For developers, it must be familiar to hear the term API. As the name implies, API (Application Programming Interface) is usually used for programming. More fully, quoted from Techopedia, API is a set of protocols, routines, functions and/or commands that programmers use to facilitate interaction between different software services. More simply as quoted from Techtarget, API is code that allows 2 software programs to communicate with each other.

The Importance of APIs in Business

In the business world, especially businesses that rely on digital, application development, and the like, APIs have an important role for your business. According to an article published by Techtarget, APIs add a digital layer to present company data and company assets through APIs, with the necessary governance and security, and this can improve customer, employee, and partner interactions. Greater functionality and scope of services increase the value delivered to users and improve customer experience.

APIs also create new monetization opportunities for businesses, such as data production with customized plans and packages for new or existing business partners.

Can’t you imagine if the API on the website or application that we are developing does not work optimally? What are the main causes that affect API performance? There are several factors that cause it, such as network latency, large payload, and so on.

Tips for Optimizing APIs

After knowing the importance of APIs for business and factors that affect API performance, it’s time we find out tips on how to optimize the following APIs.

  1. Cache
    This method is one of the most effective ways to optimize API performance. If there are concurrent requests that often result in the same response, the response can be cached to avoid redundant database queries and provide quick access. The easiest and fastest way to cache responses is with browser caching.
  2. Optimizing the Database
    The next tip is to optimize the database because it has a big role in API performance. How can you do this? Some of the steps you can refer to are starting with creating proper indexes based on searches to make database search operations faster, planning the type of results required from the database and structuring the database accordingly, and normalizing database tables when dealing with relational databases.
  3. Limit the Payload
    Most APIs do not have very large payloads, but there are some exceptions to the rule. If there is a large payload, it can take a long time to process the data, which may affect customer experience. You can reduce the payload size by compressing it with gzip by changing the Accept-Encoding header to gzip. Alternatively, you can use GraphQL to allow clients to request only the data they need from the server.

Monitoring API Performance with Netmonk Prime

Netmonk Prime is a monitoring dashboard that has 3 modules in it and one of them is Web/API Monitoring. Why choose Netmonk Prime as the best choice for API performance monitoring?

Web/API Monitoring from Netmonk Prime, can ensure that the company’s website / web application and HTTP API can be available and accessed by users is very important for every business. In addition, another factor that you can consider is its superior features such as: automatic audit reports in just 1 click, proactive maintenance monitoring, dashboard views that display information in graphical form, and can monitor in real-time.

Not only that, you can also try the free trial for 14 days easily by visiting our website here. Let’s try it now!

Reference:

https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/api

https://www.techtarget.com/searchapparchitecture/definition/application-program-interface-API

https://loadninja.com/articles/optimize-api-performance/

Tips and tricks on optimizing your API performance