What is the role of CoAP in IoT?

Question

I came across the CoAP protocol while reading about IoT communication, but I'm not sure why someone would choose it over more common protocols like HTTP or MQTT. What makes CoAP suitable for IoT applications, and in what kind of scenarios is it the preferred choice?

Tech Geek · Answer

CoAP (Constrained Application Protocol) is designed specifically for resource-constrained IoT devices and networks. It’s preferred over HTTP because it’s lightweight, uses UDP (not TCP), and has lower overhead, making it ideal for low-power devices and lossy networks.

Compared to MQTT, CoAP is better for request/response models and supports multicast and built-in resource discovery. It’s commonly used in constrained environments like smart homes, industrial sensors, or low-power mesh networks.