Controller

Kind: Function

Source: packages/common/decorators/core/controller.decorator.ts

Part of: Common

Decorator that marks a class as a Nest controller that can receive inbound requests and produce responses.

An HTTP Controller responds to inbound HTTP Requests and produces HTTP Responses. It defines a class that provides the context for one or more related route handlers that correspond to HTTP request methods and associated routes for example GET /api/profile, POST /users/resume

A Microservice Controller responds to requests as well as events, running over a variety of transports (read more here). It defines a class that provides a context for one or more message or event handlers.

@Controller() marks a class as a Nest controller. It establishes the class as the context for related HTTP route handlers or microservice message and event handlers.

Signature

ts
function Controller(prefixOrOptions: string | string[] | ControllerOptions): ClassDecorator

Parameters

Returns: ClassDecorator

Diagram

mermaid
graph LR
  Request[Inbound request or event] --> Controller["@Controller() class"]
  Controller --> Handler[Route or message handler]
  Handler --> Response[HTTP response or event result]

Usage

ts
import { Controller, Get, Post, Body } from '@nestjs/common';

@Controller('users')
export class UsersController {
  @Get()
  findAll() {
    return ['Ada', 'Grace'];
  }

  @Post()
  create(@Body() user: { name: string }) {
    return user;
  }
}

AI Coding Instructions

• Apply @Controller() to classes that group related route, message, or event handlers.
• Pass a route prefix such as 'users' when handlers share a common URL path.
• Add method decorators such as @Get() and @Post() for HTTP endpoints within the controller class.
• Keep request handling in controllers and delegate business logic to injected services.
• Match controller routes with the application’s configured global prefix and module registration.