API Integration
Connecting two systems through a defined set of programmatic endpoints, allowing near-real-time data exchange rather than batch file transfer.
How it works — and why it matters
Where EDI exchanges structured documents in scheduled batches, an API integration calls endpoints directly — a TMS might POST a status update to a broker's API the moment a driver marks a stop complete, and receive an acknowledgment in the same second. Modern transportation APIs are typically REST-based and exchange JSON payloads.
API integrations matter because freight operations increasingly run on events, not batches: tender responses, ETA changes, and exception alerts lose value in minutes. The trade-off is that every API is different, so connecting to many partners means building and maintaining many one-off integrations — the problem integration platforms exist to solve.
Related terms
See it in practice: CarrierCloud — Tranztec's universal transportation API →