ESP32 HTTP GET and HTTP POST with Arduino IDE (JSON, URL Encoded, Text)

In this guide, you’ll learn how to make HTTP GET and HTTP POST requests with the ESP32 board with Arduino IDE. We’ll cover examples on how to get values, post JSON objects, URL encoded requests, and more.

ESP32 HTTP GET and HTTP POST with Arduino IDE (JSON, URL Encoded, Text)

Recommended: ESP8266 NodeMCU HTTP GET and HTTP POST with Arduino IDE (JSON, URL Encoded, Text)

HTTP Request Methods: GET vs POST

The Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) works as a request-response protocol between a client and server. Here’s an example:

  • The ESP32 (client) submits an HTTP request to a Raspberry Pi running Node-RED (server);
  • The server returns a response to the ESP32 (client);
  • Finally, the response contains status information about the request and may also contain the requested content.

HTTP GET

GET is used to request data from a specified resource. It is often used to get values from APIs.

For example, you can have:

GET /update-sensor?temperature=value1

Note that the query string (name = temperature and value = value1) is sent in the URL of the HTTP GET request.

Or you can use a simple request to return a value or JSON object, for example:

GET /get-sensor

(With HTTP GET, data is visible to everyone in the URL request.)

HTTP POST

POST is used to send data to a server to create/update a resource. For example, publish sensor readings to a server.

The data sent to the server with POST is stored in the request body of the HTTP request:

POST /update-sensor HTTP/1.1
Host: example.com
api_key=api&sensor_name=name&temperature=value1&humidity=value2&pressure=value3
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded

In the body request, you can also send a JSON object:

POST /update-sensor HTTP/1.1
Host: example.com
{api_key: "api", sensor_name: "name", temperature: value1, humidity: value2, pressure: value3}
Content-Type: application/json

(With HTTP POST, data is not visible in the URL request. However, if it’s not encrypted, it’s still visible in the request body.)

HTTP GET/POST with ESP32

In this guide, we’ll explore the following scenarios:

  1. ESP32 HTTP GET: Value or Query in URL
  2. ESP32 HTTP GET: JSON Data Object or Plain Text
  3. ESP32 HTTP POST: URL Encoded, JSON Data Object, Plain Text

Prerequisites

Before proceeding with this tutorial, make sure you complete the following prerequisites.

Arduino IDE

We’ll program the ESP32 using Arduino IDE, so make sure you have the ESP32 add-on installed.

Arduino_JSON Library

You also need to install the Arduino_JSON library. You can install this library in the Arduino IDE Library Manager. Just go to Sketch Include Library > Manage Libraries and search for the library name as follows:

Install Arduino JSON library Arduino IDE

Parts Required

For this tutorial you need the following parts:

You can use the preceding links or go directly to MakerAdvisor.com/tools to find all the parts for your projects at the best price!

Preparing Node-RED (optional)

As an example, we’ll create a web service with a Raspberry Pi and Node-RED to act as a web service (like an API). Basically, you’ll make HTTP GET and HTTP POST requests to your Raspberry Pi to get values or update them. You can use any other web service.

If you don’t have Node-RED installed, follow the next tutorials:

Having Node-RED running on your Raspberry Pi, go to your Raspberry Pi IP address followed by :1880.

http://raspberry-pi-ip-address:1880

The Node-RED interface should open. You can simply import the final flow:

Node-RED-Flow-HTTP-GET-POST-Request-Methods-ESP32-ESP8266-Arduino

Go to Menu > Import and copy the following to your Clipboard to create your Node-RED flow.

[{"id":"599740b7.efde9","type":"http response","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","statusCode":"200","headers":{},"x":420,"y":689,"wires":[]},{"id":"1618a829.76f638","type":"json","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","property":"payload","action":"obj","pretty":true,"x":410,"y":809,"wires":[["d0089cc7.d25ac"]]},{"id":"c7410fa2.1c2fa","type":"debug","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"false","x":850,"y":709,"wires":[]},{"id":"75a22f74.f1aba","type":"ui_text","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","group":"2b7ac01b.fc984","order":1,"width":0,"height":0,"name":"","label":"Sensor Name","format":"{{msg.payload}}","layout":"row-spread","x":860,"y":769,"wires":[]},{"id":"1c8f9093.8bc2bf","type":"ui_gauge","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","group":"2b7ac01b.fc984","order":2,"width":0,"height":0,"gtype":"gage","title":"Temperature","label":"ºC","format":"{{value}}","min":0,"max":"38","colors":["#00b500","#e6e600","#ca3838"],"seg1":"","seg2":"","x":850,"y":829,"wires":[]},{"id":"a5bd2706.54e108","type":"ui_gauge","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","group":"2b7ac01b.fc984","order":3,"width":0,"height":0,"gtype":"gage","title":"Humidity","label":"%","format":"{{value}}","min":0,"max":"100","colors":["#0080ff","#0062c4","#002f5e"],"seg1":"","seg2":"","x":840,"y":889,"wires":[]},{"id":"105ac2cc.7b3cfd","type":"ui_gauge","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","group":"2b7ac01b.fc984","order":4,"width":0,"height":0,"gtype":"gage","title":"Pressure","label":"hPa","format":"{{value}}","min":0,"max":"1200","colors":["#b366ff","#8000ff","#440088"],"seg1":"","seg2":"","x":840,"y":949,"wires":[]},{"id":"d0089cc7.d25ac","type":"function","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"JSON or URL Encoded","func":"var msg0 = { payload: msg.payload.api_key };\nvar msg1 = { payload: msg.payload.sensor };\nvar msg2 = { payload: msg.payload.value1 };\nvar msg3 = { payload: msg.payload.value2 };\nvar msg4 = { payload: msg.payload.value3 };\n\nreturn [msg0, msg1, msg2, msg3, msg4];","outputs":5,"noerr":0,"x":610,"y":809,"wires":[["c7410fa2.1c2fa"],["75a22f74.f1aba"],["1c8f9093.8bc2bf"],["a5bd2706.54e108"],["105ac2cc.7b3cfd"]]},{"id":"5d9ab0d2.66b92","type":"http in","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","url":"update-sensor","method":"post","upload":false,"swaggerDoc":"","x":200,"y":740,"wires":[["599740b7.efde9","c7410fa2.1c2fa","1618a829.76f638"]]},{"id":"7f5cf345.63f56c","type":"http response","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","statusCode":"200","headers":{},"x":540,"y":420,"wires":[]},{"id":"6530621.95b429c","type":"http in","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","url":"/get-sensor","method":"get","upload":false,"swaggerDoc":"","x":180,"y":600,"wires":[["9471d1a0.68588"]]},{"id":"5ddc9f47.4b555","type":"http response","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","statusCode":"200","headers":{},"x":540,"y":560,"wires":[]},{"id":"9471d1a0.68588","type":"function","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","func":"msg.payload = {\"value1\":24.25, \"value2\":49.54, \"value3\":1005.14};\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":350,"y":600,"wires":[["5ddc9f47.4b555","13aea59.7430e5a"]]},{"id":"13aea59.7430e5a","type":"debug","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"false","x":550,"y":628,"wires":[]},{"id":"e71c7a7d.e7c598","type":"debug","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"false","x":550,"y":500,"wires":[]},{"id":"c7807102.3f433","type":"http in","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","url":"/update-sensor","method":"get","upload":false,"swaggerDoc":"","x":190,"y":460,"wires":[["60410cde.562a34"]]},{"id":"60410cde.562a34","type":"function","z":"b01416d3.f69f38","name":"","func":"msg.payload = msg.payload.temperature;\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"x":390,"y":460,"wires":[["e71c7a7d.e7c598","7f5cf345.63f56c"]]},{"id":"2b7ac01b.fc984","type":"ui_group","z":"","name":"SENSORS","tab":"99ab8dc5.f435c","disp":true,"width":"6","collapse":false},{"id":"99ab8dc5.f435c","type":"ui_tab","z":"","name":"HTTP","icon":"dashboard","order":1,"disabled":false,"hidden":false}]

View raw code

Other Web Services or APIs

In this guide, the ESP32 performs HTTP requests to Node-RED, but you can use these examples with other services like ThingSpeak, IFTTT.com (WebHooks service), OpenWeatherMap.org, PHP server, etc… All examples presented in this guide will also work with other APIs.

In summary, to make this guide compatible with any service, you need to search for the service API documentation. Then, you need the server name (URL or IP address), and parameters to send in the request (URL path or request body). Finally, modify our examples to integrate with any API you want to use.

1. ESP32 HTTP GET: Value or Query in URL

In the first example, the ESP32 will make an HTTP GET request to update a reading in a service. This type of request could also be used to filter a value, request a value, or return a JSON object.

HTTP GET ESP32 Get Sensor Value Plain Text Status 200 OK

Code ESP32 HTTP GET with Arduino IDE

After installing the necessary board add-ons and libraries, copy the following code to your Arduino IDE, but don’t upload it yet. You need to make some changes to make it work for you.

/*
  Rui Santos
  Complete project details at Complete project details at https://RandomNerdTutorials.com/esp32-http-get-post-arduino/

  Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
  of this software and associated documentation files.

  The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
  copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*/

#include <WiFi.h>
#include <HTTPClient.h>

const char* ssid = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD";

//Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
String serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/update-sensor";

// the following variables are unsigned longs because the time, measured in
// milliseconds, will quickly become a bigger number than can be stored in an int.
unsigned long lastTime = 0;
// Timer set to 10 minutes (600000)
//unsigned long timerDelay = 600000;
// Set timer to 5 seconds (5000)
unsigned long timerDelay = 5000;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200); 

  WiFi.begin(ssid, password);
  Serial.println("Connecting");
  while(WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) {
    delay(500);
    Serial.print(".");
  }
  Serial.println("");
  Serial.print("Connected to WiFi network with IP Address: ");
  Serial.println(WiFi.localIP());
 
  Serial.println("Timer set to 5 seconds (timerDelay variable), it will take 5 seconds before publishing the first reading.");
}

void loop() {
  //Send an HTTP POST request every 10 minutes
  if ((millis() - lastTime) > timerDelay) {
    //Check WiFi connection status
    if(WiFi.status()== WL_CONNECTED){
      HTTPClient http;

      String serverPath = serverName + "?temperature=24.37";
      
      // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
      http.begin(serverPath.c_str());
      
      // If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
      //http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");
      
      // Send HTTP GET request
      int httpResponseCode = http.GET();
      
      if (httpResponseCode>0) {
        Serial.print("HTTP Response code: ");
        Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
        String payload = http.getString();
        Serial.println(payload);
      }
      else {
        Serial.print("Error code: ");
        Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
      }
      // Free resources
      http.end();
    }
    else {
      Serial.println("WiFi Disconnected");
    }
    lastTime = millis();
  }
}

View raw code

Setting your network credentials

Modify the next lines with your network credentials: SSID and password. The code is well commented on where you should make the changes.

// Replace with your network credentials
const char* ssid     = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD";

Setting your serverName

You also need to type your domain name or Node-RED IP address, so the ESP publishes the readings to your own server.

String serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/update-sensor";

Now, upload the code to your board and it should work straight away.

Read the next section, if you want to learn how to make the HTTP GET request.

HTTP GET Request

In the loop() is where you actually make the HTTP GET request every 5 seconds with sample data:

String serverPath = serverName + "?temperature=24.37";

// Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
http.begin(serverPath.c_str());

// If your need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
//http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

// Send HTTP GET request
int httpResponseCode = http.GET();

Note: if Node-RED requires authentication, uncomment the following line and insert the Node-RED username and password.

// If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
//http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

The ESP32 makes a new request in the following URL to update the sensor field with a new temperature.

http://192.168.1.106:1880/update-sensor?temperature=24.37

Then, the following lines of code save the HTTP response from the server.

if (httpResponseCode>0) {
  Serial.print("HTTP Response code: ");
  Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
  String payload = http.getString();
  Serial.println(payload);
}
else {
  Serial.print("Error code: ");
  Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
}

Demonstration

With your board running the new sketch, open the Node-RED debug window. You’ll see that the sample values are being printed successfully (24.37).

2. ESP32 HTTP GET: JSON Data Object or Plain Text

This next example shows how to make an HTTP GET request to get a JSON object and decode it with the ESP32. Many APIs return data in JSON format.

HTTP GET ESP32 Get Sensor JSON Data

Copy the next sketch to your Arduino IDE (type your SSID and password):

/*
  Rui Santos
  Complete project details at Complete project details at https://RandomNerdTutorials.com/esp32-http-get-post-arduino/

  Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
  of this software and associated documentation files.

  The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
  copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*/

#include <WiFi.h>
#include <HTTPClient.h>
#include <Arduino_JSON.h>

const char* ssid = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD";

//Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
const char* serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/get-sensor";

// the following variables are unsigned longs because the time, measured in
// milliseconds, will quickly become a bigger number than can be stored in an int.
unsigned long lastTime = 0;
// Timer set to 10 minutes (600000)
//unsigned long timerDelay = 600000;
// Set timer to 5 seconds (5000)
unsigned long timerDelay = 5000;

String sensorReadings;
float sensorReadingsArr[3];

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);

  WiFi.begin(ssid, password);
  Serial.println("Connecting");
  while(WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) {
    delay(500);
    Serial.print(".");
  }
  Serial.println("");
  Serial.print("Connected to WiFi network with IP Address: ");
  Serial.println(WiFi.localIP());
 
  Serial.println("Timer set to 5 seconds (timerDelay variable), it will take 5 seconds before publishing the first reading.");
}

void loop() {
  //Send an HTTP POST request every 10 minutes
  if ((millis() - lastTime) > timerDelay) {
    //Check WiFi connection status
    if(WiFi.status()== WL_CONNECTED){
              
      sensorReadings = httpGETRequest(serverName);
      Serial.println(sensorReadings);
      JSONVar myObject = JSON.parse(sensorReadings);
  
      // JSON.typeof(jsonVar) can be used to get the type of the var
      if (JSON.typeof(myObject) == "undefined") {
        Serial.println("Parsing input failed!");
        return;
      }
    
      Serial.print("JSON object = ");
      Serial.println(myObject);
    
      // myObject.keys() can be used to get an array of all the keys in the object
      JSONVar keys = myObject.keys();
    
      for (int i = 0; i < keys.length(); i++) {
        JSONVar value = myObject[keys[i]];
        Serial.print(keys[i]);
        Serial.print(" = ");
        Serial.println(value);
        sensorReadingsArr[i] = double(value);
      }
      Serial.print("1 = ");
      Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[0]);
      Serial.print("2 = ");
      Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[1]);
      Serial.print("3 = ");
      Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[2]);
    }
    else {
      Serial.println("WiFi Disconnected");
    }
    lastTime = millis();
  }
}

String httpGETRequest(const char* serverName) {
  WiFiClient client;
  HTTPClient http;
    
  // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
  http.begin(client, serverName);
  
  // If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
  //http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");
  
  // Send HTTP POST request
  int httpResponseCode = http.GET();
  
  String payload = "{}"; 
  
  if (httpResponseCode>0) {
    Serial.print("HTTP Response code: ");
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
    payload = http.getString();
  }
  else {
    Serial.print("Error code: ");
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
  }
  // Free resources
  http.end();

  return payload;
}

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Setting your serverName

Enter your domain name or Node-RED IP address, so the ESP requests the sensor readings that will be retrieved in a JSON object.

String serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/get-sensor";

Now, upload the code to your board.

HTTP GET Request (JSON Object)

In the loop(), call the httpGETRequest() function to make the HTTP GET request:

sensorReadings = httpGETRequest(serverName);

The httpGETRequest() function makes a request to Node-RED address http://192.168.1.106:1880/get-sensor and it retrieves a string with a JSON object.

String httpGETRequest(const char* serverName) {
  HTTPClient http;

  // Your IP address with path or Domain name with URL path 
  http.begin(serverName);

  // If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
  //http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");


  // Send HTTP POST request
  int httpResponseCode = http.GET();

  String payload = "{}"; 

  if (httpResponseCode>0) {
    Serial.print("HTTP Response code: ");
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
    payload = http.getString();
  }
  else {
    Serial.print("Error code: ");
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
  }
  // Free resources
  http.end();

  return payload;
}

Note: if Node-RED requires authentication, uncomment the following line and insert the Node-RED username and password.

// If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
//http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

Decoding JSON Object

To get access to the values, decode the JSON object and store all values in the sensorReadingsArr array.

JSONVar myObject = JSON.parse(sensorReadings);

// JSON.typeof(jsonVar) can be used to get the type of the var
if (JSON.typeof(myObject) == "undefined") {
  Serial.println("Parsing input failed!");
  return;
}

Serial.print("JSON object = ");
Serial.println(myObject);

// myObject.keys() can be used to get an array of all the keys in the object
JSONVar keys = myObject.keys();

for (int i = 0; i < keys.length(); i++) {
  JSONVar value = myObject[keys[i]];
  Serial.print(keys[i]);
  Serial.print(" = ");
  Serial.println(value);
  sensorReadingsArr[i] = double(value);
}
Serial.print("1 = ");
Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[0]);
Serial.print("2 = ");
Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[1]);
Serial.print("3 = ");
Serial.println(sensorReadingsArr[2]);

HTTP GET Demonstration

After uploading the code, open the Arduino IDE and you’ll see that it’s receiving the following JSON data:

{"value1":24.25,"value2":49.54,"value3":1005.14}

Then, you print the decoded JSON object in the Arduino IDE Serial Monitor.

For debugging purposes, the requested information is also printed in the Node-RED debug window.

3. ESP32 HTTP POST: URL Encoded, JSON Data Object, Plain Text

Finally, you’ll learn how to make an HTTP POST request with an ESP32.

With this example, your ESP32 can make HTTP POST requests using three different types of body requests: URL encoded, JSON object or plain text. These are the most common methods and should integrate with most APIs or web services.

HTTP POST ESP32 URL Encoded JSON Object Data Plain Text

Copy the next sketch to your Arduino IDE (type your SSID and password):

/*
  Rui Santos
  Complete project details at Complete project details at https://RandomNerdTutorials.com/esp32-http-get-post-arduino/

  Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
  of this software and associated documentation files.

  The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
  copies or substantial portions of the Software.
*/

#include <WiFi.h>
#include <HTTPClient.h>

const char* ssid = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_SSID";
const char* password = "REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_PASSWORD";

//Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
const char* serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/update-sensor";

// the following variables are unsigned longs because the time, measured in
// milliseconds, will quickly become a bigger number than can be stored in an int.
unsigned long lastTime = 0;
// Timer set to 10 minutes (600000)
//unsigned long timerDelay = 600000;
// Set timer to 5 seconds (5000)
unsigned long timerDelay = 5000;

void setup() {
  Serial.begin(115200);

  WiFi.begin(ssid, password);
  Serial.println("Connecting");
  while(WiFi.status() != WL_CONNECTED) {
    delay(500);
    Serial.print(".");
  }
  Serial.println("");
  Serial.print("Connected to WiFi network with IP Address: ");
  Serial.println(WiFi.localIP());
 
  Serial.println("Timer set to 5 seconds (timerDelay variable), it will take 5 seconds before publishing the first reading.");
}

void loop() {
  //Send an HTTP POST request every 10 minutes
  if ((millis() - lastTime) > timerDelay) {
    //Check WiFi connection status
    if(WiFi.status()== WL_CONNECTED){
      WiFiClient client;
      HTTPClient http;
    
      // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
      http.begin(client, serverName);
      
      // If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
      //http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");
      
      // Specify content-type header
      http.addHeader("Content-Type", "application/x-www-form-urlencoded");
      // Data to send with HTTP POST
      String httpRequestData = "api_key=tPmAT5Ab3j7F9&sensor=BME280&value1=24.25&value2=49.54&value3=1005.14";           
      // Send HTTP POST request
      int httpResponseCode = http.POST(httpRequestData);
      
      // If you need an HTTP request with a content type: application/json, use the following:
      //http.addHeader("Content-Type", "application/json");
      //int httpResponseCode = http.POST("{\"api_key\":\"tPmAT5Ab3j7F9\",\"sensor\":\"BME280\",\"value1\":\"24.25\",\"value2\":\"49.54\",\"value3\":\"1005.14\"}");

      // If you need an HTTP request with a content type: text/plain
      //http.addHeader("Content-Type", "text/plain");
      //int httpResponseCode = http.POST("Hello, World!");
     
      Serial.print("HTTP Response code: ");
      Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
        
      // Free resources
      http.end();
    }
    else {
      Serial.println("WiFi Disconnected");
    }
    lastTime = millis();
  }
}

View raw code

Setting your serverName

Enter your domain name or Node-RED IP address, so the ESP posts sample sensor readings.

String serverName = "http://192.168.1.106:1880/update-sensor";

Now, upload the code to your board.

HTTP POST URL Encoded

To make an HTTP POST request of type URL encoded, like this

POST /update-sensor HTTP/1.1
Host: 192.168.1.106:1880
api_key=tPmAT5Ab3j7F9&sensor=BME280&value1=24.25&value2=49.54&value3=1005.14
Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded

You need to run the following in your Arduino code:

// Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
http.begin(serverName);

// If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
//http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

// Specify content-type header
http.addHeader("Content-Type", "application/x-www-form-urlencoded");

// Data to send with HTTP POST
String httpRequestData = "api_key=tPmAT5Ab3j7F9&sensor=BME280&value1=24.25&value2=49.54&value3=1005.14";

// Send HTTP POST request
int httpResponseCode = http.POST(httpRequestData);

Note: if Node-RED requires authentication, uncomment the following line and insert the Node-RED username and password.

// If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
//http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

HTTP POST JSON Object

Or if you prefer to make an HTTP POST request with a JSON object:

POST /update-sensor HTTP/1.1
Host: example.com
{api_key: "tPmAT5Ab3j7F9", sensor_name: "BME280", temperature: 24.25; humidity: 49.54; pressure: 1005.14}
Content-Type: application/json

Use the next snippet:

http.addHeader("Content-Type", "application/json");

int httpResponseCode = http.POST("{\"api_key\":\"tPmAT5Ab3j7F9\",\"sensor\":\"BME280\",\"value1\":\"24.25\",\"value2\":\"49.54\",\"value3\":\"1005.14\"}");

HTTP Plain Text

If you want to send plain text or a value, use the following:

http.addHeader("Content-Type", "text/plain");

int httpResponseCode = http.POST("Hello, World!");

Note: the Node-RED flow we’re using (web service) is not setup to receive plain text, but if the API that you plan to integrate only accepts plain text or a value, you can use the previous snippet.

HTTP POST Demonstration

In the Node-RED debug window, you can view that your ESP is making an HTTP POST request every 5 seconds.

And in this example, those values are also sent to 3 Gauges and are displayed in Node-RED Dashboard:

http://raspberry-pi-ip-address:1880/ui

Wrapping Up

In this tutorial you’ve learned how to integrate your ESP32 with online services using HTTP GET and HTTP POST requests.

HTTP GET and HTTP POST are commonly used in most web services and APIs. These can be useful in your projects to: publish your sensor readings to a web service like IFTTT, ThingSpeak; to an ESP32 or Raspberry Pi web server or to your own server; to request data from the internet or from your database, and much more.

If you’re using an ESP8266 board, read: Guide for ESP8266 NodeMCU HTTP GET and HTTP Post Requests.

You might also like reading:

I hope you liked this project. If you have any questions, post a comment below and we’ll try to get back to you.

If you like ESP32, you might consider enrolling in our course “Learn ESP32 with Arduino IDE“. You can also access our free ESP32 resources here.

Thank you for reading.



Learn how to build a home automation system and we’ll cover the following main subjects: Node-RED, Node-RED Dashboard, Raspberry Pi, ESP32, ESP8266, MQTT, and InfluxDB database DOWNLOAD »
Learn how to build a home automation system and we’ll cover the following main subjects: Node-RED, Node-RED Dashboard, Raspberry Pi, ESP32, ESP8266, MQTT, and InfluxDB database DOWNLOAD »

Recommended Resources

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88 thoughts on “ESP32 HTTP GET and HTTP POST with Arduino IDE (JSON, URL Encoded, Text)”

  1. Hey guys,

    It’s a very good thing that you’re finally covering that part. The other day I was wondering why you didn’t put more emphasis on the specifics of communications that use the HTTP[S] protocol.

    In particular, the possibility of transporting structured data in JSON format. And I was going to talk about this in one of my next tutorials. But here it is, it’s done.

    And you could also take the opportunity to talk about the excellent Postman tool that greatly facilitates the development and introspection of HTTP APIs…

    https://www.postman.com/

    See you soon,
    Steph

    Reply
    • Hi Miguel.
      There are also other HTTP methods: like HTTP PUT, HTTP DELETE, HTTP PATCH
      But the ones we talked about in this tutorial are the most relevant for the ESP32.
      Thank you for your comment.

      Reply
  2. Hi, some bugs on BLOG

    JSON format, need quotes and node-red JSON name fields that dont match!

    Reply
    • Hello Miguel,
      The guide is correct, for that Node-RED the HTTP POST request is the following (api_key, sensor, value1, value2, value3): https://github.com/RuiSantosdotme/Random-Nerd-Tutorials/blob/master/Projects/ESP32/HTTP/ESP32_HTTP_POST.ino

      // Specify content-type header
      http.addHeader(“Content-Type”, “application/x-www-form-urlencoded”);
      // Data to send with HTTP POST
      String httpRequestData = “api_key=tPmAT5Ab3j7F9&sensor=BME280&value1=24.25&value2=49.54&value3=1005.14”;
      // Send HTTP POST request
      int httpResponseCode = http.POST(httpRequestData);

      Or in JSON

      // If you need an HTTP request with a content type: application/json, use the following:
      http.addHeader(“Content-Type”, “application/json”);
      int httpResponseCode = http.POST(“{\”api_key\”:\”tPmAT5Ab3j7F9\”,\”sensor\”:\”BME280\”,\”value1\”:\”24.25\”,\”value2\”:\”49.54\”,\”value3\”:\”1005.14\”}”);

      So, the Node-RED flow needs to be:

      var msg0 = { payload: msg.payload.api_key };
      var msg1 = { payload: msg.payload.sensor };
      var msg2 = { payload: msg.payload.value1 };
      var msg3 = { payload: msg.payload.value2 };
      var msg4 = { payload: msg.payload.value3 };

      return [msg0, msg1, msg2, msg3, msg4];

      Reply
      • Thanks For this excellent tutorial.

        How to pass variable in JSON format .

        http.POST(“{\”api_key\”:\”tPmAT5Ab3j7F9\”,\”sensor\”:\”BME280\”,\”value1\”:variable,\”value2\”:variable,\”value3\”:variable}”);

        Reply
  3. Does anyone know how I can solve this problem?
    ‘JSONVar’ was not declared in this scope
    JSONVar myObject = JSON.parse(sensorReadings);

    Reply
  4. hi thank you for making this tutorial, its very helpful.

    but i was wondering would i be able to get a response from web server without raspberry pi, can i replace that with Arduino?

    Reply
  5. also, instead of getting a response from NODE_RED, can i use a web server that i built following this tutorial?? https://randomnerdtutorials.com/esp32-dht11-dht22-temperature-humidity-web-server-arduino-ide/

    i tried this, but failed, in my arduino serial monotor, it shows the folloeing msg
    Error code: -1
    13:41:28.031 -> {}
    13:41:28.031 -> JSON object = {}
    13:41:28.031 -> 1 = 0.00
    13:41:28.031 -> 2 = 0.00
    13:41:28.031 -> 3 = 0.00
    13:41:33.036 -> Error code: -1
    13:41:33.036 -> {}
    13:41:33.036 -> JSON object = {}
    13:41:33.036 -> 1 = 0.00
    13:41:33.036 -> 2 = 0.00
    13:41:33.036 -> 3 = 0.00

    Reply
    • Hi.
      Yes. These are just examples that show how to make a request to the Raspberry Pi.
      You can make requests to any other resources or paths.
      Regards,
      Sara

      Reply
  6. This tutorial works great for a POST and GET, but DELETE is not mentioned. But it is also not supported by the HTTPClient. When I replace the http.GET() with http.DELETE() it gives an error:

    error: ‘class HTTPClient’ has no member named ‘DELETE’

    I searched the internet, but all I got was how to delete files and stuff, while I am trying to send a DELETE request. Any idea how to fix this?

    Reply
  7. Hi, congrats for the great tutorial.

    How about if I need to post an image stored on the local SD card to the web?
    Or an image just taken with ESP32-CAM?
    What kind of post should I use?

    Thanks in advance
    Paulo

    Reply
  8. Hi,

    Is there an equivalent tutorial for microPython? Specifically, how do I send POST requests to ThingSpeak. (I know how to do this with Raspberry Pi and Python.)

    Thanks

    Reply
  9. Hi! Great tutorial! Do you have anything similar for Ethernet?
    I’ve tried using the same HTTPClient library to reach an https host over Ethernet, but after a successful client.begin() the ESP crashes, most likely due to the fact that the HTTPClient library is calling functions from the WiFiClientSecure library, which apparently as the name says is only good for Wi-FI 🙂

    Thanks!

    Reply
  10. Thank you for this great tutorial.

    What if the json code from the server is something like:

    {
    “code”:”A10000″,
    “data”:{
    “ask”:”100438.41″,
    “bid”:”100087.96″,
    “high24h”:”101971.13″,
    “lastPrice”:”100500.08″,
    “timestamp”:1606017474423
    },
    “message”:”Success”
    }

    How to deserialize the internal data segment and read the field lastPrice, for example?

    Thanks!

    Reply
  11. Thank you for this tutorial. But it does not show how a JSON object can be POSTed. Instead, it explains how to send a string containing JSON syntax. You should have mentioned the use of the PrintTo method from JSON objects, that is needed to POST a JSON object without having to encode manually the data

    Reply
  12. hai, i have an error with the header library, is that correct? or it should be
    #include <ESP8266WiFi.h>
    #include <ESP8266HTTPClient.h>
    in case I missing some understood?

    Reply
  13. Hello!

    First of all, thank you for the great tutorials!
    I would like to ask a question about the connection between a smartphone and ESP32.
    Suppose that I have only the hotspot feature of my smartphone on (no wifi, no mobile data).
    Is there a way to establish a connection between them, so the ESP32 can send numbers (this could be a temperature value or anything else) to the smartphone?
    The general idea is to have an offline webpage in my smartphone, so i can see the values that the ESP32 is sending, for example to auto refresh every 1 minute.

    Regards.

    Reply
  14. Hi, get the error “HTTPClient.h no such file or directory”. I’m missing the correct library I guess? I searched for it but I cant find it anywhere. Can you help me out?

    Thank you for the great tutorials!

    Reply
  15. hi i am trying the http post part but i am unable to get the esp32 to connect to the node-red server and i am unsure why

    Reply
    • Hi.
      That means something is wrong with your request.
      “The HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) 400 Bad Request response status code indicates that the server cannot or will not process the request due to something that is perceived to be a client error”
      Regards,
      Sara

      Reply
  16. Hi Rui !, I need to read a value in Thinkspeak “https://api.thingspeak.com/channels/1450703/fields/1.json?results=2” can you help me with this, I tried the code you use and it gives me 400 the status of the petition, already very grateful.

    Reply
  17. Hello,

    Could we make sure to send a file located on an SD card?

    because I have a little trouble finding a solution to my problem …

    Thank you in advance for your answer

    Reply
  18. Hi,
    I have problem with httpclient library, im working with platformio and I can’t find exact lib for this enviroment, and I’m wondering if there is no lib or this HTTPClient.h is part of bigger library?

    Reply
  19. Hello,
    I am using HTTP request with a content type: application/json
    int httpResponseCode = http.POST(“{\”api_key\”:\”tPmAT5Ab3j7F9\”,\”sensor\”:\”BME280\”,\”value1\”:\”24.25\”,\”value2\”:\”49.54\”,\”value3\”:\”1005.14\”}”);

    I would like to know how to replace values with variables, for example assign value1 to a variable?

    Thank you

    Reply
  20. Hi, I am trying to submit a web picture to Google Vision using the provided principle to post a json request but something is not working as I always get httpResponseCode = -5 in return.
    Making the same request with the same image from nodered or from the try yourself on the Google Vision page
    https://cloud.google.com/vision/docs/ocr?apix_params=%7B%22resource%22%3A%7B%22requests%22%3A%5B%7B%22features%22%3A%5B%7B%22type%22%3A%22FACE_DETECTION%22%7D%5D%2C%22image%22%3A%7B%22source%22%3A%7B%22imageUri%22%3A%22http%3A%2F%2Fwww.newdesignfile.com%2Fpostpic%2F2010%2F05%2Ffree-stock-photos-people_102217.jpg%22%7D%7D%7D%5D%7D%7D#try_it

    works as well.
    Any sugestion of what may be wrong?
    Thanks

    Reply
  21. Can you update this guide, or respond to this comment, to show how to send a plain text POST request using the AsyncTCP and ESPAsyncWebServer libraries? I purchased the “Build_Web_Servers_ESP32_ESP8266_V1” and it references this guide, but the libraries are different here, and so I need some help.

    Reply
  22. Really excellent.
    But on part is missing completely: The server side in C#, .NET 5.0.
    Regarding swagger and Postman works my “ASP.NET Core Web Api” works fine.
    But I am not able to call the C# code from a ESP32 via GET nor POST (“plain text” or “JSON” formatted).

    Any ideas, hints? (content-type is well set, and as shown by swagger.

    Reply
  23. Hi ,thanks for the awesome tutorial. I want to publish the json data with mqtt, can you give me any information about that, I have no idea to do by myself.

    Reply
    • And I have the problem with this tutorial. Esp32 always receives “the error code:-1”, I think it caused by my url path. I use nodered and its ip is 127.0.0.1, Does it matter?

      Reply
  24. Good morning,
    Following your example I have:

    #include <WiFi.h>
    #include <HTTPClient.h>
    #include <Arduino_JSON.h>

    HTTPClient http;
    Serial.println(“[HTTP] begin…\n”);
    http.begin(“https://data.tankutility.com/api/getToken”);
    http.setAuthorization(“ZGd3ZXRlQGdtYWlsLmNvbTpQb2lrYTRUYW5r”);
    Serial.println(“[HTTP] GET…\n”);

    The above code works from within Arduino IDE but if I attempt the same in PlatformIO, using the same http library, the methods are different. There is no “http.begin”, only http.beginrequest which doesn’t take any parameters. I checked the versions of HTTPClient.h in both cases and they appear to be the same. Can you give me any help?
    Thank you

    Reply
    • Sorry, again but I figured it out. The PlatformIO http client I should use is an ESP32 built-in library. I found this statement on the internet: “…you globally installed the erronous amcewen/HttpClient in PlatformIO. This will prevent the Arduino-ESP32’s internal HTTPClient.h library to be picked up.”
      This now works in PlatformIO as well.

      Thank you, again

      Reply
  25. Mi servidor host tiene una dirección https y respuesta servidor “Connected to WiFi network with IP Address: 192.168.0.16
    14:19:46.313 -> httpsRequestData: api_key=tPmAT5Ab3j7F9&sensor=BMP180&location=Office&value1=20.40&value2=95873
    14:19:46.408 -> HTTP Response code: 400

    Reply
  26. The get request responds with httpResponseCode:
    int httpResponseCode = http.GET();

    What are the meaning of the negative codes?
    I’m seeing intermittenty a -11 response. What does that mean?

    Reply
    • Did you ever find an answer to this? I’m too am getting -11 responses, but server seems to think everything is okay.

      Have you found a lookup table for the httpResponseCode values?

      Reply
      • Hello
        Have you find an answer to this? I’m also getting this -11 response although the server is okay?
        And it occurs when I send large data file, on small data it works fine. why is it so?

        Reply
  27. Hi Sara,
    This is very interesting, but in the future can you go more deeply in explaing the syntax and the structure of Json objects with the connection to Firebase?
    I.e. we find the results in the screen line by line:
    Temp: 27,6
    Humidy: 46.
    Can we obtain more data in the same line:
    Temp: 27,6 Humidity 46.
    Or more a table too?

    Thanks Renzo

    Reply
  28. Hi Sara and Rui,
    Very very good post : your are definitively the best !
    But what is the simplest way for an ESP32 (not a Raspberry PI !), connected to an unique sensor, to respond in a JSON format, to an HTTP GET/POST request for the sensor value ?
    I understood how to perform it using a web page with the sensor value, but is there a simpler solution as an API web service response ?
    Thanks.
    NB : my scope is to realize, with an ESP32, a photovoltaic router working with the solar POTENTIAL production, estimated using a lux sensor (VEML7700 from Adafruit) connected to a 2nd ESP32. The 1rst ESP32 also uses data from an inverter API (Fronius GEN24), formatted in JSON as described in https://github.com/jlemaire06/Superviseur-solaire, a small monitoring project realized to test the API access, in view of the router. The doc is in French but I can give you any explanations if you are interested.

    Reply
  29. Oh sorry but I found the response to my previous question in another post, https://randomnerdtutorials.com/esp32-client-server-wi-fi/, which uses an AsyncWebServer objects with callbacks to client http GET requests.
    Your example works well when both client and server ESP32 are stations in a local network, with obvious changes when defining the Wifi connections.
    And, this communication is compatible with other GETs to API, in the client side.
    Congratulations !

    Reply
  30. Great article. I used the method presented to POST a string to a homeassistant/NodeRed installation and works great. One issue I ran into is that the URL generated by HTTP-IN node in NodeRed is now relative to /endpoint which slightly changes the URL’s listed. I also get consistently a -11 response out of http.POST but the data is received fine and can be used in NodeRed.

    Reply
    • Did you ever find an answer to this? I’m too am getting -11 responses, but server seems to think everything is okay.

      Have you found a lookup table for the httpResponseCode values?

      Reply
      • Here is what I have been using for requests and responses:
        `
        void sendRequest(String url){
        HTTPClient http;
        http.begin(url);
        int httpResponseCode = http.GET();

        Serial.print("HTTP Response: ");
        Serial.println(httpResponseCode);

        if (httpResponseCode>0) {
        handlePayload(http.getString());
        }
        http.end();
        }

        `

        Parsing JSON (with an array at the root):
        `
        void handlePayload(String payload){
        Serial.println(payload);
        deserializeJson(jsonDoc, payload);

        String flow = jsonDoc[0]["actionName"];
        Serial.println(flow);

        if(flow == "MyFlowName" && jsonDoc[0]["outputValues"]["mode"] == "get"){
        validatePackage();
        }
        }

        `

        Reply
  31. Is there a way to add a Chart to this project? I want to aquire audio through my ESP32 and send it to NODE-RED. Is this communication protocol fast enough?

    Reply
  32. What might be the best way to receive an action from IFTTT and cause a specific action on a ESP8266 module ?
    I have done this on a Particle Photon module and would like to learn how to migrate it to an ESP8266 12-E NodeMCU Kit module.
    Here is the project: Using particle.io IDE, IFTTT and Webhooks; when a specific Twitter User has posted a Tweet, Send a message to call a function (Flashing LED) on the Photon module. This is currently working.

    Please note, I am new to the webhooks and other methods of sending these messages. I required a detailed tutorial to do this which guided me through it.
    I am looking for a similar project that may be doing this so I can learn how to do this for the NodeMCU.

    Sorry if I missed any information above that solves this, like I said, new to all the http comms services and how they operate.
    Happy to share the project in the future if I can get it solved.
    Appreciate any guidance, thank you.

    Reply
  33. Hallo,
    I found your following code and tested it.
    1. ESP32 HTTP GET: Value or Query in URL

    The program works fine so far, in Serial.Monitor the data stored in the file “temperaturen.txt” is displayed, but no data is written to the file.
    How can I do this?

    I am a complete layman in programming the ESP32.

    kind regards
    Manfred Prefi

    Reply
    • Hi.
      I’m sorry but I didn’t understand your question.
      Do you want to learn to write data to a file?
      Regards,
      Sara

      Reply
    • // Download file from targeted URL and store the whole file spiffs.
      HTTPClient http;
      String firmwareURL = “https://example.getrequest.com/endpoint”;
      http.begin(firmwareURL);
      int httpCode = http.GET();
      if (httpCode == HTTP_CODE_OK) {
      if (SPIFFS.remove(“/downloaded_firmware.txt”))
      {
      Serial.print(“remove previous file”);
      }

      File firmwareFile = SPIFFS.open("/downloaded_firmware.txt", "w");
      http.writeToStream(&firmwareFile);

      Serial.print("File downloaded success");
      firmwareFile.close();
      delay(500);

      }
      else
      {
      Serial.printf("HTTP error: %sQ\n", http.errorToString(httpCode).c_str());
      }

      Reply
  34. is it possible to run get and post simultaneously for ESP8266? How to set Interval for millis?

    I tried simultaneously with 5s intervals and it felt very slow

    maybe you have a solution on how to do it properly and correctly.

    Reply
  35. Hi Sara,
    All of your tutorials are terrific and I have used many of your examples as the basis of my projects.
    I was trying to POST a webhook to Zapier using some of the code in this tutorial.
    In this part of the tutorial:
    3. ESP32 HTTP POST: URL Encoded, JSON Data Object, Plain Text
    The first example had this to initialize HTPP:
    // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
    http.begin(client, serverName);
    Zapier kept returning Error 400.
    I then saw a little further down in the example:
    HTTP POST URL Encoded
    // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
    http.begin(serverName);

    Tried it and everything works!
    I can’t find any documentation that explains why one form has the reference to the wifi client whereas the other does not. Can you point me to or briefly explain the difference.
    Many thanks.

    Reply
  36. Hi Sara,

    I have started with NTFY, see https://docs.ntfy.sh/, and I have used this article as a base to publish notifications from an ESP32.

    I think NTFY is easy and powerful. It’s free and, if you are concerned about privacy, you can install your own NTFY server. I installed and configured mine in about one hour using a Docker image.

    Surely you can write a very interesting article about this service.

    Reply
  37. Hello!

    I am sending the data to server using the following function, the problem is when the data from the sensors is small, it works fine and send all data to server like for one hour of data.
    But when I increase the data size it does not send the data and doesn’t give any responsecode.
    Can somebody assist?

    void sendDataToServer(const String & payload) {
    // Print the payload for debugging
    Serial.println(“Payload to be sent to server:”);
    Serial.println(payload);
    HTTPClient http;
    http.begin(serverName);
    http.addHeader(“Content-Type”, “application/json”);

    int httpResponseCode = http.POST(payload);

    esp_task_wdt_reset(); // Reset the watchdog timer

    if (httpResponseCode > 0) {
    Serial.print(“HTTP Response code: “);
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);

    String response = http.getString();
    Serial.println(response);

    } else {
    Serial.print(“Error code: “);
    Serial.println(httpResponseCode);
    }

    http.end();
    }

    Reply
  38. Sorry for posting this about a day or two:

    “this code does not work ” … (It works, my bad …)

    // Your Domain name with URL path or IP address with path
    http.begin(serverPath.c_str());

    // If you need Node-RED/server authentication, insert user and password below
    //http.setAuthorization("REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_USERNAME", "REPLACE_WITH_SERVER_PASSWORD");

    // Send HTTP GET request
    int httpResponseCode = http.GET();

    jrb.

    Reply

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