Webhooks vs Polling: Keeping Systems in Sync
Every integration has to decide how to learn that something changed. The two main options are being told and asking repeatedly.
Prefer events when you can
Webhooks deliver changes within seconds and reduce wasted requests. They are ideal for new orders, status changes and catalog updates. Verify signatures, respond quickly and process the work asynchronously.
Keep polling as a safety net
Webhooks can be missed. A periodic reconciliation job that compares recent changes catches anything that slipped through. The combination of events for speed and polling for certainty is usually the most robust.
Key takeaways
Use webhooks for timely updates
Verify and acknowledge quickly
Run a periodic reconciliation job
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