JSON Responses
Always set Content-Type: application/json, use json_encode(), and return appropriate HTTP status codes.
PHP
Beginner
3 min read
JSON Responses
Example
function jsonResponse(mixed $data, int $status = 200, array $meta = []): void {
http_response_code($status);
header("Content-Type: application/json");
$payload = ["data" => $data];
if ($meta) $payload["meta"] = $meta;
echo json_encode($payload, JSON_UNESCAPED_UNICODE | JSON_THROW_ON_ERROR);
exit();
}
jsonResponse($users, 200, ["total" => count($users), "page" => 1]);
jsonResponse(["message" => "Created"], 201);
jsonResponse(["error" => "Not found"], 404); Pro Tip
JSON_THROW_ON_ERROR causes json_encode to throw on encoding failures instead of returning false silently.