NGINX Gateway Fabric vs Alibaba Cloud API Gateway

NGINX Gateway Fabric8.9Visit Alibaba Cloud API Gateway8.8Visit

Higher score NGINX Gateway Fabric #6 in API Gateway Software 8.9/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 2 of 2 features Visit NGINX

vs

Alibaba Cloud API Gateway #7 in API Gateway Software 8.8/10 Paid ✓ 2 of 2 features Visit Alibaba Cloud

• NGINX Gateway Fabric fits best

  Kubernetes teams needing a focused gateway

• Alibaba Cloud API Gateway fits best

  Alibaba Cloud and Kubernetes users

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature	NGINX Gateway Fabric 8.9/10 Visit ↗	Alibaba Cloud API Gateway 8.8/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	8.9	8.8
Ranking	#6 in API Gateway Software	#7 in API Gateway Software
Best for	Kubernetes teams needing a focused gateway	Alibaba Cloud and Kubernetes users
Pricing model	Free	Paid
Starting price	Free plan	—
Free plan	✓ (best)	—
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Self-hosted	Cloud
Support	Community, Docs	Live chat, Tickets, Docs
Built for	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features NGINX Gateway Fabric 2/2 · Alibaba Cloud API Gateway 2/2
Rate limiting	✓	✓
Request transformation	✓	✓
Specs
Deployment model	Self-hosted	Cloud
Supported protocols	HTTP, HTTPS, HTTP/2, gRPC, TCP, TLS, UDP	HTTP, HTTPS, HTTP/2, HTTP/3, WebSocket, gRPC
Authentication methods	Basic authentication, JWT, OpenID Connect, external authentication	AppCode, digest authentication, JWT, mutual TLS, custom authentication
Monthly request limit	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Routes HTTP, gRPC, TCP, TLS, and UDP traffic Adds authentication, rate limiting, rewrites, and request mirroring Open source with a free plan and self-hosted deployment	Supports API lifecycle management, routing, authentication, and traffic controls Works with Kubernetes, WebSocket, gRPC, HTTP/3, and multiple backends Integrates with WAF, VPC, Nacos, Function Compute, and logging
Cons	Requires the Kubernetes team to manage self-hosted deployment Uses a separate control plane and NGINX data plane Broader integrations and management features are outside its scope	No free plan is available Pricing varies by region and billing model Dedicated gateway options use Chinese mainland reference pricing
Our verdict	NGINX Gateway Fabric is an open-source Kubernetes gateway implementation from F5, Inc. It uses NGINX as the data plane and implements Gateway API resources for routing HTTP, HTTPS, HTTP/2, gRPC, TCP, TLS, and UDP traffic. Teams can use it… Read the review →	Alibaba Cloud API Gateway is a managed cloud service for publishing, routing, securing, and governing APIs. It is aimed at teams running general traffic or microservice scenarios on Alibaba Cloud, especially those using… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• NGINX Gateway Fabric — where it wins

  • Routes HTTP, gRPC, TCP, TLS, and UDP traffic
  • Adds authentication, rate limiting, rewrites, and request mirroring
  • Open source with a free plan and self-hosted deployment

  Where it doesn't

  • Requires the Kubernetes team to manage self-hosted deployment
  • Uses a separate control plane and NGINX data plane
  • Broader integrations and management features are outside its scope

• Alibaba Cloud API Gateway — where it wins

  • Supports API lifecycle management, routing, authentication, and traffic controls
  • Works with Kubernetes, WebSocket, gRPC, HTTP/3, and multiple backends
  • Integrates with WAF, VPC, Nacos, Function Compute, and logging

  Where it doesn't

  • No free plan is available
  • Pricing varies by region and billing model
  • Dedicated gateway options use Chinese mainland reference pricing

• NGINX Gateway Fabric8.9/10 · Free plan

  A focused, self-hosted Kubernetes gateway for teams that want open-source NGINX routing.

  Visit NGINXFull verdict →
• Alibaba Cloud API Gateway8.8/10 · Paid

  A cloud-managed gateway with strong Kubernetes, protocol, and traffic-control coverage.

  Visit Alibaba CloudFull verdict →