A good REST API is built on resource-oriented URLs (/users/42/orders), correct HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE), and meaningful status codes (200, 201, 404, 422). Versioning (/api/v1/) lets you evolve the API without breaking old clients.
Error responses should always follow a consistent format: {"error": "...", "details": [...]}. Pagination uses page and per_page or a cursor-based approach. Rate limiting protects the API from abuse.
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