HTTP API vs REST API: 3 Critical Differentiators

Application Programming Interfaces (API) facilitate the integration of diverse applications by offering code documentation and information pipelines to aid developers in developing powerful digital solutions. APIs operate as a bridge between applications, allowing them to communicate more efficiently. APIs can be categorized into various types based on application designs and other constraints, such as Web API, HTTP API, REST API, and many more.

REST API is a Software Architectural Style that is used to guide the creation and design of the architecture of the World Wide Web. In other words, REST APIs establish a set of guidelines for how a distributed system’s architecture should function. On the other hand, HTTP API is an application that communicates between two systems using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol. HTTP APIs make endpoints available as API gateways, allowing HTTP queries to connect to a server. But, do you know the differences between HTTP API vs REST API? If not, read ahead to know more.

In this article, you will learn more about HTTP APIs and REST APIs. You will understand the key factors that drive REST API vs HTTP API comparison. You will also understand when and where to use either of the API. So, let’s dive deep into the HTTP vs REST API comparison.

HTTP APIs: The Backbone of Modern Applications

In today’s interconnected world, applications increasingly rely on seamless communication and data exchange. HTTP APIs, built upon the foundation of the HTTP protocol, play a crucial role in enabling this interoperability.

Key Features of HTTP API:

• Facilitate Communication: Allow applications to interact and exchange data with other systems.
• Enable Interoperability: Bridge the gap between different software systems, regardless of their underlying technologies.
• Power Modern Applications: Drive innovation in areas like microservices, cloud computing, mobile development, and IoT.

Benefits of HTTP API:

• Increased Agility: Facilitate rapid development and deployment of new applications and services.
• Improved Efficiency: Streamline data exchange and automate processes.
• Enhanced User Experience: Enable richer and more interactive user experiences.

REST APIs: Powering Modern Software Architectures

REST APIs (Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interfaces) have emerged as a cornerstone of modern software development, enabling seamless communication and data exchange between different systems.

Key Principles of REST APIs:

• Leverage HTTP: Utilize the HTTP protocol for communication, employing standard methods like GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE to interact with resources.
• Statelessness: Each request from a client contains all the necessary information for the server to process it independently.
• Client-Server Architecture: Decouples the client and server, enabling independent development and evolution.
• Caching: Allows for efficient data retrieval by enabling intermediate caching of responses.

Benefits of REST APIs:

• Microservices Architecture: Enable the development of modular and independent services, enhancing agility and scalability.n, you will understand some of the key differentiators that will help in HTTP API vs REST API comparison.
• Flexibility and Scalability: Support a wide range of data formats and enable easy integration with diverse systems.
• Simplicity and Maintainability: Adhere to a well-defined set of principles, making them easier to develop, maintain, and understand.
• Platform Agnostic: Can be used across different platforms and technologies.

HTTP vs REST API: Quick Difference

Feature	HTTP API	REST API
Core Protocol	HTTP	HTTP + REST Principles
Features	Basic (e.g., limited authentication)	Rich (API keys, request validation, private endpoints)
Cost	Generally lower	Generally higher
Performance	Often faster	Can have slightly lower performance
Flexibility	Less flexible	Highly flexible and scalable
Architectural Style	Not strictly bound	Adheres to REST principles (statelessness, client-server)
Purpose	Simpler applications, internal use, rapid development	Public-facing APIs, microservices, complex integrations
Canary Deployments	Not supported	Supported
Programmatic Model	Simplified	Can be more complex
Endpoint Types	Limited (e.g., regional)	Supports various types
Security Options	Fewer options	More options (authentication, authorization, encryption)
Deployments	Automatic deployments	Manual or more involved

Critical Factors that Drive the HTTP API vs REST API Comparison

1.  Conceptual Difference

HTTP API	REST API
Any API using HTTP as its transport protocol, including SOAP.	An architectural style that can use different protocols (HTTP, FTP, etc.) but commonly uses HTTP.
Focuses on using HTTP methods like GET, POST, PUT, DELETE.	Follows a set of constraints like client-server, stateless, cacheable, etc.
Does not need to adhere to REST principles.	Must follow REST principles to be considered RESTful.

2. Design

HTTP API	REST API
Design typically follows basic HTTP request-response methods.	Must follow REST principles, including client-server separation, statelessness, caching, and uniform interface.
No strict architectural constraints.	Has a uniform interface, layered system, and the ability to scale.

3. Endpoint type

Endpoint Type	REST API	HTTP API
Edge-optimized	✔	✖
Regional	✔	✔
Private	✔	✖

4. Security

Security Feature	REST API	HTTP API
Mutual TLS authentication	✔	✔
Certificates for backend authentication	✔	✖
AWS WAF	✔	✖

5. API management

Features	REST API	HTTP API
Custom domains	✔	✔
API keys	✔	✖
Per-client rate limiting	✔	✖
Per-client usage throttling	✔	✖

6. Monitoring

Features	REST API	HTTP API
Amazon CloudWatch metrics	✔	✔
Access logs to CloudWatch Logs	✔	✔
Access logs to Amazon Data Firehose	✔	✖
Execution logs	✔	✖
AWS X-Ray tracing	✔	✖

7. Integrations

Feature	REST API	HTTP API
Public HTTP endpoints	✔	✔
AWS services	✔	✔
AWS Lambda functions	✔	✔
Private integrations with Network Load Balancers	✔	✔
Private integrations with Application Load Balancers	✖	✔
Private integrations with AWS Cloud Map	✖	✔
Mock integrations	✔	✖

8. Use Cases of REST API vs HTTP API 

HTTP API	REST API
Suitable for basic client-server communication using HTTP.	Ideal for scalable, general-purpose applications requiring stateless, cacheable communication.
Common in backend services that do not require RESTful design.	Suitable for applications that need to scale independently from the client-side technology.
Often used for simpler tasks like uploading/downloading data.	Supports advanced use cases like error reporting, monitoring, and protection from resource attacks.
Often used in simpler HTTP-based communication, including serverless apps.	Preferred for building scalable, robust web applications that need to scale across multiple platforms.

Other Differences Between REST API and HTTP API

Feature	HTTP API	REST API
Client-Server	No strict requirement for clear separation of client and server.	Requires clear separation between client (handling user interaction) and server (managing data and state).
Stateless	Can maintain state between client-server interactions.	Stateless; each client request must contain all necessary information.
Cacheable	Not necessarily cacheable unless designed to be so.	Responses must indicate if they are cacheable to improve performance.
Uniform Interface	May or may not provide a uniform interface.	Must provide a consistent interface with standardized operations (like GET, POST, PUT, DELETE).
Layered System	No inherent requirement for layers.	Follows a layered system where components cannot see beyond their layer.

REST API vs HTTP API: Features and Trade-offs

REST APIs and HTTP APIs are both web application programming interfaces that allow software programs to interact. However, they differ in several aspects:

• Features: REST APIs offer advanced features such as API keys, request validation, and private API endpoints, while HTTP APIs are simpler and may lack some of these functionalities.
• Cost: HTTP APIs are typically less expensive than REST APIs, making them a budget-friendly choice.
• Performance: HTTP APIs are faster and more economical, often suited for lightweight applications.
• Flexibility: REST APIs are more scalable and flexible, making them ideal for complex and growing systems.
• Communication: REST APIs use web resources, whereas HTTP APIs rely strictly on the HTTP protocol for communication.

HTTP APIs are lightweight, fast, and cost-effective, making them suitable for simpler use cases. REST APIs, with their flexibility and scalability, are often the preferred choice for more comprehensive applications.

Limitations of Using Rest API and HTTP API

1. HTTP can struggle with very large payloads or binary data transmission, requiring workarounds like multipart uploads.
2.  HTTP APIs can be slower compared to lightweight protocols like WebSockets for real-time applications due to the overhead of headers and request/response cycles.
3. REST APIs can become inefficient when dealing with large datasets, as each resource fetch might involve redundant data transfer.
4. REST lacks a native schema definition, unlike SOAP, meaning developers need to rely on external documentation or tools like OpenAPI for defining API contracts.

Benefits of Using HTTP API and REST API

This article introduced you to HTTP and REST APIs. You understood some of the critical factors that drive HTTP API vs REST API comparison. So, depending upon your use case, you can effectively use the desired API, by keeping in mind the differentiators for HTTP API vs REST API comparison.

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