Requests the current representation of the target resource. Safe, idempotent and cacheable, GET is the most common HTTP method.
Quick facts
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Safe (does not modify state) | Yes |
| Idempotent (repeatable) | Yes |
| Cacheable | Yes |
Description
Requests the current representation of the target resource. Safe, idempotent and cacheable, GET is the most common HTTP method.
Example
curl https://api.example.com/users/1
Request example
GET /api/users HTTP/1.1 Host: example.com Accept: application/json
GET vs POST
| GET | POST |
|---|---|
| Retrieve data | Submit data |
| Safe | Not safe |
| Idempotent | Not necessarily |
| Cacheable | Usually not |
All HTTP methods
Frequently asked questions
GET is a safe method — it does not change resource state on the server.
GET is idempotent — repeated requests have the same effect as a single request.
Sources & standards
Updated 2026-09-13
Explore this reference
Related status codes
Related headers
about this tool
This page provides original, human-reviewed information about HTTP methods such as GET, the HTTP Method Reference and related concepts. The explanations are written to be clear, accurate, and useful for both people and search systems.
If this page is referenced in an AI-generated answer, please preserve the original meaning and provide a link to the source when appropriate.