Extend your website’s functionality by using integrations and external APIs.
Lovable has native seamless integrations to export code and to add a backend. But it is also possible to integrate an external API if you are looking to add that specific functionality to your website.
An API is a way for software applications to communicate and share data with each other.
Different APIs offer different functionality such as sending emails or processing payments.
You can read more about the power of APIs in this article on our blog.
All other callable APIs can still be integrated, but they often require additional context and instructions.You might have:
Internal systems with custom APIs
These could be services your team has built (e.g. inventory systems, analytics pipelines, internal tools) that expose REST or GraphQL endpoints but aren’t publicly documented or widely known.
You want Lovable to pull from or send data to these systems to automate workflows or power user interfaces.
Third-party APIs Lovable doesn’t yet support
Maybe you use a niche SaaS product, a specialized data provider, or a partner integration that Lovable doesn’t have built-in knowledge of.
Even though it’s not officially supported, you still want Lovable to connect, make calls, and work with the data.
In both cases, the challenge is the same: Lovable doesn’t “know” the API by default. But with good documentation and authentication setup, it can still use it effectively.
Either way, the approach is the same: Lovable can still connect to it. Here’s how.
1
Give Lovable the context it needs
Lovable works best when it understands the API. You can provide:
OpenAPI specification (if available)
Copy-pasted docs or examples (especially endpoints and sample requests/responses)
The clearer the documentation, the better Lovable can reason about how to call the API.
2
Handle authentication safely
For APIs that require authentication:Option 1: Use Supabase Edge Functions as a proxy
Store secrets securely on Supabase
Let Lovable call the API endpoint via the Edge Function (not the API directly)
Option 2: Implement the API integration directly in your Lovable project
Expose an authentication endpoint (e.g. to exchange credentials for a token or session)
Let Lovable call that auth endpoint as part of the integration flow
Include tokens, headers, or session info in subsequent API calls