Mastering API Pagination: Handle Big Data Like a Pro! 🚀

#webdev #javascript #beginners #programming

APIs often deal with massive amounts of data, and sending it all at once can overwhelm servers and clients. That’s where pagination comes in, breaking data into smaller chunks for better performance and usability.

Types of Pagination:

Offset-Based
- Page-Size Based: Specify page number and size.
- Offset-Limit Based: Define a starting point and a limit.
- Best For: Simple, static datasets like product catalogs.
Cursor-Based
- Key-Based: Use unique IDs to fetch the next batch.
- Time-Based: Use timestamps for consistent ordering.
- Best For: Real-time feeds and large, dynamic datasets.

Here’s a quick summary

Criteria	Offset-Based	Cursor-Based
Data Volume	Small to medium	Large datasets
Data Changes Often?	Not ideal	Excellent
Implementation Ease	Simple	Slightly complex
Performance	Slower for large data	Faster for large data
UI Type	Paged navigation	Infinite scrolling

Each has pros and cons—Offset is simple but slower for large datasets, while Cursor is efficient but more complex. Choose wisely! 🎯
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