Telegram API Explained: Bot API vs. MTProto vs. TDLib

Telegram offers multiple APIs for different use cases. Choosing the right one depends on what you are building.

Bot API

The simplest way to build Telegram bots. Works over HTTPS with JSON payloads.

• Use for: Bots, automated responses, group management, notifications.
• Auth: Bot Token from @BotFather.
• Endpoint: https://api.telegram.org/bot<TOKEN>/METHOD
• Limitation: Can only control bot accounts, not user accounts.

MTProto API

Telegram's native protocol for building custom clients and userbots.

• Use for: Custom Telegram clients, account automation, userbots, message scraping.
• Auth: API ID + API Hash from my.telegram.org, plus user authentication.
• Libraries: Telethon (Python), GramJS (JS), Pyrogram (Python), MadelineProto (PHP).
• Power: Full access to all Telegram features as a user account.

TDLib (Telegram Database Library)

A cross-platform library for building Telegram clients. Written in C++ with bindings for many languages.

• Use for: Full-featured Telegram clients, apps that need to handle everything Telegram does.
• Advantage: Handles all the complexity of MTProto, caching, and synchronization.
• Languages: C++, Java, Swift, C#, Go, Python, and more through bindings.

Which API Should You Use?

For bots, use the Bot API. It is simple, well-documented, and sufficient for 99% of bot use cases. For user account automation or custom clients, use MTProto (via a library) or TDLib.

Frequently Asked Questions