API

An API is a set of requests a system agrees to answer. Your store app can ask a shipping service for rates, a payment service to charge a card, or a subscription app to skip a customer's next order, all through APIs. How it works, in plain terms: - A request goes to an address (an endpoint), with a key that proves who is asking. - The system checks what that key is allowed to do. - It sends back a response: the data, a confirmation, or an error that explains what went wrong. Common types you will hear about: - REST APIs, where each kind of thing (orders, customers) has its own address. - GraphQL APIs, where you ask for exactly the fields you need in one request. Shopify's Admin API works this way. - Webhooks, the reverse direction: the system tells you when something happens, such as a new order. Why stores care: - Apps can share data without exports and spreadsheets. - Headless storefronts and mobile apps are built on APIs. - AI assistants use APIs, often through the Model Context Protocol, to look things up and act for you. Good APIs are scoped and logged. Give each key only the access it needs, and keep a record of what it did. How Chargezen handles it: Chargezen offers developer tools, including a Subscriptions API, and an MCP server so AI apps like ChatGPT and Claude can work with your Chargezen data within the permissions you grant.