MuleSoft Omni Gateway vs Kong Gateway

MuleSoft Omni Gateway9.1Visit Kong Gateway8.4Visit

Higher score MuleSoft Omni Gateway #4 in API Gateway Software 9.1/10 Pricing on request · 30-day trial Free trial✓ 2 of 2 features Visit MuleSoft

vs

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

• MuleSoft Omni Gateway fits best

  Federated enterprises managing many gateways

• Kong Gateway fits best

  Flexible hybrid deployments and Kubernetes teams

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Side by side

Feature	MuleSoft Omni Gateway 9.1/10 Visit ↗	Kong Gateway 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.1	8.4
Ranking	#4 in API Gateway Software	#11 in API Gateway Software
Best for	Federated enterprises managing many gateways	Flexible hybrid deployments and Kubernetes teams
Pricing model	Paid	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Pricing on request · 30-day trial	—
Free plan	—	✓ (best)
Free trial	30 days	30 days
Free trial length	30 days · no card needed	30 days · no card needed
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted	Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms	Web, Linux	Web
Support	Community, Docs	Email, Tickets, Community, Docs · 24/7
Integrations	9 integrations	10 integrations
Built for	Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features MuleSoft Omni Gateway 2/2 · Kong Gateway 2/2
Rate limiting	✓	✓
Request transformation	✓	✓
Specs
Deployment model	Hybrid	Hybrid
Supported protocols	HTTP, WebSocket, SOAP, gRPC, GraphQL, OAS3 REST, MCP, A2A	REST, HTTP, Kafka, WebSockets, gRPC, GraphQL, UDP, TCP, TLS
Authentication methods	Client ID enforcement, HTTP Basic Authentication, JWT validation, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect	Basic Auth, HMAC, JWT, Key Auth, LDAP, mutual TLS, OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, SAML, Vault
Monthly request limit	Not checked yet	1e+06 requests/mo
Our review
Pros	Centralizes policy management and observability across gateway environments Supports HTTP, SOAP, gRPC, GraphQL, WebSocket, MCP, and A2A Adds authentication, rate limits, threat protection, and AI traffic controls	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 contact with sales rather than a published entry amount There is no free plan; the available trial lasts 30 days The broad governance focus may not suit teams needing a narrow gateway tool	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	MuleSoft Omni Gateway is an Envoy-based API gateway for organizations managing APIs across managed and self-managed environments. It provides centralized policy management, observability, routing, authentication, authorization, rate… 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

• MuleSoft Omni Gateway — where it wins

  • Centralizes policy management and observability across gateway environments
  • Supports HTTP, SOAP, gRPC, GraphQL, WebSocket, MCP, and A2A
  • Adds authentication, rate limits, threat protection, and AI traffic controls

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires contact with sales rather than a published entry amount
  • There is no free plan; the available trial lasts 30 days
  • The broad governance focus may not suit teams needing a narrow gateway tool

• 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

• MuleSoft Omni Gateway9.1/10 · Pricing on request · 30-day trial

  A hybrid gateway and governance layer for enterprises coordinating multiple gateway products.

  Visit MuleSoftFull 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 →