Building APIs with Django Rest Framework: A Clean Approach

By NSLTD | Published on June 25, 2025

API Development

REST Made Simple with Django Rest Framework

Django Rest Framework (DRF) is the gold standard for building RESTful APIs in Django. Its flexibility, extensibility, and built-in tools make it the ideal choice for both simple and complex APIs.

Step 1: Install DRF

pip install djangorestframework

Then add 'rest_framework' to INSTALLED_APPS.

Step 2: Create a Serializer

from rest_framework import serializers
from blog.models import Post

class PostSerializer(serializers.ModelSerializer):
    class Meta:
        model = Post
        fields = '__all__'

Step 3: Build a View

from rest_framework import viewsets
from .serializers import PostSerializer
from blog.models import Post

class PostViewSet(viewsets.ModelViewSet):
    queryset = Post.objects.all()
    serializer_class = PostSerializer

Step 4: Register URLs

from rest_framework.routers import DefaultRouter
from .views import PostViewSet

router = DefaultRouter()
router.register(r'posts', PostViewSet)

urlpatterns = router.urls

Design Tips

• Use ViewSets for quick scaffolding, and switch to APIView for custom logic
• Protect endpoints with permissions and throttling
• Document APIs with drf-spectacular or drf-yasg

DRF lets you build APIs that are robust, testable, and beautifully structured—an essential layer for any modern Django app.