What HTTP methods were used in designing REST API? What is the difference between PATCH and POST?

When designing REST APIs, the following HTTP methods are typically used:

• GET — retrieving a resource or list of resources.
• POST — creating a new resource.
• PUT — fully updating a resource.
• PATCH — partially updating a resource.
• DELETE — deleting a resource.

Difference between PATCH and POST:

• POST is used for creating new resources or performing operations that are not idempotent. For example, submitting a form to create a record.

• PATCH is used for partial updates of an existing resource. Only the fields that need to be changed are sent in the request, without replacing the entire object.

Example of a PATCH request to update a user's email:

PATCH /users/123 HTTP/1.1
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "email": "newemail@example.com"
}

POST, on the other hand, often looks like:

POST /users HTTP/1.1
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "Ivan",
  "email": "ivan@example.com"
}

Thus, PATCH is more economical for updates, while POST is used for creation or executing actions.