How to Get a Document in Elasticsearch: Syntax and Example

To get a document in Elasticsearch, use the GET API with the URL format /{index}/_doc/{id}. This fetches the document by its unique id from the specified index.

Syntax

The basic syntax to get a document in Elasticsearch is:

• GET /{index}/_doc/{id}: Retrieves the document with the given id from the specified index.
• {index}: The name of the index where the document is stored.
• {id}: The unique identifier of the document.

This request returns the document if it exists, or a 404 error if not found.

http

GET /my_index/_doc/1

Example

This example shows how to get a document with ID 1 from the index my_index using Elasticsearch's REST API.

http

GET /my_index/_doc/1

Response:
{
  "_index": "my_index",
  "_type": "_doc",
  "_id": "1",
  "_version": 1,
  "found": true,
  "_source": {
    "title": "Learn Elasticsearch",
    "author": "Jane Doe",
    "year": 2024
  }
}

Output

{
  "_index": "my_index",
  "_type": "_doc",
  "_id": "1",
  "_version": 1,
  "found": true,
  "_source": {
    "title": "Learn Elasticsearch",
    "author": "Jane Doe",
    "year": 2024
  }
}

Common Pitfalls

Common mistakes when getting documents in Elasticsearch include:

• Using the wrong index name, which causes a 404 error.
• Requesting a document ID that does not exist, resulting in found": false in the response.
• Confusing the _search API with GET by ID; _search is for queries, not direct document retrieval.

Always verify the index and document ID before making the request.

http

Wrong:
GET /wrong_index/_doc/1

Right:
GET /my_index/_doc/1

Quick Reference

Action	Syntax	Description
Get document by ID	GET /{index}/_doc/{id}	Fetches a document by its unique ID from the specified index.
Check if document exists	GET /{index}/_doc/{id}	Returns found: false if document is missing.
Wrong index error	GET /wrong_index/_doc/{id}	Returns 404 if index does not exist.

Key Takeaways

Use GET /{index}/_doc/{id} to retrieve a document by its ID in Elasticsearch.

Ensure the index name and document ID are correct to avoid 404 errors.

The response includes a 'found' field indicating if the document exists.

Do not confuse document retrieval with search queries using _search API.