Which API gateway to choose?
Summary
Widespread adoption and usage of APIs has driven multiple software vendors to offer a number of API management products and platforms in the market.
Many API management platforms have a well built product documentation. But in most cases documentation focuses on the single API management offering.
We maintain a regularly updated list of popular API management platform products.
The goal is to provide initial guidance to technology leaders, architects and engineering leads who are evaluating API platforms for their organizations.
API Gateway Products
- Gravitee API Management (open source)
- WSO2 API Manager (open source)
- Tyk API Gateway (open source)
- Kong API Gateway (open source)
- API Man (open source)
- Fusio API Management (open source)
- Express API Gateway (open source)
- Loopback API Framework (open source)
- Gloo API gateway (open source)
- Apache APISIX (open source)
- Apigee API Management
- Layer7 API Gateway
- IBM API Connect
- RedHat 3Scale
- webMethods API Management
- MuleSoft Anypoint API Management
- Boomi API Management
- Axway - AMPLIFY API Management
- Akana API Management
- SAP API Manager
- Oracle API Manager
- AWS API Gateway
- Azure API Gateway
- Akamai API Gateway
- Sensedia API Management Platform
- Zuplo API Management platform
Detailed List
| Product | Description | Documentation |
|---|---|---|
| Apache APISIX | Apache APISIX is an open source API gateway and Ingress controller. It focuses on the traffic management capabilities like canary releases, circuit breaking and observability. Deployment: cloud and on-premise | Apache APISIX documentation pages. Current releases are available here. |
| Apigee API Management | Apigee API management allows to build, manage, and secure APIs. Acquired by Google in 2016 its now integral part of Google Cloud Platform. Closed source. Apigee team maintains a few open source projects, mainly CLIs, utility tools and examples on GitHub. Deployment: cloud and on-premise | Apigee Edge documentation pages. |
| Layer7 API Gateway | API gateway product built and maintained by Broadcom. Aimed at enterprise technology stacks and advanced API security. Closed source. Deployment: cloud and on-premise | Broadcom Layer7 API Gateway documentation pages |
| IBM API Connect | IBM API Connect offers API lifecycle management and focuses on support for the multiple API standards - REST, AsyncAPI, WebSockets, GraphQL and SOAP. Closed source. Deployment: cloud (saas) | IBM API Connect documentation |
| Red Hat 3scale | API Management platform provided by RedHat. Part of their Red Hat Integration product suite. IBM has purchased RedHat in 2019. Multiple components of RedHat API management platform are open source. Based on Nginx and OpenResty. Deployment: cloud, focused on RedHat OpenShift | RedHat 3Scale documentation |
| webMethods API Gateway | webMethods API Management supports full API lifecycle. Focused on data integrations. In 2023 IBM bought this product from Software AG. Closed source. Deployment: IBM cloud. | webMethods API Gateway documentation |
| Anypoint API Manager | Product created by MuleSoft. Salesforce bought MuleSoft in 2018. Community edition is open source. Closed source for commercial components. Deployment: cloud and on-premise | Anypoint API Manager documentation |
| Boomi API Management | Boomi API Management focuses on API discovery and federated API governance across multiple platforms. Closed source. Deployment: cloud (saas) | Boomi API Management documentation |
| Amplify API Management | Part of Axway Amplify cloud integration platform. Closed source. Deployment: cloud (saas) | Not available for public consumption |
| Akana API Platform | Akana API platform focuses digital transformation acceleration for enterprises. Closed source. Deployment: cloud (saas) | Akana API platform documentation. |
| SAP API Management | SAP API management is an offering provided as part of SAP Integration suite. Mainly focused on exposing business processes and data from within SAP product range already used by multiple enterprises. Closed source. Deployment: SAP cloud | SAP API documentation. |
| Oracle API Manager | Product by Oracle and is tightly coupled with Oracle SOA Suite / SOA Cloud Services. Closed source. Deployment: Oracle cloud | Oracle API Manager documentation |
| AWS API Gateway | Amazon Web Services API Gateway is an API management product which enables building, publishing and monitoring of APIs at any scale. AWS provides it as fully managed cloud service. Pay per use pricing with up to 1 million API requests as free tier. Closed source. Deployment: AWS cloud | Amazon provides extensive AWS API gateway documentation |
| Azure API Management | Microsoft Azure offers their API management solution as distributed API management which supports API federation across multiple platforms. Similar to AWS API gateway, this product offers API discovery, analytics, security and observability. Closed source. Deployment: Azure cloud | Azure API Management documentation |
| Akamai API Gateway | Akamai, mostly known for their CDN solutions provides API gateway to their customers as part of their API security offering. Focuses on API discovery and security. Closed source. Deployment: Akamai Connected cloud | Akamai API gateway documentation. |
| Sensedia API Management Platform | Sensedia is a cloud integration consultancy who has also developed a low-code API gateway product. Mostly focused on data integrations across different cloud platforms. Closed source. Deployment: cloud | Not providing publicly accessible documentation. |
| Zuplo API Management Platform | Zuplo is a modern, light-weight and fully-managed API Management platform. Focusing on GitOps and fast time to market. Strong support for OpenAPI standard and API monetization. Closed Source Deployment: Cloud | Zuplo platform documentation. |
| Gravitee API Platform | Gravitee API Platform is an open source, enterprise grade, federated API platform. They call it multi-gateway, multi-broker API platform, focused on auto discovery and universal subscription control. Open source on GitHub with managed hosting available. Deployment: Cloud and self-hosted | Gravitee platform documentation. |
| WSO2 API Manager | WSO2 API Manager is an open source enterprise platform for a full API lifecycle management. With recent focus on Kubernetes and CNCF standards. Open source (Ballerina lang) with managed hosting also available. Deployment: Cloud and self-hosted | WSO2 API Manager roadmap and docs. |
| Tyk API Management | Tyk is a new generation, open source API gateway / management product. Open source (Go lang) Deployment: Cloud and self-hosted | Tyk API Management docs |
| Kong API Gateway | Kong API Gateway is an open source API gateway based on Nginx and OpenResty. Open source (Nginx + Lua lang) Deployment: self-hosted | Kong API Gateway documentation. Getting started tutorials |
| APIMan | APIMan is an open source project maintained by RedHat as a rich API management component. Open source (Java / JBoss) Deployment: self-hosted | APIMan documentation. |
| Fusio API Management | API management platform which provides tools to rapidly build an API from different data sources. Open source (PHP lang) Deployment: self-hosted | Fusio documentation. |
| Express Gateway | Express Gateway is an open source API gateway project using Nodejs runtime and ExpressJS middleware framework. Source code (NodeJS / JavaScript lang) Deployment: self-hosted | Express Gateway documentation. |
| Loopback framework | Created by Strongloop its an open source framework for building REST APIs and data integrations. Strongloop was acquired by IBM in 2016. Loopback is now part of OpenJS foundation. Open source (NodeJS / JavaScript lang) Deployment: self-hosted | Loopback framework documentation. |
| Gloo API gateway | Feature-rich API gateway built for Kubernetes platform. Focusing on security and traffic management. Open source (Go lang). Deployment: self-hosted | Gloo API gateway documentation. |
If we are missing any API platform on this list leave a comment below or send us a note.