# zalando/restful-api-guidelines

A model set of guidelines for RESTful APIs and Events, created by Zalando

Repository: https://github.com/zalando/restful-api-guidelines
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/restful-api-guidelines
Homepage: https://opensource.zalando.com/restful-api-guidelines/
Language: CSS
License: CC-BY-4.0
License Family: other
Topics: api, rest-api, restful, restful-api, guidelines, zalando, documentation
Last push: 2026-07-08T09:28:35+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 73/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 91, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 3806, "days_push": 56, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases, no_readme
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 3234, forks 447 (observed 2026-08-28T04:07:50.235313+00:00)

## What it is
Zalando's model set of guidelines for designing RESTful APIs and events, published as an open-source document under CC-BY-4.0. It codifies MUST/SHOULD/MAY rules covering API design principles, security, naming, and data formats.

## Use cases
- design consistent restful apis across teams
- learn rest api design best practices
- create company api style guide
- review api designs against standards
- standardize openapi specification conventions
- define api security and naming rules

## When to choose
- you need a battle-tested, comprehensive API design standard to adopt or adapt
- your organization wants consistent REST/Event API conventions
- you want guidance aligned with OpenAPI specification practices

## When to avoid
- you need tooling or linting rather than written guidelines
- you only build GraphQL or gRPC APIs
- you want a runnable library instead of a reference document

## Facets
- artifact type: learning-resource
- maturity: active
- function: documentation, api-documentation
- domain: apis, documentation, web-development, developer-tools
- platform: cli
- tags: api-guidelines, rest, openapi, best-practices, zalando, web-server

## Member repositories
- zalando/restful-api-guidelines (main) score 73

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:50.235313+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T07:24:37.292354+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - homepage: https://opensource.zalando.com/restful-api-guidelines/ (fetched 2026-08-29T09:37:29.915743+00:00, sha 8052b3cd8c6f)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.