Microservices is an architectural style that structures an application as a collection of small, independent services that communicate with each other over a network, typically using APIs. Each microservice is responsible for a specific business function and can be developed, deployed, and scaled independently of the others. This approach contrasts with monolithic architectures, where all components are tightly coupled within a single system. The microservices architecture offers several advantages, including increased flexibility, scalability, and fault tolerance. Because services are loosely coupled, changes to one service do not directly impact others, allowing teams to iterate quickly and adopt new technologies as needed.

Microservices are particularly well-suited for complex, large-scale applications that require frequent updates and high availability. They enable organizations to deploy new features faster, improve system resilience, and scale specific parts of the application independently. However, this architecture also introduces challenges, such as managing communication between services, ensuring data consistency, and handling the increased complexity of deployment and monitoring. Effective implementation of microservices often involves using containers, orchestration tools like Kubernetes, and DevOps practices to streamline development and operations. Despite the challenges, microservices have become a popular choice for organizations looking to build scalable, resilient, and maintainable applications.