docs(routing): clarify wildcard behavior and restructure route parameters by Akshay4754 · Pull Request #2451 · expressjs/expressjs.com

Akshay4754 · 2026-07-18T21:59:52Z

Summary

This PR improves the discoverability of wildcard parameters in the Express 5 Route parameters documentation.

Instead of duplicating the existing wildcard documentation, it adds a short note that points readers to the existing Wildcards section.

Fixes #1891

netlify · 2026-07-18T21:59:57Z

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ShubhamOulkar · 2026-07-22T06:26:57Z

 });
 ```

+Wildcard parameters (`*`) are also supported in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [Wildcards](#wildcards) section above for details and examples.


Suggested change

Wildcard parameters (`*`) are also supported in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [Wildcards](#wildcards) section above for details and examples.

<Alert type="info">

Wildcard parameters (`*`) are only supports in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [Wildcards](#wildcards) section above or [migration guide](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/migrating-5/#path-route-matching-syntax) for details and examples.

<Alert>

Add abouve note on page: https://expressjs.com/en/5x/api/request/#reqparams

Some extra, but not necessary. Add alert not on 4x doc https://expressjs.com/en/4x/api/request/#reqparams

<Alert type="alert"> Wildcard parameters (`*`) are introduced in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [migration guide to 5x](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/migrating-5/#path-route-matching-syntax) for details. <Alert>

Thanks for the review!

I've addressed the requested changes by:

Wrapping the wildcard parameter note in an Alert component.

Adding the wildcard parameter note to the Express 5 req.params documentation with a link to the migration guide.

Adding the suggested notice to the Express 4 req.params documentation.

Please let me know if there are any further changes or improvements you'd like me to make. Thanks!

I'm not sure if this wording is clear. In 4.x there are wildcard parameters, but with no explicit names. These can still be accessed from req.params (so I'd argue that they are parameters) under integer keys (in most cases there's just one unnamed parameter so - req.params[0]). In 4.x wildcards return strings instead of string[] like in 5.x.

Thanks for pointing that out! That's a good clarification. I'll update the wording to distinguish the Express 4 behavior (req.params[0] returning a string) from the named wildcard parameters introduced in Express 5.

Yes, I think this is best fit.

<Alert type="info"> In Express 4, wildcards (`*`) are unnamed, whereas in Express 5, wildcards must be explicitly named (e.g., `/*splat`). Please check the [migration guide to 5.x](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/migrating-5/#path-route-matching-syntax) before upgrading your routes. </Alert>

Thanks! I've updated the wording accordingly.

Kindly tell if anything else is required. Thanks

krzysdz

5.x docs (API and routing guide) still claim that only Express 5 supports wildcards.

bjohansebas · 2026-07-23T16:57:20Z


+<Alert type="info">
+
+Wildcard parameters (`*`) are only supported in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [Wildcards](#wildcards) section above or the [migration guide](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/migrating-5/#path-route-matching-syntax) for details and examples.


I don't think we need to say "Express 5" anymore. The guides are versioned, so that redundancy isn't necessary

Thanks for the feedback! I've simplified the wording by removing the redundant "Express 5" reference from the versioned guides while keeping the migration guide reference.

bjohansebas

Hmm, I need to take a closer look at this. I feel like we're breaking the reading flow, so I'll briefly block it for now

Co-authored-by: shubham oulkar <oulkarshubhu@gmail.com> Signed-off-by: Akshay Anand <147163632+Akshay4754@users.noreply.github.com>

Akshay4754 · 2026-07-26T10:58:13Z

Hi @bjohansebas , @ShubhamOulkar ,I've addressed the requested feedback in the latest commits, including the reading-flow concerns and the Express 4 migration notes. Whenever you have time, I'd appreciate another look and suggest if any changes needed . Thanks!

…ocumentation

krzysdz · 2026-07-28T16:34:59Z

I was wondering when did the "Wildcards" section referenced in <Alert> appear, because I'm pretty sure it wasn't there when #1891 was opened. Had it been there at that time, the issue most likely would not have been created. To be clear, this doesn't mean that I'm opposed to this PR.

Information about wildcards was introduced to the 5.x routing guide in #2263.

…and examples

…documentation

bjohansebas · 2026-07-28T16:49:29Z

I think reorganizing it the way I did improves the readability of the docs, as well as the format for LLMs. The idea is to focus the guides only on the current versions; for everything else, we already have the migration guides if users run into incompatibilities.

…ality

…ng setting

…entation

… valid parameter names

krzysdz · 2026-07-28T17:20:03Z

 });
 ```

+The examples above behave the same regardless of the [`strict routing` setting](/api/application/#application-settings). As with any other route, that setting only changes whether a trailing slash (such as `/order/`) is treated as a different path.


This is not really clear to me - is it about the trailing slash (such as /order/) in path or the requested URL¹. It's confusing also because on one hand the examples show that with or without strict routing the trailing / (in path) makes a difference and on the other hand the second sentence of this paragraph says that it's what strict routing affects.

Footnotes

I know how this works, but it's not explained well and confusing for anyone who does not already know it. ↩

… and path parameters

bjohansebas · 2026-07-28T17:46:05Z

thanks @Akshay4754

Akshay4754 · 2026-07-28T17:47:47Z

Thanks! I appreciate the review and all the guidance.

ShubhamOulkar · 2026-07-29T02:36:48Z

Great @Akshay4754 @bjohansebas @krzysdz 🫰

Akshay4754 requested a review from a team as a code owner July 18, 2026 21:59

ShubhamOulkar approved these changes Jul 22, 2026

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bjohansebas reviewed Jul 23, 2026

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Akshay4754 requested review from bjohansebas and krzysdz July 24, 2026 21:36

Akshay4754 and others added 6 commits July 25, 2026 03:08

docs: mention wildcard parameters in route parameters guide

95dd622

docs: address review feedback for wildcard parameters

f676181

docs: clarify Express 4 wildcard parameter behavior

e3574e2

docs: update Express 4 wildcard migration note

d20b295

Update src/content/api/4x/api/request/index.mdx

f79c508

Co-authored-by: shubham oulkar <oulkarshubhu@gmail.com> Signed-off-by: Akshay Anand <147163632+Akshay4754@users.noreply.github.com>

docs: remove redundant Express 5 wording and simplified it

fa31c8a

Akshay4754 force-pushed the docs/wildcard-route-parameters branch from 37336e9 to fa31c8a Compare July 24, 2026 21:38

Akshay4754 requested a review from ShubhamOulkar July 27, 2026 19:48

bjohansebas added 2 commits July 28, 2026 11:16

docs: update wildcard parameter documentation for clarity and examples

1e0f9fd

docs: remove redundant alert about wildcard parameters from request d…

f863725

…ocumentation

bjohansebas added 3 commits July 28, 2026 11:36

docs: enhance wildcard parameters section with detailed explanations …

e66caf6

…and examples

docs: clarify route paths and wildcard parameter behavior in routing …

7026eec

…documentation

docs: add example for wildcard route parameters in routing documentation

e61ffd1

bjohansebas changed the title ~~docs: improve discoverability of wildcard parameters~~ docs(routing): clarify wildcard behavior and restructure route parameters Jul 28, 2026

bjohansebas approved these changes Jul 28, 2026

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krzysdz reviewed Jul 28, 2026

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Comment thread src/content/docs/en/5x/guide/routing.mdx Outdated

bjohansebas added 4 commits July 28, 2026 12:02

docs: update wildcard route parameter examples for clarity and option…

f91f1cc

…ality

docs: clarify behavior of route examples with respect to strict routi…

10b8946

…ng setting

docs: clarify behavior of optional segments in route parameters docum…

81c7dd2

…entation

docs: update routing documentation to clarify reserved characters and…

96a8a4d

… valid parameter names

krzysdz reviewed Jul 28, 2026

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bjohansebas added 2 commits July 28, 2026 12:22

docs: enhance wildcard and named parameter descriptions for clarity

e9503e1

docs: clarify the impact of strict routing on route matching behavior

07b11d8

krzysdz approved these changes Jul 28, 2026

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docs: improve clarity in app.route() section regarding modular routes…

9718688

… and path parameters

bjohansebas merged commit bb571d8 into expressjs:main Jul 28, 2026
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Akshay4754 deleted the docs/wildcard-route-parameters branch July 29, 2026 06:26


		<Alert type="info">

		Wildcard parameters (`*`) are only supported in Express 5. Unlike named parameters (`:`), they capture one or more path segments and expose them as an array in `req.params`. See the [Wildcards](#wildcards) section above or the [migration guide](https://expressjs.com/en/guide/migrating-5/#path-route-matching-syntax) for details and examples.

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Akshay4754 commented Jul 18, 2026

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