> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.symmetry.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Portal vs. API

> Choose between Payroll Point Portal and the REST API. Compares Maps and Batch against the taxes endpoint, technical requirements, and typical users.

There are two ways to use Payroll Point. Both run the same determination against the same tax data and return the same results. What differs is who uses them and how.

## At a glance

|                            | Portal                                                                     | API                                                                            |
| -------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Best for**               | HR professionals and payroll administrators looking up taxes manually.     | Developers integrating tax determination into a payroll system or application. |
| **How it works**           | Browser-based UI with Maps for single lookups and Batch for bulk CSV runs. | REST API; the primary endpoint is `/prp/v1/taxes`.                             |
| **Technical requirements** | None. Log in and start looking up taxes.                                   | API credentials and integration work.                                          |
| **Typical users**          | HR teams, payroll specialists, benefits administrators.                    | Developers, system integrators.                                                |
| **Volume**                 | One address pair at a time, or a batch file.                               | Programmatic, at whatever volume your integration needs.                       |
| **Get started**            | [Portal quickstart →](/prp/getting-started/portal-quickstart)              | [API quickstart →](/prp/getting-started/api-quickstart)                        |

## What the Portal gives you

**Maps.** Enter a home and work address, set whether the employer has nexus in the home state, and get the applicable taxes back with the geospatial boundaries drawn on a map. Useful for researching one employee, or for seeing *why* a location resolves the way it does. See [Data returned from maps](/prp/portal/maps-data-returned).

**Batch.** Upload a CSV or enter rows manually, run the whole file, and download the results. Batch supports custom download templates across more than 80 fields, and batch data is retained in the interface for 30 days. See [Payroll Point Batch](/prp/portal/batch).

**Address exceptions.** Override the geocoordinates for a location when geocoding resolves to the wrong place. Exceptions apply to your whole organization. See [Address exceptions](/prp/portal/address-exceptions).

## What the API gives you

| Endpoint                  | Purpose                                                                                              |
| ------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `POST /prp/v1/taxes`      | The primary endpoint. Returns applicable taxes for one home location and one or more work locations. |
| `GET /prp/v1/accountInfo` | Account details and transaction counts between two dates.                                            |

Clients who license the minimum wage add-on also get `/prp/v1/minimumwage/location`, `/minimumwage/id`, and `/minimumwage/rates/effective`.

Authentication is a JWT from `/authentication/login`, sent as a Bearer token. See the [PRP API overview](/prp/api-reference/overview) for base URLs and token lifetime, and the [endpoint reference](/prp/api-reference/location-taxes/returns-taxes-based-on-single-home-and-multiple-work-locations-passed-in) for full schemas.

## Using both

The two aren't exclusive. A common pattern is to integrate the API for day-to-day determination inside a payroll platform, while payroll staff use the Portal to investigate individual cases, visualize boundaries, and manage address exceptions, which apply to API lookups too.

## Where to go next

<Note>
  Before your first lookup, your organization's profile settings need to be configured. If you're using Portal, it's also worth reviewing the global settings that change which taxes are returned. See [Prerequisites](/prp/getting-started/prerequisites).
</Note>

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Quickstart: Look up taxes in Portal" icon="rocket" href="/prp/getting-started/portal-quickstart">
    Log in and run your first Maps or Batch lookup.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Quickstart: Call the Payroll Point API" icon="rocket" href="/prp/getting-started/api-quickstart">
    Authenticate and make your first `/prp/v1/taxes` call.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>