What is the difference between a webhook and an API?
With an API you decide when to ask for data. With a webhook, the other service decides when to tell you something happened. Most integrations use both, and mixing up which is which causes a lot of avoidable confusion.
What matters here
- API requests go out, webhooks come in
- APIs are pull, webhooks are push
- Webhooks need a URL you control and keep available
- APIs are easier to test on demand
- Retries and duplicates are normal in webhooks
Why the direction matters
Polling an API costs a request every time you check, and you still might miss the moment between checks. A webhook fires on the event, which is cheaper and faster, at the cost of needing a reliable endpoint.
The reliability trade
Anything pushed to you can arrive twice, out of order, or not at all. Good webhook consumers are idempotent and verify signatures, because the sender will retry and the network will misbehave.
Where the pairing shows up
Prysm Note exposes an API and supports personal access tokens for outside tools, and it can send notifications outward to services like Slack. Understanding which direction a given integration travels makes debugging far quicker.
Frequently asked questions
Keep reading
- Why do reminders not help me?Reminders fail when they arrive at a moment you cannot act, or when there are so many that you stop reading them. Both are fixable.
- How to keep a decision logA decision log records what you chose, what you rejected and why. It takes a paragraph and saves hours of rediscovery.
- How to track subscriptionsSubscriptions are small individually and significant together. The way to see them is one list with amount, renewal date and what it is for.
Turn talk into a plan
Capture a thought in plain language and let Prysm Note shape it into tasks and a timeline.
Disclaimer
This page is general information, not professional, legal, financial or medical advice. It describes common ways of working and how Prysm Note approaches them. Software changes over time, so details may differ from what you see in the product. Any product, company or brand names that appear are the property of their respective owners and are used only for identification. We do not claim any endorsement or affiliation. Where we compare approaches, we aim to describe each one honestly, including where a different approach may suit you better. Try the tools that matter to you and judge for yourself.