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Choose an HTTP method by what the request means to the target resource—not by which controller function you want to call. Use GET to retrieve a representation, POST to ask a resource to process submitted content, PUT to create or replace state at a URI the client identifies, and DELETE to remove that URI’s association with its current functionality. These meanings affect retries, caching, and how clients interpret your API; ASP.NET Core’s verb attributes route requests but do not change the protocol semantics.
A practical decision guide
| Method | What the request means | Safe / idempotent | Typical API use |
|---|---|---|---|
| GET | Transfer a current selected representation of the target resource. | Safe and idempotent. | Read a resource or collection. Put suitable filters in query parameters when they fit in the URI and are not sensitive. |
| POST | Ask the target resource to process submitted content according to its own semantics. | Neither safety nor idempotence is defined for POST as a method. | Create a resource whose URI the server selects; submit a command or form; append or otherwise process data. |
| PUT | Ask that the target resource be created or replaced with the state represented by the request content. | Unsafe but idempotent. | Create or replace a resource at a URI the client already knows. |
| DELETE | Remove the association between the target URI and its current functionality. | Unsafe but idempotent. | Remove a resource from the API’s visible resource mapping; this does not by itself promise erasure of every underlying copy. |
These are the method semantics defined by RFC 9110, HTTP Semantics. An endpoint’s name or implementation does not override them: a route called “Delete” that changes state on GET still violates GET’s defined intent.
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How to choose between POST and PUT
Ask two questions: who identifies the target URI, and what does the request body mean? POST asks the target resource to process content using its resource-specific rules. PUT says that the client has identified the target URI and is sending the state intended to exist there.
Choose POST when the target processes the content
For example, a client can POST a new product to /api/products and let the service assign its identifier and URI. POST also fits operations that submit a command, append data, or otherwise invoke resource-specific processing. When the service selects a URI on the client’s behalf after a state-changing request, RFC 9110 identifies POST as the appropriate method.
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Choose PUT when the client identifies the target state
A client can PUT a representation to /api/products/42 to request that the resource at that known URI have the submitted state. If no resource exists there, a successful PUT can create it; if one exists, PUT can replace its state. If accidental overwrites matter, define a concurrency policy and consider conditional requests rather than changing the method’s meaning.
PUT is idempotent because repeating the same request is intended to have the same effect on the target as sending it once. Incidental work such as recording each request in an audit log does not, by itself, change that protocol property.
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Safe and idempotent are different
Safe means the method’s defined semantics do not ask for a state change. Idempotent means multiple identical requests have the same intended effect on the server as one request. GET is both. PUT and DELETE are idempotent, but unsafe. POST is not defined as either safe or idempotent.
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This difference matters because browsers, crawlers, prefetchers, and other automated clients may issue safe requests without expecting a user-requested mutation. A GET link that deletes an account, makes a purchase, or updates a record can therefore trigger an unintended change when a client follows or prefetches it.
Retries after a lost response
If a connection fails before the client receives a response, the client may not know whether the server applied the request. Repeating an idempotent request is generally safe with respect to its intended effect. RFC 9110 advises clients not to automatically retry a non-idempotent request unless they know the operation is idempotent in that context or can establish that the original request was never applied.
That makes POST a special case: a blind retry could create a duplicate resource or process a command twice. Define retry behavior as part of the API contract when clients may need to retry POST operations; do not assume that a method name or a successful response pattern makes a request safe to repeat.
What DELETE does—and does not—promise
DELETE requests removal of the target URI’s association with its current functionality. It is an operation on the server’s URI mapping, not a protocol-level promise that every copy of the information has been physically erased. If the product requires data erasure, the API contract and implementation must specify what happens to records, backups, and related resources.
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Map the methods to ASP.NET Core routes
For controller-based APIs, Microsoft recommends attribute routing to model functionality as resources whose operations use HTTP verbs. ASP.NET Core provides [HttpGet], [HttpPost], [HttpPut], and [HttpDelete]; each can take a route template. Distinct operations can share a logical resource URI while their HTTP methods distinguish them. See Microsoft Learn’s controller routing documentation.
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[ApiController]
[Route("api/products")]
public class ProductsController : ControllerBase
{
[HttpGet("{id:int}")]
public ActionResult<Product> GetById(int id) => /* retrieve */;
[HttpPost]
public ActionResult<Product> Create(Product input) => /* server assigns ID */;
[HttpPut("{id:int}")]
public IActionResult Replace(int id, Product input) => /* replace target state */;
[HttpDelete("{id:int}")]
public IActionResult Delete(int id) => /* remove resource association */;
}This is a schematic example, not a complete implementation. You still need to define validation, authorization, not-found behavior, concurrency policy, and status codes in the API contract. Microsoft’s ASP.NET Core Web API guide shows a query-bound filter with GET and a POST creation action using CreatedAtAction.
Response and caching implications
GET responses are cacheable unless cache controls say otherwise. POST responses can be cacheable only under explicit conditions, while PUT responses are not cacheable. These differences matter when choosing a method for a read-like operation: the request body and operation semantics may make POST appropriate, but it should not be treated as interchangeable with GET for caching.
When a POST successfully creates one or more resources, RFC 9110 says the server should return 201 Created with a Location field identifying the primary created resource. In ASP.NET Core, CreatedAtAction is one way to produce a creation response tied to an action that can retrieve the resource.
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- Is the request retrieving a representation or asking for a state change?
- Does the client know the target URI, or should the server select one?
- Does the body describe the desired state at that URI, or provide content for resource-specific processing?
- Should the request be safe, and is repeating it intended to have the same effect?
- What happens if the response is lost and the client retries?
- Do the method’s caching behavior and expected response fit the operation?
Use the answers to choose the protocol method first, then express that operation through the matching ASP.NET Core route attribute. The framework maps requests to actions; clients and intermediaries still rely on the HTTP meaning of the method.
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