What is an API?
An API (application programming interface) is a set of rules that lets one piece of software request data or actions from another, without knowing how the other works inside. When a website shows a map or takes a card payment, it is calling an API.
Also called: application programming interface
Why it matters
APIs decide what your systems can do together. If your CRM, shop and accounting software have good APIs, they can share data automatically instead of through spreadsheets and copy and paste. Before you buy any software, check what its API allows, because that sets the limit on future integrations, for example with 1C or Kaspi.
1Request and responseA program sends a request to an endpoint, and the API returns data, usually as JSON.
2API keyAn API key or token is a secret code that identifies the calling program; treat it like a password.
3Public or privateSome APIs are open to any developer; others are internal or available only to the service’s customers.
ExampleA shop in Almaty sells on its own website and in a Kaspi store. Through the Kaspi seller API, new orders and their statuses arrive in its accounting system automatically, and the website books deliveries through a courier service’s API. Nobody retypes orders or addresses.
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Related terms
REST APIA style of web API where data lives at URLs and is read or changed with standard HTTP methods.WebhookAn automatic message one system sends to another the moment something happens.API integrationConnecting two or more systems through their APIs, so data moves between them without retyping.MCPAn open standard for connecting AI applications to tools and data sources in one consistent way.
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