What is an API?

API (application programming interface) is a set of code-based instructions that enable different software components to communicate and share data.

Developers use private, partner, and public APIs to bridge the gaps between small, discrete chunks of code in order to create applications that are powerful, resilient, and able to meet user needs.

APIs work by sharing data between applications, systems, and devices. In order to better understand this process, it can be useful to think of APIs like restaurants.

In this metaphor, the customer is like the user, who tells the waiter what she wants. 

The waiter is like an API, receiving the customer's order and translating it into instructions for the kitchen, sometimes using codes or abbreviations that the kitchen staff will recognize.

The kitchen staff is like the API server because it creates the order according to the customer's specifications and gives it to the waiter, who then delivers it to the customer.

In summary, APIs are everywhere working continuously in the background to power the digital experiences that are essential to our modern lives.

Reference - Postman