What is the difference between SOAP and RESTful web services?

SOAP vs RESTful Web Services: Explained

SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) and REST (Representational State Transfer) are two popular approaches for designing web services:

SOAP Web Services:

• Protocol: SOAP is a protocol-based approach used for exchanging structured information in the form of XML.
• Communication: SOAP web services can be accessed over various protocols such as HTTP, SMTP, and others.
• Complexity: SOAP services are typically more complex due to the strict specifications and standards they follow.
• Stateful: SOAP services are usually stateful with built-in support for transactions and security.

RESTful Web Services:

• Architecture: REST is an architectural style that uses standard HTTP methods like GET, POST, PUT, DELETE for communication.
• Communication: REST services typically use URLs to access resources and return responses in various formats like JSON, XML, or others.
• Flexibility: REST services are known for their simplicity, flexibility, and scalability compared to SOAP services.
• Stateless: REST services are stateless, meaning each request from the client contains all the necessary information to be processed on the server side.

While SOAP is more rigid and follows a specific set of rules, REST is more lightweight and follows the principles of the web. The choice between SOAP and RESTful web services depends on the project requirements, interoperability needs, and development constraints.