🧠 1. Why Python for Mobile APIs?
Python is widely used for backend development due to:
Simplicity and readability – Easy to maintain and iterate quickly.
Rich frameworks – FastAPI, Flask, Django REST Framework (DRF) make API development fast.
Third-party packages – For authentication, data validation, database interaction.
Asynchronous support – FastAPI and asyncio enable scalable real-time APIs.
⚙️ 2. Choosing a Framework
Framework Pros Cons Best For
Flask Lightweight, simple, flexible Minimal built-in features Small APIs, prototypes
FastAPI Async, automatic docs, type hints Newer, smaller community Modern APIs, high performance
Django REST Framework (DRF) Full-featured, ORM integration Heavier, steeper learning curve Large-scale APIs, admin dashboards
For mobile APIs, FastAPI is often recommended due to speed, automatic documentation (Swagger/OpenAPI), and async support.
🛠️ 3. Basic API Structure with FastAPI
Step 1: Install dependencies
pip install fastapi uvicorn
Step 2: Create a simple API
from fastapi import FastAPI
app = FastAPI()
# Root endpoint
@app.get("/")
def read_root():
return {"message": "Hello Mobile App!"}
# Endpoint with path parameter
@app.get("/user/{user_id}")
def get_user(user_id: int):
return {"user_id": user_id, "name": f"User {user_id}"}
Step 3: Run the server
uvicorn main:app --reload
Mobile app can now call endpoints at http://localhost:8000/user/1.
🔐 4. Adding Authentication
Mobile APIs require secure authentication:
JWT Authentication Example
from fastapi import Depends, HTTPException, status
from fastapi.security import OAuth2PasswordBearer
import jwt
SECRET_KEY = "super_secret"
ALGORITHM = "HS256"
oauth2_scheme = OAuth2PasswordBearer(tokenUrl="token")
def get_current_user(token: str = Depends(oauth2_scheme)):
try:
payload = jwt.decode(token, SECRET_KEY, algorithms=[ALGORITHM])
return payload.get("sub") # username or user_id
except jwt.PyJWTError:
raise HTTPException(status_code=401, detail="Invalid token")
Mobile app sends Authorization: Bearer <token> with each request.
📦 5. Connecting to a Database
Using SQLAlchemy with FastAPI
from sqlalchemy import create_engine, Column, Integer, String
from sqlalchemy.ext.declarative import declarative_base
from sqlalchemy.orm import sessionmaker
DATABASE_URL = "sqlite:///./test.db"
engine = create_engine(DATABASE_URL)
SessionLocal = sessionmaker(bind=engine)
Base = declarative_base()
class User(Base):
__tablename__ = "users"
id = Column(Integer, primary_key=True, index=True)
name = Column(String)
Base.metadata.create_all(bind=engine)
Use CRUD operations in endpoints to interact with the database.
🔄 6. Structuring API Endpoints for Mobile Apps
Mobile APIs usually follow REST principles:
Resource-based URLs:
GET /users → List users
POST /users → Create user
GET /users/{id} → Get user
PUT /users/{id} → Update user
DELETE /users/{id} → Delete user
Use JSON for requests/responses
Stateless requests – mobile apps send authentication tokens each time
📜 7. Best Practices for Mobile APIs
Version your API
/api/v1/users → Prevents breaking mobile apps when backend changes.
Use pagination for lists
Avoid sending huge data sets (limit & offset query params).
Validate data
Use Pydantic models in FastAPI for request validation.
from pydantic import BaseModel
class UserCreate(BaseModel):
name: str
@app.post("/users/")
def create_user(user: UserCreate):
return {"name": user.name}
Error handling
Return meaningful HTTP status codes and error messages.
Secure communication
Always use HTTPS.
Implement authentication & authorization (JWT, OAuth2).
Rate limiting
Prevent abuse of API endpoints.
Logging and monitoring
Track requests, errors, and performance issues.
🔌 8. Integrating with a Mobile App
Mobile apps call APIs using HTTP libraries:
iOS: URLSession, Alamofire
Android: Retrofit, OkHttp
Flutter: http, dio
Pass authentication tokens in headers and parse JSON responses.
✅ 9. Summary
Python + FastAPI or Flask = quick, scalable backend for mobile apps.
Use RESTful endpoints, JSON, and stateless authentication.
Secure your API with JWT or OAuth2.
Validate, paginate, and version endpoints for reliability and maintainability.
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How to Handle API Requests in Python: Methods and Best Practices
Building Authentication for APIs in Python with JWT
Using Django REST Framework for Building APIs
How to Build a RESTful API with Flask
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