CRUD

CRUD is an acronym for the four basic operations a program performs on persistent data: create, read, update, and delete. Together they cover the full life cycle of a stored record, from the moment it is added to the moment it is removed.

Each operation has a direct counterpart in the interfaces that manage data, such as the SQL statements of a relational database or the HTTP methods of a RESTful web API:

Each CRUD operation maps to a SQL statement and an HTTP method, Create to INSERT and POST, Read to SELECT and GET, and so on.
How Each CRUD Operation Maps to SQL and HTTP
  • Create: Adds a new record, as with SQL INSERT or HTTP POST.
  • Read: Retrieves records without changing them, as with SELECT or GET.
  • Update: Modifies an existing record, as with UPDATE or PUT and PATCH.
  • Delete: Removes a record, as with DELETE in both SQL and HTTP.

CRUD also works as a checklist for completeness, since a data model that supports all four operations can be fully managed through its interface. The pattern is common enough that many web frameworks generate CRUD scaffolding automatically, and an application built mostly around these operations is often called a CRUD app.

What Are CRUD Operations?

Tutorial

What Are CRUD Operations?

CRUD operations are the cornerstone of application functionality. Whether you access a database or interact with a REST API, you usually want to create, retrieve, update, and delete data. In this tutorial, you'll explore how CRUD operations work in practice.

intermediate api databases web-dev

For additional information on related topics, take a look at the following resources:

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By Martin Breuss • Updated Oct. 29, 2026
Computer Science Glossary Share Feedback