---
title: "Kombo vs Knit: How do they compare for HR Integrations?"
description: "Not all unified APIs handle data the same way. Explore how Kombo and Knit compare on sync models, security, and developer effort — and what that means for your customers."
source_url: "https://www.getknit.dev/blog/kombo-vs-knit-how-do-they-compare-for-hr-integrations"
page_type: "blog"
---

_This is an educational blog post from Knit's blog: “Kombo vs Knit: How do they compare for HR Integrations?”._

# Kombo vs Knit: How do they compare for HR Integrations?

Whether you’re a SaaS founder, product manager, or part of the customer success team, one thing is non-negotiable — **customer data privacy**. If your users don’t trust how you handle data, especially when integrating with third-party tools, it can derail deals and erode trust.

Unified APIs have changed the game by letting you launch integrations faster. But under the hood, not all unified APIs work the same way — and **Kombo.dev and Knit.dev take very different approaches**, especially when it comes to **data sync**, **compliance**, and **scalability**.

Let’s break it down.

## What is a Unified API?

Unified APIs let you integrate once and connect with many applications (like HR tools, CRMs, or payroll systems). They normalize different APIs into one schema so you don’t have to build from scratch for every tool.

A typical unified API has 4 core components:

*   **Authentication & Authorization**
*   **Connectors**
*   **Data Sync (initial + delta)**
*   **Integration Management**

### Between the Source App and Unified API

*   **Kombo.dev** uses a **copy-and-store model**. Once a user connects an app, Kombo:  

    *   Pulls the data from the source app.
    *   Stores a copy of that data on their servers.
    *   Uses polling or webhooks to keep the copy updated.

*   **Knit.dev** is different: **it doesn’t store any customer data.  
     **
    *   Once a user connects an app, Knit:
        *   Delivers both initial and delta syncs via **event-driven webhooks**.
        *   Pushes data directly to your app without persisting it anywhere.

### Between the Unified API and Your App

*   **Kombo** uses a **pull model** — you’re expected to call their API to fetch updates.  

*   **Knit** uses a **pure push model** — data is sent to your registered webhook in real-time.

## Why This Matters

| Factor | Kombo.dev | Knit.dev |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Data Privacy | Stores customer data | Does not store customer data |
| Latency & Performance | Polling introduces sync delays | Real-time webhooks for instant updates |
| Engineering Effort | Requires polling infrastructure on your end | Fully push-based, no polling infra needed |

## Authentication & Authorization

*   **Kombo** offers pre-built UI components.
*   **Knit** provides a **flexible JS SDK** + **Magic Link flow** for seamless auth customization.

This makes Knit ideal if you care about branding and custom UX.

## Summary Table

| Feature | Kombo.dev | Knit.dev |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Data Sync | Store-and-pull | Push-only webhooks |
| Data Storage | Yes | No  |
| Delta Syncs | Polling or webhook to Kombo | Webhooks to your app |
| Auth Flow | UI widgets | SDK + Magic Link |
| Monitoring | Basic | Advanced (RCA, reruns, logs) |
| Real-Time Use Cases | Limited | Fully supported |

Tom summarize, Knit API is the only unified API that does not store customer data at our end, and offers a scalable, secure, event-driven push data sync architecture for smaller as well as larger data loads.By now, if you are convinced that Knit API is worth giving a try, please c[lick here t](https://getknit.dev/book-demo)o get your API keys. Or if you want to learn more, [see our docs](https://developers.getknit.dev/)


## Related pages

- [How Knit works](https://md.getknit.dev/how-knit-works)
- [Unified API product](https://md.getknit.dev/products/unified-api)