https://github.com/ivan-kleshnin/rest-sdk-trpc-graphql
REST vs GraphQL vs SDK: general API pros and cons
https://github.com/ivan-kleshnin/rest-sdk-trpc-graphql
Last synced: about 1 month ago
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REST vs GraphQL vs SDK: general API pros and cons
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/ivan-kleshnin/rest-sdk-trpc-graphql
- Owner: ivan-kleshnin
- Created: 2022-07-19T11:35:24.000Z (about 3 years ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2022-07-19T12:21:41.000Z (about 3 years ago)
- Last Synced: 2025-02-01T22:12:52.169Z (8 months ago)
- Size: 6.84 KB
- Stars: 1
- Watchers: 2
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
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Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
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README
# REST vs SDK vs tRPC vs GraphQL
WIP: mostly client-side concerns so far...
### REST
#### Pros
- The most basic approach.
- Authentication layer is typically REST so won't require a special treatment here.
- Ecosystem of testing, QA, editor/IDE plugins etc. tools like Postman.
- Caching is a solved problem. Check tools like [React-Query](https://tanstack.com/query/v3/) or [SWR](https://swr.vercel.app/).
- BE and FE are decoupled: can be written in different languages.
#### Cons
- Any non-trivial API will require to write your own SDK.
- API is untyped, Swagger etc. "types" are just conventions that can be violated.
- No realtime primitives.
### SDK (meaning official, open-source distributions)
#### Pros
- ...Most REST benefits (if built on top of REST which is typically the case).
- Easier to use than REST – saves time to write your own SDK and/or support low-level code.
- Typically comes with realtime primitives.
#### Cons
- Can be incompatible with caching layer (if SDK wraps promises with custom datatypes)
- Bundle size increase. Some SDKs are quite heavy.
### tRPC (and other similar tools)
https://trpc.io/
#### Pros
- ...All benefits of REST.
- Statically typed API.
#### Cons
- Requires BE and FE to be written in the same statically typed language (e.g TypeScript). :exclamation:
### GraphQL
#### Pros
- Statically typed API.
- Growing ecosystem.
- Realtime support with Subscriptions.
- Static types allow smarter cache invalidation mechanics.
#### Cons
- The most complex approach.
- Type duplication concern: which types are the source of truth – TypeScript or GraphQL.
- Auth layer logic is often REST and requires its own caching, etc. babysitting tasks.