Return Proper HTTP Status Codes Table in Python

Mock HTTP status code table with proper numeric and textual representations, including formatted status lines and a filtered table view.

Easy Python 3.9+ Aug 9, 2026 API design & gRPC 13 views 0 copies

http-status api mock status-codes

Python code

40 lines

Python 3.9+

# Mock HTTP status code table with proper numeric and textual representations

codes = {
    200: "OK",
    201: "Created",
    204: "No Content",
    301: "Moved Permanently",
    302: "Found",
    304: "Not Modified",
    400: "Bad Request",
    401: "Unauthorized",
    403: "Forbidden",
    404: "Not Found",
    500: "Internal Server Error",
    502: "Bad Gateway",
    503: "Service Unavailable",
}


def get_status(code):
    """Return proper HTTP status line for a code."""
    return f"HTTP/1.1 {code} {codes[code]}"


def status_table(prefix="2"):
    """Return formatted table of matching codes."""
    filtered = {k: v for k, v in codes.items() if str(k).startswith(prefix)}
    if not filtered:
        return "No matching status codes found."
    lines = [f"{code:<6} {desc}" for code, desc in sorted(filtered.items())]
    return "\n".join(lines)


if __name__ == "__main__":
    print(get_status(200))
    print(get_status(404))
    print("\n2xx codes:")
    print(status_table("2"))
    print("\n4xx codes:")
    print(status_table("4"))

Output

stdout

HTTP/1.1 200 OK
HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found

2xx codes:
200   OK
201   Created
204   No Content

4xx codes:
400   Bad Request
401   Unauthorized
403   Forbidden
404   Not Found

How it works

The codes dictionary maps integer HTTP status codes to their canonical reason phrases. The get_status function uses an f-string to build a proper status line, which is the exact format a server would send in its HTTP response header. The status_table function uses a dictionary comprehension to filter codes by prefix, then formats them with aligned columns using the :<6 format specifier. Sorting the filtered items ensures consistent, readable output. This approach keeps the mock table easy to extend and reuse across tests or documentation.

Common mistakes

Using string keys for the status codes, which breaks integer lookups
Forgetting to sort the filtered codes before printing
Assuming all codes have the same phrase length without using alignment

Variations

Use `functools.lru_cache` to cache `get_status` for repeated calls
Return a tuple instead of f-string for easier serialization

Real-world use cases

Mocking HTTP responses in unit tests to verify client error handling.
Generating a status code reference sheet for API documentation.
Building a diagnostic CLI tool that prints status codes for debugging server responses.

Return Proper HTTP Status Codes Table in Python

Python code

Output

How it works

Common mistakes

Variations

Real-world use cases

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