Apache APISIX vs Kong AI Gateway

Apache APISIX8.4Visit Kong AI Gateway8.3Visit

Higher score Apache APISIX #6 in LLM Gateway Software 8.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 0 of 5 features Visit Apache APISIX

vs

Kong AI Gateway #7 in LLM Gateway Software 8.3/10 30-day trial Free trial✓ 5 of 5 features Try Kong AI Gateway

• Apache APISIX fits best

  Self-hosted Kubernetes gateway operators

• Kong AI Gateway fits best

  Enterprises needing governed multi-provider traffic

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Side by side

Feature	Apache APISIX 8.4/10 Visit ↗	Kong AI Gateway 8.3/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.4	8.3
Ranking	#6 in LLM Gateway Software	#7 in LLM Gateway Software
Best for	Self-hosted Kubernetes gateway operators	Enterprises needing governed multi-provider traffic
Pricing model	Free	Paid
Starting price	Free plan	—
Free plan	✓ (best)	—
Free trial	—	30 days
Deployment	Self-hosted	Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms	Linux	Web
Support	Community, Docs	Email, Tickets
Integrations	5 integrations	14 integrations
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Apache APISIX 0/5 · Kong AI Gateway 5/5
Fallback routing	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Usage analytics	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Self-hosted deployment	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Budget controls	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Virtual API keys	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Specs
Provider count	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	100+ gateway and AI plugins with routing and security controls Kubernetes Ingress, Gateway API, and Helm integration Supports HTTP, gRPC, WebSocket, MQTT, TCP, UDP, and HTTP/3	Routes and fails over traffic across multiple LLM providers Tracks usage, tokens, costs, latency, and errors Supports managed, cloud, and self-hosted deployments
Cons	Self-hosted deployment requires teams to operate the gateway Community and documentation are the listed support channels The broad feature set may require more gateway administration	Paid pricing is not presented as a single flat AI Gateway price No perpetual free plan is offered Plus limits gateway and model counts
Our verdict	Apache APISIX is an open-source API and AI gateway for teams operating APIs, microservices, and multi-protocol traffic in cloud-native environments. Its fit is strongest for small, mid-market, and enterprise teams that want to run their… Read the review →	Kong AI Gateway is an API gateway for platform, infrastructure, and enterprise teams managing production AI connectivity. It governs traffic between applications, agents, MCP servers, and large language model providers through a unified… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Apache APISIX — where it wins

  • 100+ gateway and AI plugins with routing and security controls
  • Kubernetes Ingress, Gateway API, and Helm integration
  • Supports HTTP, gRPC, WebSocket, MQTT, TCP, UDP, and HTTP/3

  Where it doesn't

  • Self-hosted deployment requires teams to operate the gateway
  • Community and documentation are the listed support channels
  • The broad feature set may require more gateway administration

• Kong AI Gateway — where it wins

  • Routes and fails over traffic across multiple LLM providers
  • Tracks usage, tokens, costs, latency, and errors
  • Supports managed, cloud, and self-hosted deployments

  Where it doesn't

  • Paid pricing is not presented as a single flat AI Gateway price
  • No perpetual free plan is offered
  • Plus limits gateway and model counts

• Apache APISIX8.4/10 · Free plan

  A flexible self-hosted gateway for Kubernetes teams managing APIs, AI traffic, and multiple protocols.

  Visit Apache APISIXFull verdict →
• Kong AI Gateway8.3/10 · 30-day trial

  A governed gateway for routing, securing, and analyzing multi-provider AI traffic.

  Try Kong AI GatewayFull verdict →