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API

by Adam Crivello
An application programming interface (API) serves as a link between disparate software and allows for an exchange of information between them. Learn more about how APIs work, and why they are crucial for software development.

What is an API?

An API is a set of rules, protocols, and tools that allow different software applications to communicate and interact with each other. APIs define how different components of software systems can access and exchange data or functionality, enabling developers to integrate third-party services, access resources, or build new applications more efficiently. APIs play a crucial role in facilitating interoperability, automation, and innovation in modern software development and enabling the creation of interconnected ecosystems of applications and services.

Related Glossary Terms

Adam Crivello
AC

Adam Crivello

Adam is a research analyst focused on dev software. He started at G2 in July 2019 and leverages his background in comedy writing and coding to provide engaging, informative research content while building his software expertise. In his free time he enjoys cooking, playing video games, writing and performing comedy, and avoiding sports talk.

API Software

This list shows the top software that mention api most on G2.

Postman enables teams to efficiently collaborate at every stage of the API lifecycle while prioritizing quality, performance, and security.

Martini™ is a modern API centric platform for digital transformation.

Stoplight leverages your OpenAPI (Swagger) specifications to drive the entire API development process.

Anypoint Platform™ is a complete platform that lets companies realize business transformation through API-led connectivity. It is is a unified, flexible integration platform that solves the most challenging connectivity problems across SOA, SaaS and APIs.

Simplify your API lifecycle with Swagger. API Hub integrates effortlessly with the tools your team depends on, centralizing design, testing, documentation, and exploration in one unified experience. Eliminate silos and unlock innovation.

IBM® API Connect™ is for organizations looking to streamline and accelerate their journey into the API economy. It’s a comprehensive management solution that addresses all four aspects of the API lifecycle: create, run, manage and secure. API Connect is far more cost-effective than limited point solutions that focus on just a few lifecycle phases. It enables external and internal consumers to accelerate an organization’s API program and capture new revenue through compelling new customer experiences.

Global SMS & Voice calls for businesses of all sizes

WSO2 API Manager is a complete solution for designing, developing, publishing, and managing the entire lifecycle of APIs and API products. It allows developers to create APIs by integrating other APIs and services and provides Full Lifecycle API Management features such as API Governance, Security, Analytics, Developer Portals, etc. WSO2 API Manager supports a wide variety of API types such as REST, SOAP, GraphQL, as well as Event Driven APIs such as WebSockets and WebHooks. It can be run on both Cloud Native and legacy infrastructures, used on-premises, in the cloud and in hybrid fashion as well. WSO2 API Manager is open source. Designed for easy customization and it is extensively pluggable to integrate with existing infrastructure in your enterprise. With WSO2 API Manager you can: Develop APIs by integrating other APIs and connector, Design and Prototype APIs, Publish and Govern API Use, Secure APIs with a wide range of security mechanisms to prevent intentional and unintentional misuse, Make APIs discoverable easily, Manage API Traffic, Monitor API Usage and Performance, Have complete insight about the APIs and Seamlessly integrate microservices for a low-code integration approach.

Kong Gateway can run anywhere, in the cloud or on-premise - in a single, hybrid or multi-datacenter setup.

Slack brings all your communication together in one place. It’s real-time messaging, archiving and search for modern teams.

Google Maps Platform is a comprehensive suite of APIs and SDKs that enables developers to integrate dynamic, real-world mapping and location-based services into their applications. Leveraging Google's extensive geospatial data, it offers tools for creating interactive maps, providing accurate routing, and delivering detailed place information, thereby enhancing user engagement and functionality. Key Features and Functionality: - 3D Maps: Developers can create immersive, photorealistic 3D maps, offering users a more engaging and realistic navigation experience. - Aerial View: Provides pre-rendered, 3D cinematic videos of points of interest and their surroundings, enriching applications with dynamic visual content. - Dynamic Maps: Allows customization and real-time styling of interactive maps across all devices and platforms, ensuring a consistent and personalized user interface. - Dynamic Street View: Embeds 360° panoramic imagery, enabling users to explore locations virtually with real-world visuals. - Elevation Data: Offers access to elevation information for specific locations, useful for applications requiring topographical context. - Map Tiles: Enables the design of unique interfaces and interactions tailored to specific brand and design requirements, enhancing visual appeal and usability. - Maps Embed: Facilitates the addition of interactive maps or Street View panoramas to websites with simple HTTP requests, simplifying integration processes. - Photorealistic 3D Tiles: Provides access to a 3D mesh model of the real world, allowing the creation of cinematic experiences using preferred rendering tools. - Static Maps and Street View: Allows embedding of static map images or Street View panoramas into web pages without the need for JavaScript, streamlining content inclusion. - Street View Tiles: Utilizes street-level images and tile metadata to create immersive experiences, enhancing user interaction with real-world visuals. Primary Value and Solutions Provided: Google Maps Platform empowers developers to build applications that offer users accurate, real-time, and interactive mapping experiences. By integrating these tools, businesses can enhance user engagement, improve navigation and location-based services, and provide detailed geospatial insights. This platform is particularly beneficial for industries such as logistics, travel, real estate, and retail, where precise location information and mapping are crucial for operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Twilio SendGrid Email API- Integrate in minutes with our email API.

Netcore Email API provides a cloud based transactional email delivery infrastructure which is reliable, scalable, secure and easy-to-use, but at a very disruptive pricing model. We help startups and brands to engage with their customers at the right moment with the right content over emails. Reliable APIs. Choose between SMTP or HTTP.

ActiveCampaign offers effortless email and marketing automation. Grow your business with AI-powered automations that suggest, personalize, and validate your marketing campaigns. With hundreds of automation triggers and actions, conditional routing, and an AI-powered drag-and-drop builder, you can create deeper automations than the competition, faster.

UiPath enables business users with no coding skills to design and run robotic process automation

Amazon API Gateway is a fully managed service that enables developers to create, publish, maintain, monitor, and secure APIs at any scale. It acts as the "front door" for applications to access data, business logic, or functionality from backend services. With API Gateway, you can build RESTful APIs and WebSocket APIs that support real-time two-way communication applications. The service is designed to handle the heavy lifting involved in processing up to hundreds of thousands of concurrent API calls, including tasks such as traffic management, authorization and access control, throttling, monitoring, and API version management. API Gateway supports containerized and serverless workloads, as well as web applications, and offers developer portals to centrally discover, document, and govern your REST APIs across your AWS infrastructure. Key Features and Functionality: - Efficient API Development: Run multiple versions of the same API simultaneously, allowing for quick iteration, testing, and release of new versions. - Performance at Any Scale: Leverage a global network of edge locations using Amazon CloudFront to provide low-latency API requests and responses. - Cost Savings at Scale: Benefit from a tiered pricing model that reduces costs as API usage increases, with prices as low as $0.90 per million requests at the highest tier. - Easy Monitoring: Monitor performance metrics, including API calls, data latency, and error rates, through the API Gateway dashboard integrated with Amazon CloudWatch. - Flexible Security Controls: Authorize access to APIs using AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) and Amazon Cognito, with support for OAuth tokens and custom authorization requirements via AWS Lambda authorizers. - RESTful API Options: Create RESTful APIs using HTTP APIs or REST APIs, with HTTP APIs being up to 71% cheaper than REST APIs for most use cases. Primary Value and Problem Solved: Amazon API Gateway simplifies the process of building and managing APIs by handling the complexities of API development, including traffic management, security, monitoring, and version control. It enables developers to focus on building applications without worrying about the underlying infrastructure. By providing a scalable, cost-effective, and secure platform for API management, API Gateway helps organizations efficiently connect their applications to backend services, ensuring high performance and reliability.

Run code without thinking about servers. Pay for only the compute time you consume.

Zendesk for Customer Service is an AI-powered service solution that’s easy to set up, use, and scale. It offers out-of-the-box functionality that’s simple to modify, helping businesses move faster. Leveraging AI built on billions of CX interactions, Zendesk enhances the entire service experience—from self-service to agents and admins—improving efficiency at scale. Zendesk equips agents with tools, insights, and context to deliver personalized service across all channels, including social messaging, phone, and email. It unifies personalized conversations, omnichannel case management, AI workflows, automation, and a Marketplace of 1800+ apps under one platform. Zendesk QA uses AI to evaluate and improve agent performance, while Workforce Management optimizes scheduling and productivity to ensure readiness during peak times. The solution is easy to implement and adjust without needing IT or developers. Zendesk’s mission is to simplify business complexity and enable meaningful customer connections for companies of all sizes. Serving 130K+ global brands in 30+ languages, Zendesk is headquartered in San Francisco with offices worldwide.

Twilio lets you use standard web languages to build voice, VoIP and SMS applications via a web API. Build the next generation of communications with us.

Vonage Communications APIs enable you to transform your customer experiences with programmable video, voice, messaging, and more.