When your customers' developers want to integrate your product into their stack, you need an API.
A public API turns your product from a standalone tool into a platform. Enterprise customers want API access to automate workflows, sync data, and build their own integrations. We build the REST API, the API key management, the documentation, and the rate limiting infrastructure.
Product without a public API — limiting enterprise sales where API access is a procurement requirement and limiting the developer-led adoption motion
Enterprise customers who want API access have a consistent requirement: they want to automate the workflows their team does manually in the UI. The most common API use cases:
User provisioning. The IT team wants to create and deactivate user accounts programmatically when employees join and leave the company, not manually.
Data export. The customer wants to pull their data into their internal analytics system or data warehouse on a recurring basis without using the UI export.
Workflow automation. The customer's operations team wants to trigger actions in the product (create a record, update a status) from their internal systems — when an event happens in their CRM, it should automatically create the corresponding record in the product.
Integration building. The customer's developers want to build a custom integration connecting the product to a tool that doesn't have a native integration.
The API design decisions that determine adoption:
REST vs. GraphQL. REST is the right choice for most B2B APIs — wider tooling support, simpler mental model, better caching. GraphQL is right when consumers need flexible query structures.
Authentication. API key authentication (static secret in the Authorization header) is the standard for server-to-server B2B APIs. OAuth is appropriate if third-party developers are building consumer applications.
Versioning. API versioning from day one (/v1/ prefix) prevents breaking existing integrations when the API evolves.
Public REST API with API key management, rate limiting, documentation, and the developer experience that makes integration adoption fast
REST API layer
RESTful endpoints for the product's core resources: CRUD operations, list endpoints with filtering and pagination, and webhook trigger endpoints. Built as Next.js API routes with consistent response schemas.
API key management
Self-serve API key generation in the product settings. Multiple keys per account with descriptions. Key revocation. Last-used timestamps.
Rate limiting
Per-key rate limiting via Upstash Redis. Standard rate limit headers in responses. Rate limit documentation in the API docs.
Authentication middleware
API key validation middleware applied to all public API routes. Request logging with API key identifier for audit and debugging.
API documentation
OpenAPI 3.0 specification documenting all endpoints. Interactive docs via Scalar or Swagger UI hosted at `/api/docs`. Code examples in JavaScript, Python, and cURL.
One honest number to start.
Fixed-scope, fixed-price. The number below is the starting point — final scope is built from your brief.
Public REST API with API key management, rate limiting, documentation, and the developer experience that makes integration adoption fast
Three steps, every time.
The same repeatable engagement on every project. No surprises, no mystery, no billable ambiguity.
Brief & discovery.
We send you questions, then get on a call. Output: a written scope with every step, feature, and integration listed.
Build & ship.
Fixed schedule, weekly reviews. No scope creep unless you change the scope — and if you do, we reprice it transparently.
Warranty & retainer.
30-day warranty on every launch. Most clients stay on a monthly retainer for ongoing features and maintenance.
Why Fixed-Price Matters Here
API development scope is defined by the resource types and operations to expose. Fixed price after the API surface is specified.
Questions, answered.
The cleanest approach: the internal API routes the UI uses are also the API routes exposed publicly. This means the public API stays synchronized with the product's capabilities, and there's no duplicate implementation. The difference is authentication (session cookie vs. API key) and response format (sometimes different for internal vs. public use).
Versioning from day one avoids future breakage. All public API routes are prefixed with `/v1/`. When a breaking change is necessary, a new version (`/v2/`) is introduced alongside the old one with a deprecation period.
Public API with key management, rate limiting, and documentation: from $18k. Full developer platform with SDK and developer portal: from $30k. Fixed-price.
Tell Ryel about your project.
Describe what you’re building and what outcome you need. You’ll have a written, fixed-price scope within the week.