Rewards API vs SDK vs Loyalty Portal: What to Use When

Three Ways to Implement Rewards

There are three common integration approaches for rewards infrastructure:

• APIs
• SDKs
• Loyalty or redemption portals

Each approach has tradeoffs depending on product maturity, team capacity, and control requirements.

Rewards API

What it is:
Backend APIs that allow full control over reward issuance and redemption logic.

Best for:

• mature product teams
• high event volume systems
• custom reward logic

Tradeoffs:

• higher engineering effort
• longer implementation time

Rewards SDK

What it is:
Pre-built components that embed reward flows directly into apps.

Best for:

• faster launches
• limited backend capacity
• standard reward experiences

Tradeoffs:

• less flexibility
• dependency on SDK updates

Loyalty or Redemption Portals

What it is:
Managed user-facing portals where users redeem rewards outside the core app.

Best for:

• pilot programs
• legacy systems
• minimal engineering effort

Tradeoffs:

• fragmented user experience
• reduced product control

Choosing the Right Approach

Many platforms start with one approach and evolve over time.

Infrastructure Platforms Support All Three

Infrastructure providers such as Hubble typically support:

• APIs for advanced teams
• SDKs for rapid rollout
• portals for transitional use cases

This allows teams to evolve without rebuilding systems.