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python requests headers content type

Narkw Brahma

Narkw Brahma

• 1 min read

Python Requests Headers Content Type

When working with HTTP requests in Python, the requests library is a popular choice. It provides an easy-to-use interface for sending HTTP/1.1 requests using Python. One important aspect of sending requests is specifying the content type of the request. This determines how the server should interpret the data sent in the request body, if any.

Content-Type Header

The Content-Type header is used to specify the media type of the request body. This header is required for certain types of requests, such as POST and PUT requests, which have a request body.

The requests library provides a way to set the Content-Type header using the headers parameter when making a request:


import requests

url = 'https://example.com/api'
headers = {'Content-Type': 'application/json'}
data = {'key': 'value'}

response = requests.post(url, headers=headers, json=data)

In this example, the Content-Type header is set to application/json, indicating that the request body is in JSON format.

Multiple Ways to Set Content-Type Header

There are multiple ways to set the Content-Type header in a requests request:

  • Set explicitly: Set the Content-Type header explicitly using the headers parameter when making the request.
  • Infer from data: If sending data in the request body, the Content-Type header can be inferred based on the format of the data. For example, if sending JSON data, the header can be inferred as application/json.
  • Use defaults: The requests library also provides default headers for common media types, such as application/json and application/xml. If the request body is in one of these formats, the appropriate header will be automatically set.

It is generally recommended to set the Content-Type header explicitly to avoid any potential issues with inferring the header from the data.

Conclusion

The Content-Type header is an important aspect of sending HTTP requests with a request body. The requests library provides an easy way to set this header using the headers parameter when making a request. It is recommended to set the header explicitly to avoid any potential issues with inferring the header from the data.

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