Top APIs for building e-commerce applications using Retool

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Introduction:

Developers are increasingly turning to low-code platforms like Retool to accelerate the development and deployment of e-commerce applications. With the awesome visual interface of Retool, developers are able to design, build, and launch applications with minimal coding, significantly reducing the time and effort traditionally required for development. One of the major advantages of using low-code platforms is the availability of ready-made APIs, which can be easily integrated to add functionalities such as payment processing, inventory management, and customer data handling. These APIs not only streamline the development process but also ensure that the e-commerce application is robust, scalable, and secure. The key benefit of using Retool along with ready-made APIs, is that developers can focus more on innovation and less on the intricacies of coding, allowing them to build and run e-commerce applications more efficiently than ever before. When designed and implemented carefully, third-party APIs can help transform the overall customer experience, automate certain critical processes, and integrate powerful functionalities and solutions into an e-commerce application without the need to design or build them from scratch.

In this blog, we wanted to bring together some of the most popular and useful APIs. We consider these APIs to be instrumental for anyone working on some sort of e-commerce application development using Retool. Of course, this list is by no means comprehensive or absolute.

Note: For some of the APIs listed below, we have also prepared an integration guide: ApyHub and Retool : Standard Integration - ApyHub.

List of E-Commerce APIs:

  • Customer Onboarding APIs
  1. Validate DNS Email ( including disposable email ) API
  2. Currencies Dictionary API
  • Payment Processing APIs
  1. Convert Currency to Multiple Currencies API
  2. Stripe API
  3. Paypal API
  • Marketplace APIs
  1. eBay API
  2. Amazon Selling Partner API
  • Shipping and Fulfillment APIs
  1. Generate Barcode/QR Code
  2. ShipEngine API
  3. Validate Post Codes (India and UK)
  • Tax Calculation and Invoice APIs
  1. TaxJar Tax Calculator API
  2. Invoice Generator API

Customer Onboarding APIs:

  1. Validate DNS Email (including disposable email): Getting fake users, or users with disposable emails can be annoying and it can harm the health of your data while at the same time make you waste your time with meaningless follow ups. This is why ensuring that users sign up with a valid email address is fundamental. ApyHub’s DNS Email Validation API allows you to check whether the user’s credentials are valid to begin with.
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s DNS Email Validation API
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s DNS Email Validation API

  2. Currencies Dictionary: Global E-Commerce applications allow payments in multiple currencies. ApyHub’s Currency Dictionary API can provide a list of all officially listed currencies including currency symbols, values, and emojis. Incorporating this API in an e-commerce application can enable users to see the products and services in their preferred currency.
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s DNS Currency Dictionary API
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s DNS Currency Dictionary API

Payment Processing APIs

  1. Convert Currency to Multiple Currencies API: ApyHub’s Convert Currency to Multiple Currencies API allows the conversion of single source currency to multiple target currencies. Ideal for international transactions, allowing customers to see prices and make payments in their local currency.
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s Convert Currency to Multiple Currencies API

    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s Convert Currency to Multiple Currencies API

  2. Stripe API: The Stripe API allows applications to accept payments online directly into their bank account from any part of the world. This API supports a wide range of payment methods, including credit cards, direct debits, and newer forms like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
    Documentation Page of Stripe API

    Documentation Page of Stripe API

  3. PayPal API: PayPal is one of the most widely used payment gateways, known for its ease of use and broad consumer acceptance. The PayPal API integrates easily into e-commerce platforms, enabling businesses to accept payments from both PayPal accounts and credit/debit cards without redirecting users away from their site.
    Paypal API

    Documentation Page of PayPal API

Marketplace APIs

  1. eBay API: The eBay API offers a wide range of functionalities for sellers, including the ability to list items on eBay, manage product inventory, set product prices and handle orders directly through your own platform. It also provides access to eBay's catalog, allowing for detailed product descriptions and comparisons.
    eBay’s Developer Portal Homepage
    eBay’s Developer Portal Homepage

  2. Amazon Selling Partner API: The Selling Partner API allows access to data on orders, shipments, and payments. An e-commerce application using the SP-API can increase its selling efficiency, reduce labor requirements and improve response time to customers.
    Amazon’s Selling Partner API Homepage
    Amazon’s Selling Partner API Homepage

Shipping and Fulfillment APIs:

  1. Generate Barcode/QR Code API: Streamline the packaging process by generating codes for easy tracking and management. ApyHub’s QR Code and Bar Code API can quickly generate codes for easy shipment tracking and management.
    ApyHub’s API Catalog Search Page

    ApyHub’s API Catalog Search Page

  2. ShipEngine API. This ShipEngine API allows you to integrate with major carriers, enabling businesses to compare rates, generate shipping labels, and track shipments in real-time.
    ShipEngines API Homepage

    ShipEngine's API Homepage

  3. Validate Postcodes: Customers sometimes provide incorrect postal codes which leads to products getting misrouted from delivery partners and getting delayed in shipment. ApyHub currently provides Postcode Validation APIs for India and the UK. You can also try the FEDEX API that enables FedEx customers to validate postal codes and get the service commitments. It supports city, postal, country and Origin-Destination related lookups and the validations. It returns verified postal and location details in the reply.
    ApyHub’s API Catalog Search Page

    ApyHub’s API Catalog Search Page

Taxes and Invoicing APIs

The complexity of taxes and invoicing can be simplified with APIs as well:

  1. TaxJar Tax Calculator API: TaxJar is a modern cloud platform that automates sales tax compliance. They provide automatic preparation and submission of tax returns.
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s Validate IFSC Code

    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s Validate IFSC Code

  2. Invoice Generator API: An API that converts HTML to PDF can facilitate the generation of invoices and receipts directly from HTML templates. This capability allows for the customization of invoice designs, ensuring that they align with your brand identity while providing all necessary transaction details. ApyHub’s HTML to PDF API allows you to programmatically convert an HTML file to a PDF document that can be easily shared via email, and file-sharing services.
    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s HTML to PDF API

    Documentation Page of ApyHub’s HTML to PDF API

That's it ! What did you think of our list? Did I miss anything? Let me know!