Azure API Management vs Kong Gateway

Azure API Management9.4Visit Kong Gateway8.4Visit

Higher score Azure API Management #1 in API Gateway Software 9.4/10 Pricing on request ✓ 0 of 2 features Visit site

vs

Kong Gateway #11 in API Gateway Software 8.4/10 Free plan · 30-day trial Free plan✓ 2 of 2 features Visit Kong Gateway

• Azure API Management fits best

  Enterprises needing full API lifecycle management

• Kong Gateway fits best

  Flexible hybrid deployments and Kubernetes teams

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Side by side

Feature	Azure API Management 9.4/10 Visit ↗	Kong Gateway 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.4
Ranking	#1 in API Gateway Software	#11 in API Gateway Software
Best for	Enterprises needing full API lifecycle management	Flexible hybrid deployments and Kubernetes teams
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Not published	Not published
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted	Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms	Web	Web
Support	Docs	Email, Tickets, Community, Docs · 24/7
Built for	Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Azure API Management 0/2 · Kong Gateway 2/2
Rate limiting	Not published	✓ (best)
Request transformation	Not published	✓ (best)
Specs
Deployment model	Hybrid	Hybrid
Supported protocols	Not published	REST, HTTP, Kafka, WebSockets, gRPC, GraphQL, UDP, TCP, TLS
Authentication methods	Not published	Basic Auth, HMAC, JWT, Key Auth, LDAP, mutual TLS, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, SAML, Vault
Monthly request limit	Not published	1e+06 requests/mo
Our review
Pros	Gateway controls cover authentication, routing, caching, throttling, and quotas Developer portal supports discovery, documentation, subscriptions, and testing Self-hosted gateway supports on-premises and multicloud environments	Supports REST, Kafka, WebSockets, gRPC, GraphQL, UDP, TCP, and TLS Combines routing, authentication, rate limiting, transformations, and load balancing Offers open-source, self-managed, hybrid, and managed cloud deployment options
Cons	Pricing requires contacting sales The Developer tier has no SLA and is for non-production use Isolated is a preview tier for high-isolation enterprise deployments	Plus uses metered gateway and request charges rather than one fixed listed price The Free trial retains analytics for 30 days Dedicated support and customer success are listed for Enterprise
Our verdict	Azure API Management is a managed platform for securing, governing, publishing, and monitoring APIs across Azure, on-premises environments, and other clouds. It combines an API gateway with lifecycle management, a customizable developer… Read the review →	Kong Gateway is a cloud-native API gateway and reverse proxy for configuring, routing, securing, and observing APIs and microservices. It is aimed at platform teams, developers, and enterprises managing services across Kubernetes,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Azure API Management — where it wins

  • Gateway controls cover authentication, routing, caching, throttling, and quotas
  • Developer portal supports discovery, documentation, subscriptions, and testing
  • Self-hosted gateway supports on-premises and multicloud environments

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires contacting sales
  • The Developer tier has no SLA and is for non-production use
  • Isolated is a preview tier for high-isolation enterprise deployments

• Kong Gateway — where it wins

  • Supports REST, Kafka, WebSockets, gRPC, GraphQL, UDP, TCP, and TLS
  • Combines routing, authentication, rate limiting, transformations, and load balancing
  • Offers open-source, self-managed, hybrid, and managed cloud deployment options

  Where it doesn't

  • Plus uses metered gateway and request charges rather than one fixed listed price
  • The Free trial retains analytics for 30 days
  • Dedicated support and customer success are listed for Enterprise

• Azure API Management9.4/10 · Pricing on request

  A full-lifecycle API platform for enterprises with hybrid deployment needs.

  Visit siteFull verdict →
• Kong Gateway8.4/10 · Free plan · 30-day trial

  A flexible gateway for Kubernetes, hybrid infrastructure, and multi-cloud API operations.

  Visit Kong GatewayFull verdict →