[API Documentation vs. Specification vs. Definition: What’s the Difference? | Archbee Blog](https://www.archbee.com/blog/api-documentation-specification-definition-difference)

https //www archbee com/blog https //www archbee com/blog documentationupdated november 4, 2025 dragos dragos founder, robot with feelings from planet aiur http //twitter com/happydragos https //www linkedin com/in/dragos bulugean/ api documentation, specification, and definition are related, but not the same this article clarifies their differences api documentation vs specification vs definition what’s the difference? how many times have you wanted to look up an api related issue, only to be assailed with confusing terms that people use interchangeably? for instance, api documentation , specification , and definition are terms whose meanings are often mixed up considering that the lack of clarity could negatively impact the decision making process for your business, it’s important to differentiate between the terms used in the industry that’s why we wrote this article—to clarify the difference between api documentation, specifications, and definitions by the end of this article, you’ll know your way around these terms and what each of the entities brings to your api so, let’s dive in \#what is api documentation we’ll start with the concept that regular developers or even end users are the most likely to encounter https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation essentially, api documentation is an umbrella term for all the pieces of information that users need to work with the api successfully here are https //www archbee com/blog/writing api documentation tips ! if you’re now thinking about code snippets or lists of parameters—you’re right these are just some of the common elements of api docs you can learn more in https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation elements about the topic for now, we’ll review the crucial components of api documentation using the following twitter thread written by wisdom nwokocha, a documentation manager at accumulate explanations of api documentation source twitter as you can see, elements such as an api overview, every call, every parameter, and error handling instructions help developers understand and implement the api without comprehensive api documentation in place, developers are likely to switch to a better documented solution that's why you need to https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation developer experience for better results! so, if you’re aiming to increase the likelihood of https //www archbee com/blog/importance of api documentation#toc 1 , it’s vital to provide the resources needed for using it if you’re curious to see what all this looks like in practice, we’ll now look at one of https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation examples that companies often use as a role model for the docs—the stripe api stripe api source stripe stripe’s api docs allow you to browse the table or contents on the left side of the screen or look up the topic you’re interested in using the search box then, you’ll see a detailed description of terms, followed by code examples on the right it’s also worth mentioning that https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation types pros cons#toc 0 are often the most used element of api documentation, so it’s wise to provide examples in multiple programming languages examples in multiple programming languages source stripe to sum up, we could compare api documentation to a user manual—both show users how to work with the product and like well written manuals, api docs should be easily readable and full of helpful examples now that we’ve demystified api documentation, let’s clear up what api specifications are \#what is an api specification an api specification is a formal document that describes the elements that an api must contain, and it’s usually constructed before developers build the api sounds a bit hazy? let’s put it a different way an api specification is something like a blueprint for your api if you wanted to build a house, you’d first create a blueprint so that the builders know what to do likewise, api specifications are there to set the standards straight from the start so, while the api documentation describes the api, specifications prescribe what the api should be able to do api documentation difference source archbee com an additional benefit of api specifications is that you can use them as a template for your future docs seeing as specifications describe the api’s design and how it works, you could use them as a reference when writing user centered docs keep in mind, though, that most specs are too detailed and formal for regular users to read them, so you can’t use specifications as a substitute for documentation as a whole we’ll now look at the openapi specification by swagger, a browser based editor openapi specification by swagger source swagger it starts with heavy legalese, which could be the first hint that specifications are not meant for basic customers and remember when we said that api documentation should be understandable and accessible to users? well, api specifications aim for nothing of the sort for instance, the swagger specification explains the crucial elements of the api using succinct definitions and brief excerpts of code swagger specification explains the crucial elements of the api source swagger similarly, the specification lists all the functions, how they are called, and how they are interconnected details like these wouldn’t be of much use to regular api users, but they provide knowledgeable specialists with an in depth overview of the entire api in other words, api specifications are intended primarily for the api creators—end users are not the primary audience here still, both api documentation and specifications are written for humans, unlike api definitions, which are our next topic \#what is an api definition api definitions are files that contain information about how the api works however, the difference between the definitions and other https //www archbee com/blog/types of api documentation that we’ve mentioned lies in the target audience api definitions are written for machine consumption take a look at the following example of an api definition to get the idea example of an api definition source swagger not really a captivating read, unless you’re a computer note that it’s precisely the machine readable data that makes api definitions so beneficial when you properly write, format, and tag definitions, you can upload the file into appropriate tools and automatically generate api documentation for users here you can have a look at our https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation tools one of the greatest tools for doing so is https //www archbee com/product/api documentation tool , our product documentation platform start with an openapi/swagger file source archbee com api documentation tool https //www archbee com/ lets you upload the api definition file in standardized formats (json or yaml) it then creates api references, an indispensable element of api documentation here is a https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation checklist that you should consider that way, you can use api definitions as a starting point for the rest of your api documentation of course, documentation generated with api definitions will still need some touch ups by human https //www archbee com/blog/the value of a technical writer , but it’s certainly a more effective option than writing all docs from scratch \#api documentation vs specification vs definition let’s recap how all these api related concepts differ from each other the most apparent difference is the target audience api documentation and specifications are written for humans, while definitions are created to be used by machines next, they don’t serve the same purpose to put it briefly, api documentation educates the users about the api, the specifications provide technical details about how the api should work, and definitions have a similar role to specifications, but they’re geared towards machines as you can see, these three terms are not interchangeable, but they’re all related and play important roles in the overall success of the api \#conclusion whether you’re interested in learning about apis, building one, or finding the best tools to document your api, you’ll need to understand the terminology used for talking about the topic hopefully, this overview has shed some light on the https //www archbee com/blog/api documentation specification definition difference and equipped you with the knowledge to communicate about apis clearly we wish you happy documenting! \#faq frequently asked questions what exactly is api documentation? api documentation is the human friendly guide to using an api it explains what the api does, how to authenticate, how to make requests, and how to handle responses and errors great docs combine clear explanations with practical examples so developers can integrate quickly typical components include overview and use cases quickstart and authentication setup endpoint reference (methods, paths, parameters) request/response schemas and status codes error handling and troubleshooting code samples in multiple languages and sdks webhooks, pagination, rate limits, and versioning tutorials, how‑to guides, and a changelog what is an api specification and why create one? what do you mean by an api definition? how do api documentation, specifications, and definitions differ? what tools can i use to document my apis? documentation, technical writing tips and trends blog join 5000+ people from around the world that receive a monthly edition of the archbee blog newsletter mailto\ enter your email subscribe continue reading discover more insights and expand your knowledge https //www archbee com/blog/why teams are abandoning madcap flare a modern documentation alternative https //www archbee com/blog/why teams are abandoning madcap flare a modern documentation alternative https //www archbee com/blog/why teams are abandoning madcap flare a modern documentation alternative https //www archbee com/blog/why teams are abandoning madcap flare a modern documentation alternative https //www archbee com/blog/multi product documentation strategy https //www archbee com/blog/multi product documentation strategy https //www archbee com/blog/multi product documentation strategy https //www archbee com/blog/multi product documentation strategy https //www archbee com/blog/invisible roadblock poor documentation and how to break through https //www archbee com/blog/invisible roadblock poor documentation and how to break through https //www archbee com/blog/invisible roadblock poor documentation and how to break through https //www archbee com/blog/invisible roadblock poor documentation and how to break through