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API Capabilities Compared
Both Vanta and Drata automate SOC 2 evidence collection through integrations with your cloud infrastructure, identity providers, version control, and endpoint management. The out-of-box automation covers the same ground. Where they diverge is in what their APIs let you do when the native integrations don't reach your stack.
| Vanta API | Drata API | |
| Primary strength | Pushing data in | Pulling data out |
| Custom integrations | Build integrations for unsupported systems | Upload evidence for specific controls |
| Workflow automation | Offboarding, test queries, resource management | Evidence upload, custom workflow triggers |
| Reporting | Query test results, failing resources | Extract compliance data for dashboards and BI |
| Extensibility | Full RESTful API for account management | Focused endpoints for evidence and reporting |
| Best for | Teams with custom internal tools to integrate | Teams that need compliance data in external systems |
The distinction matters most when your stack includes systems that neither platform natively supports. If you need to push evidence in from custom tools, Vanta's API is built for that. If you need to pull compliance data out for reporting, Drata's API is stronger there.
How Each Platform Automates SOC 2 Evidence
Before getting into the APIs, both platforms handle the baseline well. For SOC 2 Trust Services Criteria automation, both provide continuous monitoring across AWS, GCP, Azure, Okta, GitHub, and other core infrastructure through read-only API integrations.
The philosophical difference: Vanta optimizes for breadth and speed (375+ integrations, fast onboarding), while Drata optimizes for depth and granularity (deeper cloud/CI-CD checks, custom logic-based tests). For a broader comparison beyond APIs, see our Drata vs Vanta for SOC 2 guide.
Where automation coverage overlaps
Both platforms automate evidence for the same core areas:
- Security (Common Criteria): Access controls, system operations, change management via cloud provider, identity, and version control integrations
- Availability: Multi-AZ deployment verification, backup settings, high-availability configurations
- Confidentiality and Privacy: Encryption at rest and in transit, policy distribution and acknowledgment tracking
- Processing Integrity: SDLC controls, code review enforcement, change management audit trails
The differences within each TSC are marginal. Drata's checks tend to go deeper on infrastructure configuration. Vanta's integration library covers more tools out of the box. Both reach the same audit outcome.
Vanta API: Built for Pushing Data In
Vanta's API is a full RESTful service designed for teams that need to extend the platform beyond its native integrations. The primary use case is getting evidence into Vanta from systems it doesn't connect to natively.
Key capabilities:
- Custom integrations: Push evidence from internal tools, custom-built systems, or niche SaaS products that aren't in Vanta's integration catalog. This is the biggest differentiator for engineering teams with non-standard stacks.
- Workflow automation: Programmatically trigger offboarding workflows, query test results to find failing resources, and manage resource ownership without touching the UI.
- Evidence upload: Upload file-based evidence for controls that require manual documentation.
- Account management: Manage users, resources, and configurations programmatically.
Best fit: Teams where a significant portion of the SOC 2 scope includes internal or custom-built systems. If your stack is mostly standard SaaS (AWS + Okta + GitHub), the API advantage is smaller. If you run custom infrastructure, the ability to push evidence in from anywhere is a meaningful efficiency gain.
Drata API: Built for Pulling Data Out
Drata's API is focused on extracting compliance data and programmatically uploading specific evidence types. The primary use case is getting data out of Drata into your existing reporting and dashboard infrastructure.
Key capabilities:
- Compliance data extraction: Pull control status, test results, and compliance metrics into external dashboards, BI tools, or executive reporting systems.
- Evidence upload: Upload evidence for controls that require manual documentation, with clear endpoints mapped to specific control types (training records, background checks, etc.).
- Custom workflow integration: Trigger and integrate with third-party workflow tools for remediation and escalation.
Best fit: Teams that need compliance data flowing into existing reporting infrastructure. If your leadership team tracks compliance health alongside other engineering metrics in a centralized dashboard, Drata's extraction capabilities make that integration cleaner.
Which API Approach Matters for Your Stack
The API choice is a technical decision, not a features-on-paper decision. It depends on where your evidence gaps are.
Vanta's API wins when: Your SOC 2 scope includes custom-built internal tools that no GRC platform integrates with natively, you want end-to-end evidence automation including non-standard sources, or your team prefers to build integrations rather than manually upload evidence.
Drata's API wins when: Your primary need is pulling compliance data into external systems (dashboards, BI, executive reporting), your stack is mostly covered by native integrations, or you want compliance health visible alongside other engineering metrics.
Neither API matters much when: Your stack is entirely standard SaaS tools that both platforms natively integrate with. In that case, the out-of-box automation handles most of the work.
What the Platform Won't Automate
Both APIs are powerful, but neither platform automates the full SOC 2 audit scope. The evidence layer is automated. The program layer is not.
You still need:
- Policies and procedures that describe how your organization actually operates
- Scope definition that identifies which systems, data flows, and people are in bounds
- Operating cadences for access reviews, vulnerability scanning, and policy updates
- Control ownership with people who understand both the technical implementation and what the auditor expects
A platform that automates 80% of evidence collection is transformative. But the remaining 20%, plus the program design that makes the evidence meaningful, is where most organizations need help.
We partner with Vanta, Drata, and more.
We don't just resell platforms. We help you choose, implement, and operationalize them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Vanta or Drata better for SOC 2 API automation?
It depends on your primary use case. Vanta's API is stronger for pushing custom evidence in from unsupported systems, making it a better fit for teams with non-standard stacks. Drata's API is stronger for pulling compliance data out into external reporting and dashboards. If your stack is mostly standard SaaS tools, the native integrations matter more than the API.
Can I use Vanta's API to integrate custom internal tools?
Yes. Vanta's API is specifically designed for building custom integrations that push evidence from systems not in the native integration catalog. This is one of Vanta's primary API differentiators for engineering teams with custom-built infrastructure.
What can Drata's API do that the dashboard can't?
Drata's API lets you extract compliance data programmatically for use in external dashboards, BI tools, and executive reporting. It also provides endpoints for uploading evidence for specific controls and integrating with third-party workflow tools for remediation.
How much of SOC 2 evidence collection can be automated?
Both platforms automate evidence collection for the core Trust Services Criteria through native integrations with cloud providers, identity systems, version control, and endpoint management. Typical automation coverage is 60-80% of evidence, depending on your stack. The remainder requires manual evidence, policy documentation, and operating processes that no platform fully automates.
Do I need both a GRC platform and a security program for SOC 2?
Yes. The platform automates evidence collection and tracks controls, but it doesn't design the security program. You still need defined scope, policies that match your operations, control ownership, and operating cadences. The platform is infrastructure for a program, not a substitute for one.
About the Author
Ali Aleali, CISSP, CCSP
Co-Founder & Principal Consultant, Truvo Cyber
Former security architect for Bank of Canada and Payments Canada. 20+ years building compliance programs for critical infrastructure.