🌐 URL vs URI vs URN

In the world of web technologies, these three terms often come up interchangeably - but they have important differences. Let’s clarify:

🆔 URI - Uniform Resource Identifier

A URI is a generic term that identifies a logical or physical resource on the web. Both URL and URN are types of URI.

💡 URI Syntax:

scheme:[//authority]path[?query][#fragment]

• ✅ A URI may contain both a name and a location.
• ✅ Every URL is a URI, but not every URI is a URL.

🌍 URL - Uniform Resource Locator

A URL is the most common type of URI.

• 📌 It locates a resource on the web.
• 🌐 Used heavily with protocols like http, https, ftp, and even jdbc.
• 🔑 It's the actual address of a resource.

Example: https://example.com/blog/post?ref=chatgpt

🧾 URN - Uniform Resource Name

A URN is another type of URI that names a resource but doesn't tell you where to find it.

• 🧱 Uses the urn: scheme.
• ❌ Cannot be used to locate a resource.
• 🏷️ Composed of a namespace and a namespace-specific string.

Example: urn:isbn:0451450523

🧭 Summary

🔗 Source

ByteByteGo - URL vs URI vs URN

🙏 Acknowledgments

Special thanks to ChatGPT for enhancing this post with suggestions, formatting, and emojis.