In one sentenceAutomatic data exchange between two systems through an agreed programming interface, so information moves from one system to another without manual entry.
Simply put
An API is an agreed language between two systems: one requests or sends data in a set format, and the other replies in a set format, without any employee stepping in.
With it your system connects to the online store, the bank, the shipping company or the FATOORA platform in the second phase, so errors drop and copy-and-paste between programs disappears.
Example
When the accounting system issues a tax invoice in the second phase of e-invoicing, it sends it automatically to the FATOORA platform for clearance and receives the reply in seconds, without anyone uploading a file by hand.
Don't confuse it with
Data import from a fileImporting is manual and periodic (export a file, then upload it), while API integration is automatic and continuous.