APIs vs RPCs

Blockchain RPCs and APIs both facilitate interactions with a network, but they differ significantly in how they operate.

RPCs

Blockchain RPCs allow you to communicate directly with a blockchain node, performing tasks like querying data or submitting transactions. These are low-level, synchronous calls, requiring a deep understanding of the blockchain's structure and specific commands.

To get a more comprehensive understanding of Ethereum's JSON-RPC API, you can refer to the official Ethereum documentation.

APIs

Blockchain APIs, like the AvaCloud Data API, abstract away much of the complexity. They offer higher-level, user-friendly endpoints that streamline interactions, making it easier to build and manage blockchain applications without needing in-depth knowledge of the underlying blockchain protocols.

To get a more comprehensive understanding of the AvaCloud Data API, you can refer to the official AvaCloud Data API documentation.

Example Use Case

For example, querying a user's ERC-20 portfolio using an RPC involves a series of complex calls to retrieve and parse raw blockchain data. Using just RPCs, you would need to:

1. Query every block on the network for transaction logs.
2. Parse each transaction log to identify ERC-20 token transfers.
3. Extract the ERC-20 token contract address.
4. For each ERC-20 token contract, query the user's address to get the balance.
5. Parse and aggregate the data to present the user's portfolio.

While it may seem simple in theory, this process can be time-consuming and error-prone, especially when dealing with multiple blockchains.

With the AvaCloud Data API, you could simply use a dedicated endpoint such as:

curl --request GET \
  --url https://glacier-api.avax.network/v1/chains/{chainId}/addresses/{address}/balances:listErc20 \
  --header 'x-glacier-api-key: <api-key>'

to get a neatly formatted response with the user's ERC-20 portfolio, significantly reducing development time and complexity.

{
  "nextPageToken": "<string>",
  "erc20TokenBalances": [
    {
      "address": "0x71C7656EC7ab88b098defB751B7401B5f6d8976F",
      "name": "Wrapped AVAX",
      "symbol": "WAVAX",
      "decimals": 18,
      "logoUri": "https://images.ctfassets.net/gcj8jwzm6086/5VHupNKwnDYJvqMENeV7iJ/fdd6326b7a82c8388e4ee9d4be7062d4/avalanche-avax-logo.svg",
      "ercType": "ERC-20",
      "price": {
        "currencyCode": "usd",
        "value": "42.42"
      },
      "chainId": "43114",
      "balance": "2000000000000000000",
      "balanceValue": {
        "currencyCode": "usd",
        "value": "42.42"
      }
    }
  ]
}