2022 State of the API Report

Organizations' investment of time and resources into APIs will increase or stay the same over the next 12 months, said 89% of respondents. This forecast comes even as two out of three respondents globally described the current economy as "not so good" or "poor."

When we polled just executives, a similar level of confidence emerged. Across 1,400 respondents with C-suite titles, 87% of CEOs, 86% of CIOs, and 93% of CTOs predicted API investments would rise or remain steady in the coming year.

From mid-June to mid-July 2022, we asked API developers and professionals around the globe how they would describe the economy. Some two-thirds called it “not so good” or “poor.” Their assessment was partly validated when, a few weeks later, the US reported a second straight quarter of economic contraction. Here's how the views broke down from all survey takers:

Despite respondents' dour assessment of the economy, they were optimistic about how their company would fare. We asked: "Given your description of the economy, how would you expect hiring, employee retention, and internal spending to be affected at your organization in the next 12 months?"

More than 70% said they expected all three business metrics to increase or stay the same. The sentiment was even brighter at the executive level. At least 76% of CEOs, CIOs, and CTOs predicted hiring, retention, and internal spending would rise or remain steady.

Is there a correlation between an API-first approach and an upbeat business outlook? Signs point to yes. API-first leaders were 35% more likely to forecast an increase in hiring over the coming year than respondents ranking themselves lowest in API-first. API-first leaders were also about 50% likelier to predict a rise in employee retention and internal spending.

Remote work is “very important,” according to 72% of developers and API professionals. And some 68% said they expect to work from home at least four days a week in the coming year. The preference for remote work comes as many employers negotiate a return to the office that has encountered resistance.

Across the globe, regions valued remote work differently. Asia-Pacific ranked it the lowest, with just 61% of local respondents calling it “very important.” In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, 72% of survey takers assigned it that label.

North American respondents were the second-likeliest to call remote work “very important” at 78%. And Latin American respondents prized remote work the most, at 82%.

In a given work week, how often do tech professionals expect to work from home in the coming 12 months? Globally, some 43% of respondents said they anticipate working remotely every day. A further 15% expected to work from home four days a week. Only 5% of survey takers anticipated no remote work.