GraphQL API
Let each screen ask for the data it needs
GraphQL API
With a REST API, a mobile screen often needs several calls, or gets back far more data than it shows. GraphQL gives your apps one endpoint and a typed schema, and each screen asks for exactly the fields it needs. We build GraphQL APIs in Node.js with Apollo Server or in Laravel with Lighthouse, as a new backend or as a layer over your existing database and REST services. For a simple app, a REST API is often cheaper to build and run, and we will tell you if that is the case.
What We Deliver
What's included in GraphQL API.
Schema design
A typed schema of your data and actions, worked out with the people building the web and mobile apps so it matches their screens.
Efficient resolvers
Database calls batched with DataLoader, so a list with nested data does not turn into hundreds of separate queries.
Subscriptions
Live updates over WebSockets for the features that need them, such as notifications, chat or order status.
Access control and query limits
Permission checks on the fields that need them, and limits on query depth and size to stop one heavy request from tying up the server.
One schema over several sources
A single GraphQL layer in front of your database, existing REST APIs or separate services, so your apps talk to one endpoint.
Logging and monitoring
Logs of errors and slow resolvers, so a problem can be traced back to the query that caused it.
Our Process
How the work runs, step by step.
Map the data
We look at your data sources and the screens that will use the API, and agree the queries, mutations and any subscriptions.
Write the schema
The schema is shared with your frontend developers before the resolvers are built, so both sides work from the same contract.
Build the resolvers
Resolvers connect the schema to your database and services, with batching, permission checks and caching where it helps.
Test and document
We test queries against realistic data, set depth and size limits, and generate typed client code if your apps use TypeScript.
Release and evolve
After launch we add fields as the apps need them and mark old ones as deprecated instead of removing them overnight.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about GraphQL API.
GraphQL helps when several apps read the same data in different ways, or when one screen needs data from many tables at once. For a simple app, file uploads, or an API that partners call from their own scripts, REST is usually simpler. If REST fits better, we will say so and build that instead.
Yes. A GraphQL layer can sit in front of your current database or REST API without rewriting it, and your apps can move to it one screen at a time. The existing API keeps working for anything that still uses it.
It can be if the resolvers are written carelessly, because one nested query can trigger many database calls. We batch those calls with DataLoader, cache where it is safe, and test the heavier queries against realistic data before launch.
New fields are added alongside the old ones. Fields you want to retire are marked as deprecated, which developers see in their tools, and are removed only once no app uses them.
Yes. React Native, Flutter and web apps all have well-supported GraphQL clients, and we can build the mobile app as well if you need one.
Other Backend & APIs services
- REST API Development REST APIs built in Laravel or Node.js for your website, mobile app or partner integrations, with documentation your developers can work from.
- Microservices Architecture Splitting a large application into separate services where it helps, using Docker, Kubernetes and message queues, and keeping it whole where it does not.
- Database Optimization Speeding up slow MySQL, PostgreSQL and MongoDB databases with better queries, indexes and caching, measured before and after.
Not sure GraphQL is the right choice?
Tell us which apps will use the API and what data they show, and we will tell you whether GraphQL or REST suits it better.