REST vs GraphQL in 2025: Which API Design Should You Choose?

The API Architecture Decision

Choosing between REST and GraphQL affects your entire application architecture. Let's compare these approaches in 2025.

REST: The Standard

REST (Representational State Transfer) has been the standard for decades:

• Resource-Based: URLs represent resources
• HTTP Methods: GET, POST, PUT, DELETE
• Stateless: Each request is independent
• Cacheable: HTTP caching built-in

REST Example

GET /api/users/123
GET /api/users/123/posts
GET /api/posts/456/comments

GraphQL: The Flexible Alternative

GraphQL offers a query language for APIs:

• Single Endpoint: One URL for all queries
• Client-Specified: Request exactly what you need
• Strongly Typed: Schema defines all types
• Introspection: Self-documenting API

GraphQL Example

query {
  user(id: "123") {
    name
    posts {
      title
      comments {
        text
      }
    }
  }
}

Key Differences

REST Advantages

1. Simplicity

Standard HTTP methods everyone understands.

2. Caching

HTTP caching works out of the box.

3. Tooling

Mature ecosystem of tools and libraries.

4. Statelessness

Easy to scale horizontally.

GraphQL Advantages

1. No Over-fetching

Request only the fields you need.

2. Single Request

Get related data in one query.

3. Type Safety

Schema provides compile-time checks.

4. Developer Experience

Excellent tooling and playground.

When to Choose REST

• Simple CRUD Operations: Standard resource management
• Public APIs: Easier for third-party developers
• Caching Critical: Need HTTP caching
• Team Familiarity: Team knows REST well
• Microservices: Service-to-service communication

When to Choose GraphQL

• Complex Data Requirements: Nested, related data
• Mobile Applications: Minimize data transfer
• Rapid Iteration: Frontend needs flexibility
• Multiple Clients: Different data needs per client
• Real-time Features: Subscriptions built-in

The Hybrid Approach

Many teams use both:

• REST for simple operations: CRUD, file uploads
• GraphQL for complex queries: Dashboard data, reports

Performance Considerations

REST

• Multiple round trips for related data
• Potential over-fetching
• Excellent caching

GraphQL

• Single request for complex data
• N+1 query problem if not careful
• Requires custom caching

Our Recommendation

For most web applications, REST remains the simpler choice. Choose GraphQL when you have complex data requirements or multiple clients with different needs.

Consider using tRPC for TypeScript projects - it offers type-safe APIs without the complexity of GraphQL.

Explore API tools in our Tools directory or compare options with our Compare tool.

Sources

• GraphQL Documentation
• REST API Tutorial
• tRPC Documentation
• Apollo GraphQL