REST-APIs are based on HTTP

Designing REST APIs

• Use proper HTTP Status codes
• Use location Headers
• Keep in mind Idempotency to deal with repeated requests, eventually lock down resources
• Use Rate limiting - e. g. using Redis. Also, it is recommended to inform clients when they can send their next request (Retry-After Headers)
• Consider starting with /v1 as the first version.
• Document the API with OpenAPI or similar standards

When not to use REST

Common alternatives are: GraphQL and approaches such as gRPC. The latter shines for service-to-service communication.