05 Best Embed Video Conferencing APIs: The Complete Guide

Shyam Vijay Published On May 21st, 2025 Reviewed by: Alexander S Share it on

Have an app and want to add video conferencing to it? Appreciate the idea! 

Connecting internal teams, customers or stakeholders through face-to-face meetings can drive the growth of your business tremendously.

Practically, there are 2 ways to do this:

1. Writing every part of the code yourself
2. Using a pre-built API

In this article, we will discuss why choosing a pre-built API is better than writing the features all by yourself. We’ll also help you with a plan, strategy and implementation steps to build a complete video conferencing platform in just 48 hrs, with the help of an API.

Sounds like a plan? Let’s get started! 

First, let’s see why we recommend using a pre-built API over building from scratch.

Challenges Of Building Video Apps [Without An API]

As a developer, writing every line of your app may seem interesting. It truly is an experience to see your efforts take shape into a fully functional product. 

However, in a business environment, building it all yourself might pose a few risks. 

This is not a discouragement, rather a heads-up of what you may face if you choose to build business-critical apps with hand-written codes, especially when there are time restrictions.

1. The first concern is – what happens when latency occurs? Users cannot turn fans to platforms that are laggy and buffering. They’ll need audio and video streams with the picture-perfect quality in real-time.

A deeper knowledge on protocols like WebRTC is critical at these situations along with sufficient resources to handle latency challenges. 

💡How does an API help with latency?

Pre-built APIs are carefully designed to reduce processing time and ensure that the servers respond quickly. This eliminates latency at most scenarios.

2. We are not talking about connecting 2-3 people at a conference. It’s at least 100 to a million people. This means your app must be able to handle heavy call volumes at the same time.  

The infrastructure to build such a platform with perfect performance and stability might be complex and would be expensive if NOT going through an API.

💡How does an API handle scalability?

A pre-built video API uses techniques like load balancing, horizontal and vertical scaling, caching, auto-scaling, rate limiting, and distributed systems to manage resources and respond faster when demand increases.

3. Imagine your app working perfectly for Android users, while iOS users just see a blank screen. That’s a good enough reason to lose credibility. 

Your app must work the same way on all devices and operating systems. You’ll need to put significant effort into optimizing the platform to work cleanly on all devices.

💡How does an API handle cross-platform compatibility challenges?

Most video APIs from reliable providers are built to be compatible with every platform and tech stack. You can use them for building apps that run on any communication device or OS.

4. There is a list of components you cannot compromise on when building a video conferencing platform. Data security and user privacy stand at the top of them all. 

Even a minor mistake with the design and implementation might lead to unauthorized access, costing your brand’s reputation and an unimaginable penalty.

💡How does an API handle Security concerns?

APIs, especially offered by MirrorFly and Apphitect support customisable security, which means you can use any layers of encryptions above their pre-built AES encryptions and SSL. Plus they adhere to region-specific compliances beyond default compatibility with GDPR, HIPAA and OWASP.

5. Network strength is not going to be the same all the time. There might be limitations in bandwidth, packet loss, and jitters that might affect the user experience on your app. 

You’ll need advanced encoding, decoding, and adaptive bitrate algorithms that handle the complexities and resolve the issues before they disturb user experience. 

💡How does an API handle quality and performance issues?

An API optimizes the performance through various techniques like caching, load balancing, rate limiting. The provider’s expert team continuously monitor and fix bugs to maintain overall performance.

6. If your users are not able to navigate around your platform and keep getting stuck at the same place with a bad design, every effort you’ve put into building the platform may go in vain. 

You need to understand your users, their expectations and preferences, and deliver the exact experience to keep them around.

💡How does an API handle UI concerns?

When you use a custom video API, it gives you all the freedom to design and control the UI independently. This means, you can personalize or modify the UI Kit, just as your business demands.

7. It’s going to cost you a lot if not planned right. Building a video conferencing platform would take a minimum of 3 months to 2 years if you built every feature on your own. 

Rather, a pre-built API can help you launch the app in 48 hours and at a cost lower than what you’ll spend when building on your own.

💡How does an API handle Cost and Time concerns?

To purchase an API, you can go for providers that let you pick only the features you want and pay for a license fee, instead of purchasing elements that you don’t use. This saves a lot of money and gives you full access to the APIs. Plus, it takes less than 48 hrs to build video apps, when compared to self app development that would take months to years.

Now that you know why it is important to use an API, the next question is – which API is the best? In the next section, we will check out the best 11 video conferencing apps that are perfect for embedding into your platform.

Top 5 APIs & SDKs To Build A Video Conferencing App

The top 5 best Video conferencing APIs are MirrorFly, Apphitect, Microsoft Teams API, Google Meet API, and Zoom Video API.

Below is a list of the most reliable, secure, and high-performance APIs and SDKs that are preferred by developers building video conferencing platforms for businesses. 

1. MirrorFly

MirrorFly is a leader in the CPaaS industry. It offers a 100% customisable video conferencing solution that comprises 1000+ features along with instant messaging, live streaming and activity feeds. This platform gives you full control over user data and does not access any part of it. It lets you white-label your app and customize even the security features to give you full ownership.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Key Features	Hosting	Languages
Unlimited video calls Video Broadcasting  Live Streaming	On-premise hosting Multi-tenant cloud hosting	Custom (All languages)

Why MirrorFly?

• 100% customisable features 
• Complete data sovereignty
• Custom Security

Ultimately, choose MirrorFly if you need a fully customisable video calling solution to build your web or mobile platform with complete control over data and security.

---

2. Apphitect

Apphitect is a self-hosted communication solution that offers an extensive range of video calling capabilities along with support for 100+ third-party integrations. It comes with an option to customize your features and white-label your platform with your own logo, colors and brand elements.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Key Features	Hosting	Languages
1:1 & group video callsConferencing Broadcasting	Self-managed hostingCloud hosting	Custom (All languages)

---

3. Microsoft Teams API

If your organization is already using MS services, the API offered by Microsoft can make embedding video conferencing into your app a lot more easier. MS Team is a popular choice among corporates and its API is well-known for collaboration features.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Key Features	Hosting	Languages
Channels Messaging Bots	Cloud-based (Azure cloud resources integration)	.NET (C#, VB.NET) JavaScript/TypeScript (Node.js, Browser) Python

4. Google Meet API

Google is popular for its wide range of tools and their reliability. Their Meet Video API is one such product that can help you embed video conferencing with easy implementation and for robust performance. into your app. If you are already using Google’s products for your business operations, this would make a great pick already.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Key Features	Hosting	Languages
Meeting management Meeting history Real-time notifications	Cloud-based service (managed by Google)	Python Java Node.js

5. Zoom video API

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Key Features	Hosting	Languages
Custom video meetings User management Session data access	Cloud hosting (Zoom infrastructure)	Electron React Native Flutter

Zoom is the name for video conferencing in recent years. If you are not preferring their meeting app, you can use their video API to add video and audio features into your app. Their SDK is packed with features as you see on their platform and can make a great choice if you need a user-friendly interface.

How To Embed Video Conferencing Into Apps With An API

In this section, we will discuss the steps to add video conferencing in 2 different parts. 

1. Steps to embed video conferencing into website
2. Steps to embed video conferencing into mobile apps

For both the demonstrations, we will use MirrorFly’s video conferencing API. 

As a prerequisite, 

You’ll need a MirrorFly developer account to get the SDK and your license key. 

Now, let’s get started with the steps to embed the video API into websites.

How To Embed Video Calls On Your Website

Integrate Using Npm package

Step 1: Use the following command to install the MirrorFly SDK npm package.

npm i mirrorfly-sdk

Step 2: Import the SDK into your device on any location you prefer.

import * as SDK from "mirrorfly-sdk";

Call SDK Integration [JavaScript]

[Skip this step if you’ve already installed the SDK using NPM.]

Step 1: If not, download the JavaScript SDK files by clicking the Download button given below.

Step 2: Unzip the downloaded file. Copy all the extracted files into your project folder.

Step 3: After copying the files, add the script file to your index.html.

Step 4: Now, the SDK object will be available in your app and you can start using it for setting up the SDK and adding the features. 

Step 5: Once you successfully add the SDK, you can go ahead and start implementing it in the programming language you prefer.

Call SDK Initialization

To start initializing the Call SDK, you’ll need some data that can track the changes in the connection status of your client app. 

Use the below code to track the event changes and to initialize the SDK.

const incomingCallListener = (res) => {};
const callStatusListener = (res) => {};
const userTrackListener = (res) => {};
const muteStatusListener = (res) => {};
const missedCallListener = (res) => {};
const callSwitchListener = (res) => {};
const inviteUsersListener = (res) => {};
const mediaErrorListener = (res) => {};
const callSpeakingListener = (res) => {};
const callUsersUpdateListener = (res) => {};
const callUserJoinedListener = (res) => {};
const callUserLeftListener = (res) => {};
const callConnectionQualityListener = (res) => {};
const helper = {}

const initializeObj = {
  licenseKey: "XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
  callbackListeners: {
    connectionListener,
    incomingCallListener,
    callStatusListener,
    userTrackListener,
    muteStatusListener,
    missedCallListener,
    callSwitchListener,
    inviteUsersListener,
    mediaErrorListener,
    callSpeakingListener,
    callUsersUpdateListener,
    callUserJoinedListener,
    callUserLeftListener,
    callConnectionQualityListener,
    helper
  },
};

await SDK.initializeSDK(initializeObj);

User Registration

Step 1: Use the method below to register a new user.

Step 2: After registering, you’ll receive a username and password. You can use these credentials in the connect method and connect your app to the server.

await SDK.register(`USER_IDENTIFIER`);

Connection to MirrorFly Server

If the connection is successful, you will receive an approval message with a statusCode of 200. If there’s an issue, you’ll get an execution error.

You can also track the connection status through the connectionListener callback function.

await SDK.connect(`USERNAME`, `PASSWORD`);

User JID Preparation

To generate a JID (Jabber ID) for any user, use the method given below.

const userJid = SDK.getJid(USER_NAME)

Make a Voice Call

To initiate a call, provide the callee’s user JID in the makeVoiceCall method. Once the call is successfully initiated, a callStatusListener callback will be triggered. Then, you will receive the call status of the callee there.

SDK.makeVoiceCall(['USER_JID'], null, metadata, (success, error) => {
  if (error) {
    // Error occured while making the call
  }
  if (success) {
    // Call has been made successfully
  }
});

Receive Incoming Call

To receive an incoming call, you need to make sure that the incomingCallListener callback is registered in the callee’s client app. Whenever a user calls the callee, the calling data will be received in this callback.

// Callback Response Argument Structure
{
    allUsers:["USER1_JID", "USER2_JID",...],
    callTime: 1681905421215,
    callType: "audio|video",
    groupId: null|GROUP_ID,
    localUser: BOOLEAN,
    roomId: "wmupbheao",
    roomLink: "ndy-bmkb-eui"
    status: "calling",
    toUsers: ["USER_JID"],
    userDetails: {},
    userJid: "FROM_USER_JID",
    usersStatus: [{}]
}

Answer Incoming Call

To answer an incoming call, use the answerCall method.

SDK.answerCall((success, error) => {
  if (error) {
    // Error occured while answering the call
  }
  if (success) {
    // Call has been answered successfully
  }
});

End a Call

To end a call use the endCall method.

SDK.endCall((success, error) => {
  if (error) {
    // Error occured while ending the call
  }
  if (success) {
    // Call has been ended successfully
  }
});

By this step , you’ll have a basic video conferencing app with the capability to make and receive calls. For more advanced features, you can go ahead and add relevant codes using this documentation. 

Now, let’s move on to building a video conferencing mobile app with MirrorFly API. 

How To Embed Video Calls On Your Mobile Apps

Note: If you do not have an app already, you can use the MirrorFly sample app to get started without any hassle

Step 1: Create a new project or open an existing one in Android Studio.

Step 2:

• If you’re using Gradle 6.8 or higher, add the following code to your settings.gradle file.

dependencyResolutionManagement {
    repositories {
        jcenter()
        maven {
            url "https://repo.mirrorfly.com/release"
        }
    }
}

• If you’re using Gradle 6.7 or lower, add the code to your root build.gradle file.

allprojects {
    repositories {
        jcenter()
        maven {
            url "https://repo.mirrorfly.com/release"
        }
    }
}

Step 3: Add the following dependencies to your app/build.gradle file.

dependencies {
    implementation 'com.mirrorfly.sdk:mirrorflysdk:7.13.23'
 }

Step 4: To avoid conflicts with the imported libraries, add the following line to your gradle.properties file.

android.enableJetifier=true

Call SDK Initialisation

To start using the SDK, use the method below from ChatManager in your Application class, inside the onCreate() method.

ChatManager.initializeSDK("LICENSE_KEY", (isSuccess, throwable, data) -> {
            if(isSuccess){
                Log.d("TAG", "initializeSDK success ");
            }else{
                Log.d("TAG", "initializeSDK failed with reason "+data.get("message"));
            }
        });

MyApplication Addition

Add your created MyApplication class to the AndroidManifest.xml file like this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    package="com.example.uikitapplication">

    <application
        android:name=".MyApplication"  // Add this line.
        android:icon="@mipmap/ic_launcher"
        android:label="@string/app_name"
        android:roundIcon="@mipmap/ic_launcher_round"
        android:theme="@style/AppTheme">
        <activity android:name=".MainActivity">
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
                ...
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>
    </application>

User Registration

Use the method below to register a user in sandbox live mode.

FlyCore.registerUser(USER_IDENTIFIER, (isSuccess, throwable, data ) -> {
        if(isSuccess) {
            Boolean isNewUser = (Boolean) data.get("is_new_user");  // true - if the current user is different from the previous session's logged-in user, false - if the same user is logging in again
            String userJid = (String) data.get("userJid"); //Ex. 12345678@xmpp-preprod-sandbox.mirrorfly.com (USER_IDENTIFIER+@+domain of the chat server)
            JSONObject responseObject = (JSONObject) data.get("data");
            String username = responseObject.getString("username");
        } else {
           // Register user failed print throwable to find the exception details.
        }
   });

Chat Server Connection

Once registration is successful, the ChatSDK will automatically try to connect to the Chat Server. It also monitors the app’s lifecycle and will connect or disconnect from the server as needed.

Call Event Observation

Once you’ve set the ChatConnectionListener, you’ll start receiving connection status updates through its callback method, as shown below.

ChatManager.setConnectionListener(new ChatConnectionListener() {
    @Override
    public void onConnected() {
        // Write your success logic here to navigate Profile Page or
        // To Start your one-one chat with your friends
    }

    @Override
    public void onDisconnected() {
        // Connection disconnected
    }

    @Override
    public void onConnectionFailed(@NonNull FlyException e) {
        // Connection Not authorized or Unable to establish connection with server
    }

    @Override
    public void onReconnecting() {
        // Automatic reconnection enabled
    }
});

Call SDK Initialisation

In your Application class, inside the onCreate() method, add the following lines:

@Override
public void onCreate() {
super.onCreate();

//set your call activity
CallManager.setCallActivityClass(CALL_UI_ACTIVITY.class);
CallManager.setMissedCallListener((isOneToOneCall, userJid, groupId, callType, userList,CallMetaData[] callMetaDataArray) -> {
  //show missed call notification
});

CallManager.setCallHelper(new CallHelper() {
      @NonNull
      @Override
      public String getNotificationContent(@NonNull String callDirection,CallMetaData[] callMetaDataArray) {
          return CallNotificationHelper.getNotificationMessage();
      }

  });

CallManager.setCallNameHelper(new CallNameHelper() {
      @NonNull
      @Override
      public String getDisplayName(@NonNull String jid,CallMetaData[] callMetaDataArray) {
          return ContactManager.getDisplayName(jid);
      }
  });
}

Call Activity Setup

The Call UI Activity should be defined in your AndroidManifest.xml file as shown below:

 <activity
            android:name="YOUR_CALL_ACTIVITY"
            android:configChanges="screenSize|smallestScreenSize|screenLayout|orientation"
            android:excludeFromRecents="true"
            android:launchMode="singleTask"
            android:resizeableActivity="false"
            android:screenOrientation="portrait"
            android:supportsPictureInPicture="true"
            android:showOnLockScreen="true"
            android:turnScreenOn="true"
            android:taskAffinity="call.video"
            tools:targetApi="o_mr1" />

In your Call Activity’s onCreate() method, configure the call activity properly by calling the below method.

CallManager.configureCallActivity(ACTIVITY);

To remove the ongoing call notification, call the method below in the onStart() method of your Call Activity.

CallManager.unbindCallService();

User JID Preparation

To generate a JID (Jabber ID) for any user, use the method below.

FlyUtils.getJid(USER_NAME)

Runtime permissions

For video call, we need below permissions:

Manifest.permission.RECORD_AUDIO
Manifest.permission.CAMERA
Manifest.permission.READ_PHONE_STATE

Check video call permissions with the below method

CallManager.isVideoCallPermissionsGranted();

To check call notification permission, use the below method

CallManager.isNotificationPermissionsGranted();

Make a Video Call

To make a 1:1 video call, use the below method

CallManager.makeVideoCall("TO_JID",CALL_METADATA, (isSuccess, flyException) -> {
            if(isSuccess){
                 //SDK will take care of presenting the Call UI. It will present the activity that is passed using the method `CallManager.setCallActivityClass()`
                Log.d("MakeCall","call success");
            }else{
                if(flyException!=null){
                    String errorMessage = flyException.getMessage();
                    Log.d("MakeCall","Call failed with error: "+errorMessage);
                    //toast error message
                }
            }
        });

Make a Group Video Call

The group video call feature lets you make a video call with multiple SDK users, plus call metadata. Just use the method below to start a group video call.

CallManager.makeGroupVideoCall(JID_LIST, GROUP_ID,CALL_METADATA, new CallActionListener() {
            @Override
            public void onResponse(boolean isSuccess, @Nullable FlyException flyException) {
                if (isSuccess) {
                     //SDK will take care of presenting the Call UI. It will present the activity that is passed using the method `CallManager.setCallActivityClass()`
                    Log.d("MakeCall", "call success");
                } else {
                    if (flyException != null) {
                        String errorMessage = flyException.getMessage();
                        Log.d("MakeCall", "Call failed with error: " + errorMessage);
                        //toast error message
                    }
                }
            }
        });

Participant Addition to Call

Once the call is connected, you can add more users to the ongoing call. The SDK has methods to invite users to join. When they accept the incoming call, they’ll be added to the ongoing call.

CallManager.inviteUsersToOngoingCall(JID_LIST, new CallActionListener() {
            @Override
            public void onResponse(boolean isSuccess, @Nullable FlyException flyException) {
                
            }
        });

Receive Incoming Call

When you receive an audio/video call from another SDK user, the Call SDK will show a notification if the device’s Android version is 10 (API level 29) or higher. 

If the device is running a lower Android version, the activity set using CallManager.setCallActivityClass() during Call SDK initialization will start with the call details. 

Answer Incoming Call

To answer the incoming audio/video call, when the user presses the accept button on your call UI, you need to call the SDK method below.

CallManager.answerCall((isSuccess, flyException) -> {
            if(isSuccess){
                Log.d("AnswerCall","call answered success");
            }else{
                if(flyException!=null){
                    String errorMessage = flyException.getMessage();
                    Log.d("AnswerCall","Call answered failed with error: "+errorMessage);
                    //toast error message
                }
            }
        });

Decline Incoming Call

When you receive an audio/video call from another SDK user, and depending on the Android version, your activity may start. If the user presses the decline button on your call UI, you need to call the SDK method below to decline the call and notify the caller.

 CallManager.declineCall();

Disconnect Ongoing Call

To disconnect an ongoing video call, whether before the call connects or after the conversation ends, when the user presses the disconnect button on your call UI, you need to call the SDK method below to disconnect the call and notify the caller.

  CallManager.disconnectCall();

If you are at this step, you’ll have a fully functional video conferencing app with the core communication features. Go ahead and add advanced video conferencing features using this documentation.

Editor’s Recommendation

Now you know how to build a complete video conferencing app using an API!

Using a pre-built SDK is always the easiest and the wisest option to create the platform. 

After rigorous trials and testing, we’d suggest you to go with MirrorFly or Apphitect’s video conferencing API for the following reasons:

• 100% customization
• Full data control
• Full source code access
• Custom security
• Self-hosted solution
• 1000+ features 
• Hire dedicated team 

We could go on. But we’d highly recommend you to explore the solutions on their official website or contact their experts to understand how they can align with your business goals. 

Until the next article, happy developing!