REST API best practices with Laravel

A REST API is not just endpoints returning JSON. To be pleasant to use, it needs consistent status codes, clear error messages and predictable behavior.

Consistent status codes

I try to follow a simple rule set:

• 200/201 for successful responses.
• 400 for validation errors or bad input.
• 401 for unauthenticated requests.
• 403 for forbidden actions.
• 404 when a resource does not exist.

Standard error shape

I keep error responses consistent, for example:

{
  "message": "The given data was invalid.",
  "errors": {
    "email": ["The email has already been taken."]
  }
}

This makes it easier for frontend/mobile teams to handle errors in a generic way.

Versioning

For APIs that will be public or long-lived, I like using prefix-based versioning such as /api/v1/.... It keeps breaking changes controlled and explicit.