Built an API discovery + testing platform — looking for honest feedback
Hey everyone,
I’ve been working on something called Apives — the idea came from a simple frustration:
Every time I needed an API, I ended up jumping between random docs, broken links, outdated GitHub lists… and still wasn’t sure if it would actually work in my project.
So I started building a place where:
APIs are manually curated (no spam lists)
You can test them instantly (no setup headache)
Integration is simple and fast
Focus is on real, usable APIs (not just listings)
Right now there are 200+ APIs across different categories like AI, search, automation, etc.
Some things I’ve added:
Live API request runner
Quick start code snippets
Clean + simple interface (no clutter)
Focus on dev experience over hype
Still early, but trying to make it actually useful instead of just another directory.
Would really appreciate:
What feels useful vs useless
What’s missing
Anything confusing or annoying
Trying to build this in public and improve based on real feedback.
Link: apives.com
The manual curation is a huge win. Github lists are usually where APIs go to die, so having a 'live' runner is great.
Since you’re focusing on the dev experience, have you thought about adding a Search/Lookup API for the directory itself? If I could query Apives directly to find the right tool or check integration specs without leaving my own terminal or workflow, it would move this from just a ‘site I visit’ to an actual part of my stack.
You’ve already got the good stuff on there; making it programmatically searchable feels like the natural next step for a dev-first tool. Congrats on the launch!
Hey, the frustration is real — I've been there too many times !!
The instant API testing is what makes this interesting, most directories stop at listing. Don't bury that feature, it should be the first thing people see.
One thing I'd add: use-case based filtering. Devs often don't know the API name, they know the problem they're trying to solve.
Also building a directory in the AI tools space, so I know how hard it is to escape the "just another list" trap. You're on the right track with the functional layer.
The live request runner is the feature that separates you from a directory. Most API listings stop at documentation. You let people verify before they integrate. That's not curation — that's de-risking. The question is whether the manual curation can scale without becoming either slow or sloppy. The answer might be to keep it small. 200 verified APIs is more valuable than 2,000 unverified ones. The friction is the filter. Don't optimize it away.
This actually solves a real pain — jumping between random API docs is exhausting. If the testing stays fast and reliable, I’d 100% use this over typical directories.
Is this public APIs? or internal to the company?
What kind of tests do you generate and what does testcase coverage look like?
This is solid — but I think the biggest leak right now is how it’s framed.
“API discovery + testing” still sounds like:
→ another directory + tool combo
But your real value feels closer to:
→ “find + verify APIs that actually work in minutes”
That’s a very different promise.
Also — small but important:
“Apives” doesn’t immediately signal what it does, so people have to read to understand instead of recognizing instantly.
If this was positioned + named around:
→ speed (no doc hunting)
→ certainty (it actually works)
I think it would click much faster.
Curious — what’s the exact moment where someone says:
“okay, I need this instead of just Googling APIs”?