Strapi Has a Free API You Should Know About

#node #api #strapi #cms

Strapi auto-generates a full REST and GraphQL API from your content types — and it's the most popular open-source headless CMS.

Content Type Builder

Define your schema in the admin panel or code:

// src/api/post/content-types/post/schema.json
{
  "kind": "collectionType",
  "collectionName": "posts",
  "attributes": {
    "title": { "type": "string", "required": true },
    "content": { "type": "richtext" },
    "slug": { "type": "uid", "targetField": "title" },
    "cover": { "type": "media" },
    "category": { "type": "relation", "relation": "manyToOne", "target": "api::category.category" },
    "tags": { "type": "relation", "relation": "manyToMany", "target": "api::tag.tag" },
    "publishedAt": { "type": "datetime" }
  }
}

Auto-Generated REST API

# List with filters, sort, pagination, populate
GET /api/posts?filters[category][name][$eq]=tech&sort=publishedAt:desc&pagination[page]=1&pagination[pageSize]=10&populate=*

# Single entry
GET /api/posts/1?populate[category]=*&populate[tags]=*

# Create
POST /api/posts
{ "data": { "title": "New Post", "content": "...", "category": 1 } }

# Update
PUT /api/posts/1
{ "data": { "title": "Updated Title" } }

# Delete
DELETE /api/posts/1

Custom Controllers

// src/api/post/controllers/post.js
module.exports = {
  async findFeatured(ctx) {
    const posts = await strapi.entityService.findMany('api::post.post', {
      filters: { featured: true },
      sort: { publishedAt: 'desc' },
      limit: 5,
      populate: ['cover', 'category']
    })
    return posts
  }
}

// src/api/post/routes/custom.js
module.exports = {
  routes: [
    { method: 'GET', path: '/posts/featured', handler: 'post.findFeatured' }
  ]
}

Middleware & Policies

// src/api/post/policies/is-owner.js
module.exports = async (ctx, config, { strapi }) => {
  const post = await strapi.entityService.findOne('api::post.post', ctx.params.id, {
    populate: ['author']
  })
  if (post.author.id !== ctx.state.user.id) {
    return ctx.unauthorized('You can only edit your own posts')
  }
  return true
}

Webhooks

Configure in admin panel: trigger HTTP requests when content changes. Perfect for:

Rebuild static site on publish
Invalidate CDN cache
Sync to search index
Send notifications

Real-World Use Case

A startup needed a content API for their React Native app + marketing website. Options: build custom (weeks), WordPress REST API (slow, bloated), or Strapi. They chose Strapi: 30 minutes to define content types, instant REST API, admin panel for content editors. Two years later, same Strapi instance serves mobile app, web app, and internal tools.

Strapi is the Node.js API generator disguised as a CMS.

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