How to Pass Parameters into URL for Python Request

Passing parameters into a URL in Python is super useful. Imagine you’re asking a website for information, like searching Google. You type something in the search box, and it appears in the URL. That’s exactly what we’re doing here, but with Python!

Why Pass Parameters?

Sometimes, when making a request to a website, you need to send extra information. For example:

Searching for specific data
Filtering results
Accessing specific pages

This is done using query parameters in the URL.

Basic Example

Let’s use Python’s requests library to send a URL with parameters.

  
import requests  

url = "https://api.example.com/search"  
params = {"q": "python", "page": 2}  

response = requests.get(url, params=params)  
print(response.url)  # See the final URL

This generates a URL like:

https://api.example.com/search?q=python&page=2

Nice and simple!

What’s Happening Here?

We set the base URL.
We create a dictionary with our parameters.
We pass it to requests.get().
Python adds them to the URL automatically!

Handling Special Characters

URLs don’t like special characters like spaces or “&”. Luckily, Python takes care of this.

  
params = {"query": "python requests", "sort": "newest"}

Python converts spaces to %20. The final URL might look like:

https://api.example.com/search?query=python%20requests&sort=newest

Adding Multiple Parameters

Adding more parameters? No problem! Just extend the dictionary.

  
params = {  
    "category": "books",  
    "author": "J.K. Rowling",  
    "sort": "popularity"  
}

Your request URL now has three parameters included.

Using Parameters in POST Requests

For POST requests, parameters go in the body instead of the URL.

  
response = requests.post(url, data=params)

This sends data without cluttering the URL.

Handling API Keys

Some APIs require an API key for authentication. You can pass it as a parameter.

  
params = {  
    "api_key": "your_secret_key",  
    "query": "machine learning"  
}  
response = requests.get(url, params=params)

Make sure to keep your API keys private!

Error Handling

What if something goes wrong? Always check the response.

  
if response.status_code == 200:  
    print("Success!")  
else:  
    print("Error:", response.status_code)

This prevents unnecessary headaches.

Encoding Parameters Manually

Sometimes, you need more control over encoding.

  
import urllib.parse  

query = {"title": "Harry Potter & the Philosopher's Stone"}  
encoded_query = urllib.parse.urlencode(query)  

print(encoded_query)  
# Output: title=Harry+Potter+%26+the+Philosopher%27s+Stone