# Routing

Use this page to choose the right route shape and avoid accidental matches when multiple patterns overlap. The gateway evaluates exact paths first, then parameterized paths, then wildcard paths. Understanding this order prevents subtle routing bugs where a broad wildcard swallows requests intended for a specific endpoint.

**Last reviewed:** 2026-03-06

## When to use this

Use the routing guides when you need to understand how the gateway matches incoming requests to configured paths. Routing is the core behavior of the gateway -- every request passes through the path matcher before reaching an integration, auth check, or static response.

## Key concepts

* The gateway supports three route shapes: exact paths (`/health`), parameterized paths (`/users/:id`), and wildcard paths (`/proxy/{.+}`). Exact matches take highest priority.
* When multiple routes could match a request, the gateway uses a fixed priority order: exact > parameterized > wildcard. This is not configurable.
* The `method` field accepts standard HTTP methods (`GET`, `POST`, etc.) as well as `ANY`, which matches all methods on that path.
* Prefix add/remove rules transform the path before forwarding to the upstream, letting you decouple public API structure from backend path layout.
* Static response routes skip integration entirely and return the `response` field directly, which is useful for health checks and feature flags.

## Repo-grounded example

```json
{
  "servers": [
    { "alias": "upstream", "url": "https://api.example.com/base" }
  ],
  "paths": [
    {
      "method": "GET",
      "path": "/proxy/{.+}",
      "integration": {
        "type": "http_proxy",
        "server": "upstream"
      }
    }
  ]
}
```

This snippet uses a wildcard pattern `{.+}` to forward all subpaths under `/proxy/` to an upstream server. To add an exact or parameterized route that takes precedence, define it as a separate entry with a concrete path.

## Troubleshooting

* If a request hits the wrong route, check whether a wildcard pattern is matching before your intended exact or parameterized route -- exact always wins over wildcard.
* If an OPTIONS request returns unexpected results, verify whether you have an explicit OPTIONS handler for that path or are relying on the default CORS 204 behavior.
* If prefix removal produces a double-slash in the upstream URL, confirm that both the `remove_prefix` and the upstream `url` do not include trailing/leading slashes that conflict.
* Use `wrangler tail` and look at the matched path in the log output to confirm which route config entry the gateway selected.

## Related docs

* [README](/configuration/paths.md)
* [add and remove prefix](/configuration/add-and-remove-prefix.md)
* [gateway troubleshooting matrix](/troubleshooting/wrangler-deploy-guide/gateway-troubleshooting-matrix.md)


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