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.

Introduction to HTTP APIs

The HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is a method of transferring files such as text, images, sound, video, and other multimedia files. This protocol is used to link sites on the internet, often known as the World Wide Web. A Web API is a protocol that explains how clients can access resources and which methods are compatible with your architecture. These resources can be in the form of JavaScript or HTML elements, information, or images, among other media kinds. You can think of it as a technological translation handbook.

An HTTP API  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. When you schedule a Zoom meeting on your Google calendar, for instance, you utilize an HTTP API. Instead of copying and pasting the meeting invitation into a field, the API explains how Zoom may communicate directly with Google’s servers to embed a Zoom meeting within the event.

HTTP APIs is a broad concept, which means they come in a variety of forms depending on their intended task. The architectural design concepts leveraged to construct HTTP APIs are used to further categorize them. The majority are used in hypermedia information systems or web development, although each has its own set of advantages and disadvantages.

Introduction to REST APIs

REST APIs (Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interface) is a data source’s frontend that allows users to create, retrieve, update, and delete data items. An API is frequently a portal to the rest of the world for developer teams.

REST, which was first described in 2000 by computer scientist Dr. Roy Fielding, gives developers a lot of flexibility and independence. REST APIs have become a popular approach for linking components and applications in a microservices architecture because of their versatility.

A REST API is a set of HTTP-based standards that control how different applications communicate with one another. There are 4 basic methods, which are also referred to as CRUD operations: 

• POST: Create a record.
• GET: Read a record.
• PUT: Update a record.
• DELETE: Delete a record.

In an HTTP request, these CRUD methods are used to access and use data. Information flows swiftly and efficiently because these components are loosely linked. As the data formats aren’t predefined, they can be employed for a multitude of uses.

In REST API calls, request headers and parameters are especially significant since they contain identifying information like Metadata, Authorizations, Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs), Caching, Cookies, and more. Within properly-designed REST APIs, request and response headers, as well as standard HTTP status codes, are employed.

To learn more about REST APIs, refer to the REST APIs page.

Now that you have a basic understanding of HTTP API and REST API, in the next section, you will understand some of the key differentiators that will help in HTTP API vs REST API comparison.

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.

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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