Django REST Framework is a toolkit for building Web Apps. It helps the programmer to do REST APIs, but it can handle less mature API levels. For further information on API maturity levels, search for Richardson's Maturity Model.

In particular, Django REST Framework does not endorse any particular Hypermedia-level layout, and it is up to the programmer (or other projects, such as srf-hal-json) if they want to pursue a HATEOAS API implementation, to lay down their opinions outside of the framework. Thus, it is possible to implement a HATEOAS API in Django REST Framework, but there are no readily-available utilities already in place.