Uniform Interface Principle¶

When all resources share the same interaction patterns, clients can navigate unfamiliar APIs using general knowledge rather than resource-specific documentation, reducing cognitive load and enabling generic tooling.

Tension Addressed¶

Generality vs. Usability

Recognizable As¶

Consistent CRUD operations across resources, standardized query parameters, uniform error formats, predictable URL structures, generic client libraries

Canonical Sources¶

Fielding, REST dissertation (2000); Richardson Maturity Model

Transfers To¶

File system APIs (open/read/write/close), Database interfaces (CRUD), Unix philosophy (everything is a file), Plugin architectures

Uniformity trades expressiveness for learnability. Once you understand how one resource works, you understand them all. This is why REST succeeded - not because it's optimal for any single case, but because it's adequate for most.