XML Basics in Apex
By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to:
- Parse an XML response using the DOM.Document class
- Navigate an XML structure to extract specific values
- Recognize when an integration might use XML instead of JSON
Prerequisites: "JSON Serialization and Deserialization"
When XML still shows up
Most modern APIs use JSON, but XML remains common in specific contexts: SOAP web services (next lesson), older enterprise systems, and some legacy government or financial integrations. Recognizing XML and knowing how to parse it is still a genuinely useful skill, even though JSON dominates newer integrations.
Parsing XML with DOM.Document
String xmlBody = '<response><status>success</status><rate>45.50</rate></response>';
DOM.Document doc = new DOM.Document();
doc.load(xmlBody);
DOM.XMLNode root = doc.getRootElement();
String status = root.getChildElement('status', null).getText();
Decimal rate = Decimal.valueOf(root.getChildElement('rate', null).getText());doc.load(xmlBody) parses the raw XML text; getRootElement() gives access to the top-level <response> node, and getChildElement(name, namespace) navigates down to a specific child — here, null for the namespace since this XML doesn't use one.
Navigating a more nested structure
String xmlBody = '<order><items><item><name>Widget</name><qty>3</qty></item></items></order>';
DOM.Document doc = new DOM.Document();
doc.load(xmlBody);
DOM.XMLNode itemNode = doc.getRootElement().getChildElement('items', null).getChildElement('item', null);
String itemName = itemNode.getChildElement('name', null).getText();
Integer qty = Integer.valueOf(itemNode.getChildElement('qty', null).getText());Each getChildElement call navigates one level deeper — reading nested XML is a matter of chaining these calls to walk down the structure exactly the way the XML itself is nested.
Exercise
Given XML '<product><name>Widget</name><price>49.99</price></product>', parse it and extract both the name and price.
Show hint
getChildElement('name', null).getText() and similarly for price.
XML Basics in Apex Quiz
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Summary
Some external systems — especially older or enterprise ones — still exchange data as XML rather than JSON; Apex's DOM classes parse and navigate it directly.