Request Methods

When a web client like a browser makes a request, it must specify the request method, indicating what kind of request this is (sometimes we refer to the method as a HTTP Verb).

The two most common are GET and POST requests, as these are typically the only kinds supported by browsers. Other request methods include PUT, PATCH, and DELETE, which are typically used by other kinds of web clients. We’ll focus on just GET and POST requests here.

GET

A GET request seeks to retrieve a specific resource from the web server - often an HTML document or binary file. GET requests typically have no body and are simply used to retrieve data. If the request is successful, the response will typically provide the requested resource in its body.

POST

The POST request submits an entity to the resource, i.e. uploading a file or form data. It typically will have a body, which is the upload or form.