HTTP 201 Created

HTTP 201 Created — The request succeeded and created a new resource, usually identified by the Location header.

Class

2xx Success

Defined in

RFC 9110 §15.3.2

Official

Yes (IANA registry)

Cacheable by default

No (unless Cache-Control/Expires say so)

What does HTTP 201 mean?

201 Created means the request succeeded and resulted in one or more new resources. The primary new resource is identified by the Location response header (or, if absent, the request URL itself).

The response body usually contains a representation of the new resource — including server-generated fields such as id and createdAt — so the client doesn't need a second request.

When is 201 used?

• POST to a collection creates an item: POST /users → 201 with Location: /users/42.
• PUT to a URL that didn't exist yet creates it (if PUT updates an existing resource, use 200 or 204).
• Uploading a file creates a new stored object.

Why you're seeing 201

• The server created the resource successfully — this is a success status, not an error.

What to do about 201

If you're visiting the site

1. Nothing to do: 201 confirms your submission created something (an account, an order, a post).

If you run the site or API (developers)

1. Include a Location header with the URL of the new resource.
2. Return the created object in the body, with its id, so clients can update their UI immediately.
3. If creation happens later in a background job, return 202 Accepted instead — 201 means the resource exists now.
4. For idempotent retries, consider an Idempotency-Key header so a retried POST doesn't create duplicates (and return the original 201 or a 409).

Sending 201: server examples

app.post("/api/users", async (req, res) => {
  const user = await db.users.create(req.body);
  res.status(201).location(`/api/users/${user.id}`).json(user);
});

// app/api/example/route.ts (Next.js App Router)
export async function POST(req: Request) {
  const user = await createUser(await req.json());
  return Response.json(user, {
    status: 201,
    headers: { Location: `/api/users/${user.id}` },
  });
}

const res = await fetch("/api/users", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({ name: "Ada" }),
});
if (res.status === 201) console.log("created at", res.headers.get("Location"));

Example 201 response

HTTP/1.1 201 Created
Location: /api/users/42
Content-Type: application/json; charset=utf-8

{"id":42,"name":"Ada","createdAt":"2026-10-18T10:00:00Z"}

Related status codes

• 200 OKThe request succeeded and the response contains the result.
• 202 AcceptedThe request was accepted for processing, but the processing hasn't finished.
• 204 No ContentThe request succeeded and there is intentionally no response body.

Related tools

• HTTP status codes — full list
• HTTP headers reference
• cURL converter
• Mock API — fake REST endpoints with custom status codes
• Webhook tester — inspect incoming requests