REST API
A REST API is a common style of API in which software reads and changes your records by sending ordinary web requests to addresses such as /orders/1042, with replies usually in JSON. It is how apps, websites and billing systems share one set of data.
What it means
An API is the doorway one program offers to others. A REST API is the most common kind on the web. Each thing the system holds has an address, such as /orders/1042, and a program uses plain web requests to work with it: GET reads an order, POST creates one, PATCH changes it, DELETE removes it. The reply is usually a short block of JSON, a text format every programming language can read, together with a status code such as 200 for success or 401 for not logged in.
Why it matters for your business
It matters whenever more than one thing needs your data. Your billing software, mobile app, website and WhatsApp reminders should all read the same stock and customer records, instead of keeping private copies that drift apart. With a REST API, one back end serves them all. It is also how outside services plug in, since payment gateways, courier trackers and accounting tools all publish REST APIs.
Three questions are worth putting to any vendor. How is it secured: HTTPS throughout, with keys or tokens that can be revoked? Is it documented, with a written list of every endpoint, so that another developer can use it later? And is it versioned, so that a change next year does not break apps already installed on staff phones?
An example from Cuddalore
A mobile-phone retailer in Cuddalore with five outlets across the district keeps stock in its billing software. Its website shows "in stock" for each model, and its staff app lets a counter check the other outlets before telling a customer the phone is unavailable. All three read the same stock through one REST API, so the number on the website at 4 pm matches the number in the shop.
How we use it
Where VS Tech Builders builds its own back end, in Node.js, it exposes a REST API over HTTPS, so one back end can serve an Android app, a web dashboard and later a partner integration. The list of endpoints belongs in the documentation handed over with your source code. See web portal development and enterprise mobility apps, the mobile and electronics store page, and the entries for API and webhook.
Common questions
What is the difference between an API and a REST API?
API is the general idea: any agreed way for programs to talk. REST is one popular style of building one, using web addresses and standard requests. Other styles exist, such as GraphQL or older SOAP services, and some government and banking systems still use them. When a vendor says API, ask which style, because it affects who can connect to it and how easily.
Do I have to pay to use an API?
Your own system's API costs nothing per call beyond the server it runs on. Third-party APIs vary: some are free, many charge per request or per month, and some, like payment gateways, take a fee per transaction instead. Read the pricing before building a feature on one, because a popular feature can turn a small usage charge into a large monthly bill.
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