How often does Salesforce release a new API version?

Salesforce ships three releases per year (Spring, Summer, Winter), and each one introduces a new API version number.

Why does Salesforce pin each metadata component to a specific API version?

Pinning a component to an API version ensures that its behavior stays stable even when Salesforce introduces changes in newer versions.

What eventually happens to very old API versions?

Salesforce periodically retires old API versions in scheduled waves, after which components pinned to those versions stop functioning.

API Version

Development🟡 Intermediate

Definition

API Version in Salesforce refers to the specific release version of the Salesforce API that a piece of metadata (such as an Apex class, trigger, Visualforce page, or Lightning component) is associated with. Each Salesforce release introduces a new API version number, and metadata components retain their assigned version to ensure backward compatibility. Administrators and developers can update the API version to access newer platform features.

Real-World Example

a Salesforce developer at CodeBridge uses API Version to create a robust integration between Salesforce and an external system. Using API Version, the developer builds an efficient solution that syncs data in near real-time, handles error scenarios gracefully, and includes detailed logging for troubleshooting.

Why API Version Matters

Salesforce releases three seasonal updates each year (Spring, Summer, Winter), and each release bumps the API version number, for example from 61.0 to 62.0. Every piece of metadata that references the API (Apex classes, triggers, Visualforce pages, Lightning components, Flows) stores the version it was saved against, and Salesforce uses that pin to preserve backward-compatible behavior even as the platform evolves.

Administrators and developers can raise a component's API version to opt into new features, but doing so sometimes exposes behavioral changes that were previously hidden behind the old version. Best practice is to review release notes, test in a sandbox, and only update API versions deliberately rather than letting tools do it automatically during routine edits.

How Organizations Use API Version

•CodeBridge — Keeps a spreadsheet of every Apex class and its current API version. Before each Salesforce release, the lead developer reviews the release notes for breaking changes, then upgrades classes in batches with regression tests between each batch.
•Oceanic Corp — Discovered that an old trigger pinned to API version 32.0 was silently ignoring a new required field behavior introduced in a later release. Upgrading the trigger's API version and fixing the code surfaced by the upgrade resolved a data quality issue that had persisted for years.
•Vandelay Industries — Uses a CI/CD pipeline that checks every metadata file's API version against a minimum threshold. Any component older than that threshold fails the pipeline and must be upgraded before merging, preventing API version rot across the org.