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| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: Safer Multi-option Inputs with `@oneOf` |
| 3 | +tags: [announcements, spec] |
| 4 | +date: 2025-06-19 |
| 5 | +byline: Benjie Gillam |
| 6 | +--- |
| 7 | + |
| 8 | +We’re excited to announce |
| 9 | +**[OneOf Input Objects](https://github.com/graphql/graphql-spec/pull/825)** has |
| 10 | +landed in the GraphQL specification! This enhancement solves a long-standing |
| 11 | +challenge in API design: how to allow users to provide **exactly one** of |
| 12 | +several possible options as input, in a clean and enforceable way. This feature |
| 13 | +is a small change that packs a big return for developers building modern digital |
| 14 | +products with GraphQL. |
| 15 | + |
| 16 | +## Simplifying entrypoints |
| 17 | + |
| 18 | +Most GraphQL queries start at a single node, and traverse the data graph from |
| 19 | +there. But often, there is more than one way of locating that node; for example |
| 20 | +you might find a user by their ID, email address, or username. Traditionally, |
| 21 | +that meant multiple root-level fields: |
| 22 | + |
| 23 | +```graphql |
| 24 | +type Query { |
| 25 | + user(id: ID!): User |
| 26 | + userByEmail(email: String!): User |
| 27 | + userByUsername(username: String!): User |
| 28 | +} |
| 29 | +``` |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +_(An alternative approach was a less-than-type-safe field presenting all the |
| 32 | +options along with custom runtime validation to enforce the constraints. Either |
| 33 | +way, neither solution was ideal.)_ |
| 34 | + |
| 35 | +With `@oneOf`, you can now consolidate those options into a single, |
| 36 | +user-friendly input which ensures users supply _exactly one_ input field, the |
| 37 | +value of which must not be null. The result: a user-friendly schema with fewer |
| 38 | +root-level fields and without sacrificing type safety: |
| 39 | + |
| 40 | +```graphql |
| 41 | +input UserBy @oneOf { |
| 42 | + id: ID |
| 43 | + email: String |
| 44 | + username: String |
| 45 | +} |
| 46 | + |
| 47 | +type Query { |
| 48 | + user(by: UserBy!): User |
| 49 | +} |
| 50 | +``` |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +## Input polymorphism |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +Of course, `@oneOf`'s use isn't limited to simple scalars — it can also be used |
| 55 | +to choose between multiple complex input types, allowing for polymorphism in |
| 56 | +GraphQL inputs. |
| 57 | + |
| 58 | +Imagine you were building a user-friendly blogging website, and each post is |
| 59 | +made up of elements — paragraphs, image galleries, block quotes, code blocks, |
| 60 | +and the like. Each of these elements come with their own set of (potentially |
| 61 | +overlapping) attributes, and you want to feed a list of them into your mutation. |
| 62 | +With @oneOf you can do so in a type safe manner: |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +```graphql |
| 65 | +type Mutation { |
| 66 | + createPost(elements: [PostElementInput]): Post |
| 67 | +} |
| 68 | +input PostElementInput @oneOf { |
| 69 | + paragraph: ParagraphInput |
| 70 | + blockquote: BlockQuoteInput |
| 71 | + gallery: GalleryInput |
| 72 | +} |
| 73 | +input ParagraphInput { |
| 74 | + text: String! |
| 75 | +} |
| 76 | +input BlockQuoteInput { |
| 77 | + text: String! |
| 78 | + attribution: String |
| 79 | + attributionUrl: String |
| 80 | +} |
| 81 | +input GalleryInput { |
| 82 | + imageUrls: [String!]! |
| 83 | + caption: String |
| 84 | + attribution: String |
| 85 | +} |
| 86 | +``` |
| 87 | + |
| 88 | +## What Makes `@oneOf` The Right Solution? |
| 89 | + |
| 90 | +- **Backward Compatible**: Existing tools, queries and clients still work, |
| 91 | + meaning no major overhauls are required. Existing clients can even use oneOf |
| 92 | + inputs without updating; just be careful to always supply exactly one value! |
| 93 | +- **Minimal Complexity**: This feature introduces only a small change to the |
| 94 | + existing type system, but delivers very significant benefits. |
| 95 | +- **Type-Safe Input Polymorphism**: Offers a safe and scalable way to accept a |
| 96 | + variety of inputs under a single structure—something previously hard to |
| 97 | + achieve in GraphQL. |
| 98 | +- **Now part of the GraphQL standard:** Several GraphQL implementations |
| 99 | + including Ruby, Java, JavaScript and .NET already ship `@oneOf` as a stable |
| 100 | + feature |
| 101 | + |
| 102 | +## The Bottom Line |
| 103 | + |
| 104 | +`@oneOf` allows for more expressive, capable, and less overwhelming schemas, |
| 105 | +helping technical teams to move faster with increased safety. It’s simple and |
| 106 | +easy to implement, try it today! |
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