token: 'your_access_token'
})
})
.then(responce => responce.json())
.then(data => console.log(data))
.catch(error => console.error('Error:', error));
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