7 Takeaways from the State of the API 2024 Report

For the last six years, Postman has surveyed thousands of developers and API professionals, asking their thoughts about the current state of the API industry. The final result, the State of the API Report, is the most comprehensive analysis of the API industry in the world. Every year, it offers extensive insights into developers’ attitudes about API, current best practices, and other insights into the industry.

We’ve read through all 40 pages of Postman’s 2024 State of the API Report to find out the current state of the API industry. Here are a few of the API trends that are currently shaping the API Industry.

1. API-First Is on the Rise

“APIs are no longer an afterthought but the foundation of development, with between 26 and 50 APIs powering the average application,” according to the 2024 State of the API Report. Adopting an API-first strategy allows developers to produce more consistent APIs, streamline their APIs across their entire enterprise, and boost their productivity. 63% of developers are able to create an API in a week or less in 2024, up from 47% in 2023.

Perhaps most importantly, API-first design improves developers’ collaboration. Postman calls problems with collaboration “the hidden bottleneck,” citing issues with internal documentation, communication problems, and trouble understanding source code.

2. API Gateways Are Multiplying

Developers are moving away from the single API gateway for API management. The 2024 State of the API report finds that nearly a third of developers are using multiple API gateways at this point, as a result of managing APIs in various environments. However, this can create issues with API discovery and API monitoring. Integrated API management platforms promise to solve many of these potential problems.

3. API Monetization Is On The Rise

APIs are no longer just technical enablers. 62% of developers report working with APIs that generate income. This is a clear indication that API-as-a-product is on the rise. According to the report, 21% of businesses working with APIs report API monetization accounting for more than 75% of their entire revenue.

This means that API developers need to streamline their public-facing APIs. API-first design enables API monetization by getting APIs into the market as quickly, efficiently, and inexpensively as possible. This hinges on API discovery, allowing an API to be easily shared to API marketplaces where it can find as wide of an audience as possible.

4. AI Is Driving API Growth

The surge of interest in AI is causing an explosion in API activity. Postman reports a 73% increase in AI-related API traffic last year. This is partly due to the proliferation of AI models. OpenAI remains the most popular, accounting for 78.5% of all AI-related traffic, but alternate models are quickly catching up. MistralAI has grown by 8800%, Perplexity has grown 59x its size the previous year, and Google’s Gemini has grown by 41x.

Not everybody’s sold on AI, however. 21% of respondents report that they have no plans for AI integration. 31% of developers report having concerns about API security and compliance should they integrate AI into their existing workflow, for instance. Others report not having time to test the various AI models on the market. Developers working with AI would do well to demonstrate the security and usefulness of their products if they want to capture customers who are still on the fence about AI.

The proliferation of AI isn’t all good news, though. The rapid spread of AI and SaaS is a major contributor to API sprawl, which can be an enormous API security risk. Given these recent API trends, adopting a centralized solution for managing API assets is recommended as a best practice.

5. Global Growth of APIs

APIs are a global phenomenon. Postman report collections from 266 different countries, including ten from Antarctica! According to the State of the API report, India has the most collections and makes the most API requests. This is followed by the United States, China, Brazil, and the U.K. The takeaway is that API developers who are serious about growing their product need to consider a global marketplace or risk missing out on an enormous customer base. This means considering data privacy considerations, different countries’ regulations, and marketing and outreach.

6. API Users Are Diversifying

While most API users are still developers and engineers, the API user base has greatly diversified in recent years. According to the report, 71% of API users are developers and engineers, followed by executives, directors/managers, solutions/systems analysts, and others.

The industries using APIs have also been diversifying. Business and IT services are still in the lead by a large margin, at 28%. This is followed by banking/finance, education, healthcare, retail and manufacturing, advertising/marketing, automotive, and gaming/entertainment/media.

With the API landscape diversifying so heavily, there’s a real opportunity for API developers hoping to develop an API as a revenue stream. These figures could give developers an idea of how to market their APIs, for one thing. They also offer a glimpse into what APIs are in demand, which could lead to further marketing ideas or possibly even a new product. A diversified user base requires making an API accessible to a wide range of different users, as well. With APIs becoming more mainstream, there’s a high probability of a user without a technical background encountering your API. You might want to think about making your API documentation and onboarding materials understandable and useful for users without a technical background.

According to the study, 58% of developers learn how to use internal APIs via API documentation. And 45% of developers use third-party websites to learn how to use public APIs. One takeaway from this insight is that API developers should spend plenty of time on their API documentation, including anything a new user might need to get started with their API in a matter of moments.

These findings also underscore the need for quality content marketing. If you’re releasing a public API, you should consider including some outreach as part of your promotional strategy. Finding opportunities to share guest posts, staying active on GitHub, finding communities to join, and maintaining a social media presence are essential to attracting new users and showing them how to use your API.

7. APIs Are Vulnerable

Alarmingly, only 37% of API developers are currently prioritizing API testing. 1% don’t test their APIs at all. This is a major cause for alarm, considering APIs are known as one of the largest security risks. Security vulnerabilities are just one potential issue with a lack of API testing. Performance issues are just as much of a problem, as miscommunication regarding changes to your API can result in API breakage and service outage. Postman recommends maintaining an up-to-date script for testing APIs and using proper tools to track and implement changes to ensure that nothing gets lost in translation.

Final Thoughts on the State of the API 2024 Report

APIs have gone from a technical curiosity to a tool that makes the world go ’round. They drive AI and automation. They’re integral to big business, banking, healthcare, and information technology. Furthermore, they’ve progressed from facilitating business to an important asset in their own right.

There’s a lot of potential for APIs, no matter what you’re hoping to accomplish, but you’ve got to go about it properly. Considering the expanded audience for APIs in 2024, API owners should focus on making their API accessible to users without a technical background. If you’re serious about seeing your API thrive, you’ll want to think like a marketer and developer!