REST API vs Mobile SDKs

Passio's Nutrition AI platform is available through two integration paths: the REST API and Mobile SDKs. Both share the same backend, the same food database, and the same AI models — the choice depends on your platform and use case.

When to use the REST API

• Web applications — the REST API is the only option for browser-based or server-side integrations.

• Backend services — if your architecture has a backend that handles nutrition lookups on behalf of clients.

• Newest features first — the REST API generally receives new endpoints and capabilities slightly ahead of the SDKs.

• Full control — you manage authentication, request headers, image handling, and response parsing yourself.

• Model selection per request — the REST API supports choosing which AI model to use on every individual request via the ?model= query parameter.

When to use the Mobile SDKs

• iOS, Android, React Native, or Flutter apps — the SDKs wrap the REST API and handle authentication, image resizing, camera integration, and response parsing for you.

• Faster integration — configuration is a few lines of code; camera preview, barcode scanning, and image capture are built in.

• Same core features — all core use cases (image recognition, text search, voice logging, barcode scanning, nutrition label scanning, food details) are available in both the API and the SDKs.

• Same response times — for features available in both, the SDK and API have identical server-side processing. The SDK adds minimal overhead for the native bridge.

What is available where?

All core features are available in both the REST API and the Mobile SDKs. A small number of features are currently API-only:

Feature	REST API	Mobile SDKs
Image recognition	Yes	Yes
Text search (semantic)	Yes	Yes
Voice / text logging	Yes	Yes
Barcode scanning	Yes	Yes
Nutrition label scanning	Yes	Yes
Food detail lookup	Yes	Yes
Meal plan generation	Yes	Yes
Localization & regional search	Yes	Yes
Model selection per request	Yes	Dashboard default only
Nutrition Advisor	Yes	Yes
Concern flags / search filtering	Yes	Yes
Intelligence Profile	Yes	Not yet
Custom AI (Easy AI)	Yes	Coming soon
Food submission & reporting	Yes	Yes

For a full endpoint-by-endpoint mapping, see Endpoints in API vs SDKs.

Can I use both?

Yes. The same Nutrition AI key works across the REST API and all SDKs. A common pattern is using the SDK in your mobile app for camera-based features, while using the REST API on your backend for meal plan generation, analytics, or web dashboards.