What are HTTP Methods? How many types?
16
24-Mar-2026
Ravi Vishwakarma
24-Mar-2026HTTP Methods are used in Web API / Web Development to tell the server what action we want to perform on a resource.
When a client (browser, mobile app, API) sends a request to server, it uses an HTTP method like GET, POST, PUT, DELETE etc.
HTTP works on Request → Response model.
Example request:
Here GET is HTTP Method.
How many HTTP Methods are there?
Mainly 9 HTTP Methods are defined in HTTP standard, but commonly used are 5–7 methods.
Most used methods:
1. GET Method
Used to read data from server.
Example:
Rules:
Example response:
2. POST Method
Used to create new data.
Example:
Body:
Use when:
3. PUT Method
Used to update full data.
Example:
Body:
Rules:
4. PATCH Method
Used to update partial data.
Example:
Body:
Use when:
5. DELETE Method
Used to remove data.
Example:
Use when:
Response:
6. HEAD Method
Same as GET but returns only header.
Example:
Use for:
No body returned.
7. OPTIONS Method
Used to check allowed methods.
Example:
Response:
Used in:
8. TRACE Method
Used for debugging.
Example:
9. CONNECT Method
Used for secure connection.
Used in:
Example:
Rare in normal API.
Summary
Interview Answer (Short)