APIs in PHP: PHP Rest API Crash Course 2026

If you've already downloaded VS Code and exam, skip the next two videos and start the course right away.

Install and configure XAMPP to run a local development server with Apache, MySQL, PHP, and phpMyAdmin; learn component selection, firewall prompts, and launching localhost/index.php.

Install Visual Studio Code on Windows by downloading from official site, accepting the agreement, and completing the install to start coding with me, with alternatives like PHP Storm or Notepad++.

Define APIs and REST principles, explain JSON data formatting, and show how HTTP methods and resources power PHP APIs for PayPal, weather data, and apps.

Install postman and use it to test APIs by sending get, post, put, patch, and delete requests, view json, xml, or html responses, and save requests in collections.

Explore the project folder structure for a PHP rest API, creating an API and source folders with controllers, models, and core, plus an autoloader to load classes via Postman.

Create a custom PHP autoloader using spl_autoload_register to load classes with an AB prefix in namespaces, mapping them to project directories and requiring files when found.

Create a private static property and a static connect method to establish a PDO database connection using namespace and autoloader, with try-catch and error messages about host and db name.

Build a post model in a PHP rest API project, implementing get all posts, get single post by id, and create post with PDO prepared statements.

Finish the post model by implementing update and delete methods with PDO, securely handling id, title, body, and author, and preparing statements for updating or deleting posts.

Build a PHP framework driven posts controller with store and update methods, sanitize input with trim and HTML special chars, and delegate create and update operations to the post model.

Learn to build a PHP REST API read endpoint that returns all posts as JSON data, using autoload, a post model, and posts table with id, title, body, author, createdat.

Display a single post by creating read_single.php, validating the id from a get request with filter_input, and returning a json response containing the post data or an error message.

Create posts with a PHP rest api by building a create endpoint, handling post requests, decoding json input, inserting data via a posts controller, and returning a json success response.

Build a PHP REST API update endpoint using PUT to update a post by ID, decoding JSON input, validating the ID, and returning the updated post in JSON.

Learn to implement a delete posts endpoint in a PHP REST API by validating the post ID, deleting using the post model, and returning a JSON status.

Validate http response codes for php rest api endpoints, assigning 400 for bad requests, 200 for success, and 404 for missing posts while testing get all and single post flows.

Validate and improve PHP rest endpoints by implementing precise HTTP response codes for create, update, and delete operations, covering 400, 404, 500 and success 200 responses.

Validate input and HTTP methods in a PHP rest API by enforcing required fields, returning friendly error messages, and ensuring correct create, update, and delete operations.