API providers sell APIs to help developers integrate these APIs in multiple projects. APIs are digital products with reproducible, fungible and dependable design. These designs should be created in a standard, compliant, and consistent manner. Developers take help through clear documentation and sample code of API. We can find different APIs on an API marketplace.
So, if I have just completed designing a problem-solving API, what should be my next move? For example, how can I earn using that API? Or How should I market my API? The best way to earn money through API is to choose an API marketplace. In this article, I will tell about how developers can increase their revenue and sell APIs through an API marketplace.
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What Is An API Marketplace?
There are several online marketplaces these days such as Amazon, Facebook, etc. Now, if I need to sell an item on these marketplaces, I will simply list my item on these websites. These marketplaces will automatically send the related customers to my products. This is how an API marketplace works too.
As a provider of API, I will list my API that developers or business owners can use by purchasing it. However, there is one more thing that I would like to add here. A typical API marketplace may have two components such as API provider portals and developer portals.
The developer portal helps developers to find different subscription plans to integrate APIs in different projects. On the other hand, the provider portal helps providers to publish APIs for developers. This is whats an api marketplace can do to interact with providers and developers.
What Is The Difference Between API Marketplace and API Portal?
API portals are either custom developed or they are created through a template for the management of API products. It is common that only one API provider deploys API portals that allow to understand, integration, and deploy APIs for developers. An API portal gives access to documentation including features, tutorials, and specifications.
Let me tell you one thing clearly, API marketplaces have replaced API portals in this era of technology. People still use API portals but there is more demand for API marketplaces. They help you sell API and earn through it.
API marketplaces have unlimited plans, APIs, and benefits. This is because the API marketplaces give the opportunity to several API providers to showcase their products.
If I were a developer, I would always like to choose an API marketplace over an API portal. Because I know that my APIs would get higher exposure and more target audience on the API marketplace.
What Are The Benefits Of An API Marketplace?
Benefits for API providers
The wider exposure for API providers helps them increase the user base for internal APIs.
Current market demand is measured through an API marketplace.
We can receive feedback from our users and hence we can also get the chance to improve our APIs. We can get a chance to connect with our consumers.
There is more scope for improvement in the API marketplace.
There is a whole education guide for API providers to publish APIs on the API marketplace.
Benefits for Developers
As I mentioned earlier, I would like to choose an API marketplace if I am developing some kind of portal. This is because an API marketplace can give me unlimited APIs, pricing details, and advantages.
Moreover,
I can have more choices and hence finding the right API is very easy for me.
There are tables, statistics, and rankings to find a suitable API for API integrations in my business.
We can also check reviews of different public APIs and find APIs.
Now, let’s discuss some best API marketplaces to integrate into our application. People also ask about popular API marketplaces in the REST API interview questions. Apart from REST APIs, there are also SOAP APIs. One should also know about SOAP vs REST API. It is important to know that most developers choose REST for APIs to publish them on the API marketplace.
What Are The 8 Best & Popular API Marketplaces To Publish And Sell Your APIs In 2023?
API Layer-The Best Overall API Marketplace to Sell API
It is a cloud-based API and SAAS provider portal. API Layer was launched as an API marketplace in February 2023. The interesting part is that they have got the acquisition of prompt API. This is more like a platform to help developers in monetizing their APIs.
Right now, we can see 75+ APIs on the API Layer marketplace with new products added to it daily. Just like many other API marketplaces, the API layer also helps to handle the selling process while you only have to publish APIs.
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First of all, we need to submit the details for review. This will also include the pricing, payout details, payment collection, etc.
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API Layer makes an assessment to ensure that our API meets its quality standards or not.
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We can self-host our APIs or let the API Layer do it to promote APIs. It is a big benefit of the API Layer.
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We get payouts on a monthly basis and we also need 15% of revenue for this marketplace.
RapidAPI
RapidAPI is another most common marketplace for APIs. We can get code snippets in multiple languages.
The availability of different languages makes it easier to integrate APIs in different applications of our choice. Some common points that we should know about RapidAPI are:
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Provides higher security by validating each API request.
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It offers quick setup and easier user management by assigning API keys to each user.
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It gives detailed trends and API usage through a dashboard.
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It let us add our API types by defining different pricing tiers.
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It gives 80% of the profit for every single purchase.
Rakuten
Rakuten is known as the most popular API marketplace across the globe. It has 1 million+ developers who can manage, sell, and market their APIs.
Some important features of this marketplace are listed below:
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Simple and fast integration
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Consumes very low time to add APIs parameters or upload swagger specs.
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Helps to test the API by generating docs automatically.
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Code snippets are available in multiple languages.
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Detailed analytics of insights and performance for APIs.
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Instantly sets up everything using a secure key.
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It provides secure functions by authenticating the requests and helps us to track performance.
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Rakuten gives 80% profit on every purchase.
Sell API: Saasify
Saasify can help to handle all kinds of SaaS nuisances by focusing on what’s important for our business.
It includes documentation, billing, user accounts, marketing campaigns, and sites.
Let’s explore some important features of Saasify:
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It allows us to sell and build API and add important features to it.
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It helps to retain API ownership while helping us to market our API efficiently.
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Once we give them our API’s Open APIs spec, it generates API endpoints.
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It can also help to customize the product through a JSON configuration file.
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It keeps a record of the versioning of our products by tracking every change we make to the APIs.
Celigo
Celigo API marketplace is known as the best one of iPaas integrations. iPaaS stands for the platform as a service. It is a complete integration of iPaaS. It offers several features with the best services to sell APIs. Some important features are:
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Real-time integration
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Provides a large set of apps in different categories.
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Paypal trusts Celigo for its services
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G2 awarded it as the best API marketplace in 2021.
Zapier
If we want an API marketplace to help us automate our work faster, then Zapier should be our first choice. It is an integration platform to ease the automation of our work.
It possesses the following features:
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Create a private connection with an API to a web app.
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Has a large set of apps in multiple categories.
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Easy to integrate
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No-code zap editor
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Highly reliable and secure
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Customizable
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Flexible prices
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Free plan available.
Gravitee.io
If we want an open-source API marketplace to save our costs then Gravitee.io can be the right place. Some of its amazing features are:
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Optimal performance
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Easy to manage
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Performance tracking
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Easy collaboration
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Several resources
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Highly flexible.
Sell API: Facebook Marketplace API
Facebook marketplace is an easy way to sell APIs in their own community. It contains easy communication and growing buyers every single day. Some important features are:
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Products are easy to find
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Documentation support
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Potential buyers and sellers communicate easily
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Ability to capture leads
How To Discover The Best Platform For Showcasing APIs?
To discover the best platform for showcasing APIs, we should search for the following factors in an API marketplace:
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Supports API management
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Has the ability to detect suspicious activities
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Supports centralized monitoring
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Allows for access management
Sell API: Conclusion
API providers create APIs for developers to use in projects. These APIs are designed to be reliable and easy to use. Developers rely on clear instructions to use these APIs. After creating an API, the next step is to earn money from it. One way is to list the API on an API marketplace. This is like putting an item for sale on a website.
API marketplaces offer benefits to both providers and developers. Providers get more exposure and feedback on their APIs. Developers get access to a variety of APIs and can easily find what they need. There are several popular API marketplaces like API Layer, RapidAPI, and Rakuten. These platforms help providers sell their APIs and help developers find and use them easily.
Sell API: FAQs
What is an API marketplace?
An API marketplace is a platform to sell APIs so that developers can integrate them into their web apps.
Is there an API marketplace?
Yes. There are hundreds of API marketplaces that you can search on the internet. However, the API Layer is the best of all API marketplaces.
What is the RapidAPI marketplace?
RapidAPI marketplace is a popular API marketplace that offers several features for easy management of APIs.
Where can I sell API?
We can sell our APIs using API marketplace or API portals. But API marketplaces are the most preferred and reliable ways to sell APIs.
How do I monetize an API?
We can monetize our APIs using the API marketplace and generate large revenue.
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