HTTP stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol. It is the application-level protocol that lets clients, such as web browsers, send requests for network resources and receive responses from servers. HTTP is not limited to HTML pages: it provides a shared way to describe and exchange different kinds of resources.
What HTTP means
The Internet Engineering Task Force defines HTTP as “a family of stateless, application-level, request/response protocols that share a generic interface, extensible semantics, and self-descriptive messages to enable flexible interaction with network-based hypertext information systems.” That definition appears in Section 1.1 of RFC 9110, the HTTP Semantics standard published in June 2022.
In practical terms, HTTP is a set of rules for asking for resources and describing what is being sent back. “Hypertext” reflects the Web’s origins and use, but HTTP’s interface works across resources of different types and implementations—not just web pages written in HTML.
How an HTTP request and response work
A client sends a request that expresses an intention and identifies a target resource. A server interprets that request and returns a response with status information and, where applicable, content. The client can then use the response to determine whether the request succeeded and what to do next.
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For example, a browser might request a page from a server. The request uses a method to express what the browser wants to do; the response includes a status code and may contain the page’s content. This is an illustration of the protocol’s request/response pattern, not a requirement that every response contain an HTML page.
HTTP’s semantics include request methods, status codes, metadata, and content negotiation—the mechanisms that let clients and servers communicate what they want to do and what kinds of content they can exchange.
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What “stateless” means in HTTP
HTTP is stateless at the protocol level: each request can be considered without assuming a particular client purpose or a fixed sequence of earlier application steps. The term describes how the protocol treats requests; it does not mean a website or application is incapable of remembering a user or retaining information between requests. Application-level state is outside that basic definition of HTTP statelessness.
HTTP works through intermediaries
HTTP is not limited to direct communication between a browser and an origin server. Proxies and gateways can act as intermediaries, including by providing a generic HTTP interface to systems that do not themselves use HTTP. This flexibility helps HTTP support interaction across different network-based information systems.
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HTTP/1.1, HTTP/2, and HTTP/3: same semantics, different mechanics
HTTP versions share core semantics, so the meaning of methods and status codes does not change simply because a connection uses HTTP/3 rather than HTTP/1.1. The versions differ in how messages are conveyed and how connections carry concurrent traffic.
| Version | How it carries HTTP | What distinguishes it |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP/1.1 | Uses its own message syntax, framing, and connection-management mechanisms, specified in RFC 9112. | The version-specific details govern how HTTP messages are formatted and connections managed. |
| HTTP/2 | Multiplexes concurrent HTTP messages over TCP. | Its message-carrying mechanics differ from HTTP/1.1 while preserving HTTP semantics. |
| HTTP/3 | Uses QUIC, a secure, multiplexed transport over UDP. | It changes the transport approach, not the basic meanings of HTTP methods or status codes. |
These differences can make a version more suitable in one context than another; they do not establish a universal performance ranking. The shared semantics and version distinctions are described in RFC 9110.
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