Ask HN: For a greenfield API which would you use: REST, GraphQL, other? Why?

[_isus]

* This would be assuming current technologies (or those that are likely to be usable in production in the next 3 to 6 months). * Want to be usable by a wide range of clients that may be outside of the control of the API creator. * Normal caveats about security, maintainability, etc. * Assume a Web API.

Edit: added assumption about Web API.

[dozzie]

Depends on what does it need to do, but you most probably will need a regular RPC instead of trivial CRUD (REST) or mostly data query (GraphQL). Though RPC is not fancy nor sexy, so most web developers this days won't even look at that.

[_isus]

The question is intentionally generic as I am trying to find out what most folks would do if they were starting with something fresh. Your comment reminded me I needed to narrow the focus a bit. I edited the question to add an assumption that this is a Web API.

[dozzie]

I don't know why did you get the impression that my comment somehow doesn't apply to API-first web services.

[_isus]

I didn't - it just reminded me that some might take it in a more general way than I intended. :)