You can make requests to APIs in Postman. An API request allows you to retrieve data from a data source, or to send data. APIs run on web servers, and expose endpoints to support the operations client applications use to provide their functionality.
Each API request uses an HTTP method. The most common methods are GET, POST, PATCH, PUT, and DELETE.
- GET methods retrieve data from an API.
- POST sends new data to an API.
- PATCH and PUT methods update existing data.
- DELETE removes existing data.
In Postman you can make API requests and examine the responses without using a terminal or writing any code. When you create a request and click Send, the API response appears inside the Postman user interface.
Sending a request
To send your first API request, open Postman. Make sure Build is selected at the bottom right. Click the + plus button to open a new tab.
Enter postman-echo.com/get in the URL field.
Click Send. You will see the JSON data response from the server in the lower pane.
