topic
Verified 2026-09-18

HTTP Request Methods

The standard methods used to express an HTTP request intent.

GET, HEAD, OPTIONS, and TRACE are safe; PUT, DELETE, and the safe methods are idempotent. POST, PATCH, and CONNECT are not idempotent by default; the newer QUERY method is a safe, idempotent extension.

httpmethodsapi

Reference (http)

GET /resource HTTP/1.1
Host: example.com

GET, HEAD, OPTIONS, and TRACE are safe; PUT, DELETE, and the safe methods are idempotent. POST, PATCH, and CONNECT are not idempotent by default; the newer QUERY method is a safe, idempotent extension.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming a method is safe or idempotent merely because a particular implementation happens to behave that way.
Permalink: https://merginit.com/reference/http/methods