DELETE request handlers

This page explains how to implement DELETE request handlers in Next.js for removing resources.

Understanding DELETE requests

DELETE requests remove a specified resource from the server. Unlike PATCH or PUT requests, DELETE requests typically don’t require a request body since the resource identifier is included in the URL.

Creating a DELETE handler

To handle DELETE requests in a dynamic route:

1. Create a dynamic route handler (see Dynamic route handlers)
2. Export an async function named DELETE
3. Process the request and remove the resource

app/api/comments/[id]/route.ts

export async function DELETE(
  _request: Request,
  { params }: { params: Promise<{ id: string }> }
) {
  const { id } = await params;
  const index = comments.findIndex((comment) => comment.id === parseInt(id));
  const deletedComment = comments[index];
  comments.splice(index, 1);
  return Response.json(deletedComment);
}

Processing DELETE requests

The handler:

1. Extracts the resource ID from the route parameters
2. Finds the resource to delete
3. Removes the resource from storage
4. Returns the deleted resource (optional)

Good to know

• DELETE requests require a dynamic route to identify the resource
• No request body is needed
• Changes to in-memory data (like arrays) don’t persist after server restart