Within just the last few years, API management exploded into a critical component of every enterprise IT infrastructure.
And it's not just about large corporations with substantial budgets embracing an API-first approach - small businesses and startups are also increasingly more reliant on APIs to run their operations.
In fact, the API market is projected to grow by roughly 600% by 2031.
To get the most out of APIs, making them more accessible to developers and non-technical users alike has to be a top priority - a task much more attainable with a powerful API Management platform.
But with so many options out there, how do you make the right choice?
In this article, we review the best API management platforms and tools to boost the value of your API assets.
What Are the Best API Management Tools in 2022?
Apigee
Microsoft Azure API Management
MuleSoft
Akana
IBM API Connect
1. Apigee
Apigee is Google’s API management platform that helps enterprises build, deploy and manage applications in the cloud.
With Apigee, you can easily manage your API infrastructure and innovate faster than ever before.
Top Features
Apigee Hybrid - The platform provides you with great flexibility when it comes to deployment. With Apigee, you can host your APIs on-premise, in the cloud, or opt for the hybrid deployment option.
Developer Portals - Enable developers and partners to learn how to make the most out of APIs with the help of accessible documentation, self-service processes, and other features to boost your adoption rates.
AAPI Ops - Leverage the power of AI to monitor your API performance, automatically detect unusual traffic patterns, and accurately trigger alerts to help your team quickly respond to technical issues and cyber threats.
API Monetization - Cultivate additional revenue streams and maximize the business value of your API assets using a wide spectrum of monetization models, service packages, and integrations.
Powerful Analytics Tools - Analyze your usage patterns to understand how you can better address the needs of your API consumers.
Pricing
Apigee comes with four plans based on your unique API needs: Evaluation, Standard, Enterprise, and Enterprise Plus.
Evaluation - This pricing plan is perfect for those looking to explore whether Apigee is a good fit for their business. The 60-day plan includes 100,000 API calls per month, two environments, and basic analytics reporting capabilities.
Standard - This pricing package includes 180 million API calls annually, 99% runtime SLA, and more work environments.
Enterprise - This service package is geared towards rapidly growing organizations that need to scale up their API infrastructure, providing 1,2 billion API calls on an annual basis, more environments, advanced analytics reports, and custom support for a hybrid deployment.
Enterprise Plus - The ultimate package for large organizations, including 12 billion API calls, more top-level containers, and more extensive reporting.
Why we recommend this tool: Apigee is a household name in the API management space, providing best-in-class tools for effectively working with your API assets - regardless of the size of your organization.
Microsoft' Azure API management platform is a comprehensive solution for the entire API lifecycle that empowers developers and organizations to create, publish, manage, and monitor APIs.
Using this API management platform, you can control access to your APIs with authentication and authorization mechanisms, easily publish APIs to external and internal API consumers, analyze usage data to optimize your API design, and more.
Top Features
Distributed API Management - Host your APIs in the cloud (using Azure or other third-party solutions) and on-premises.
Advanced Security Measures - From implementing authentication and authorization mechanisms to filtering IP addresses and setting custom usage limits, the platform helps you keep your APIs safe from data breaches and other cyber threats.
API Mocking - Develop your API solutions faster than ever before, streamline the entire development process, and avoid unnecessary entanglements by decoupling frontend from backend.
Pricing
This API management tool comes with six different pricing packages to scale as you grow:
Consumption ($0.035 per 10,000 calls) - This pay-as-you-go plan is perfect for small teams that want to test out the platform.
Developer ($0.07/hour) - This pricing package was designed for non-production use cases, unlocking access to their developer portal, self-hosted gateway, and multiple custom domain names.
Basic ($0.21/hour) - This plan is an excellent option for small to mid-sized APIs that don’t need a lot of bandwidth.
Standard ($0.95/hour) - This option is great for organizations looking to scale up their APIs.
Premium ($3.83/hour) - The pricing package is perfect for large organizations that need extensive API resources.
Isolated - A custom pricing plan for enterprises that have unique API needs.
3. MuleSoft
MuleSoft is a leading provider of API management tools that enable organizations to seamlessly work with their API assets.
With its Anypoint Platform, you can easily create APIs, manage complex integrations, and securely expose your APIs to the world.
Top Features
API Lifecycle Management - MuleSoft offers an end-to-end solution to all of your API needs to effectively design, develop, and maintain your APIs.
Hundreds of Out-of-the-box Connectors & Templates - Connect instantly to mainframes, ERP systems, and SaaS applications.
Flexible Deployment Options - Deploy your API in the cloud, on-premise, or go the hybrid deployment route.
Anypoint Monitoring - Analyze crucial API metrics such as the number of inbound or outbound requests and average response times - all in one place.
Robust API Security Tools - From tokenizing your data to deploying the Edge gateway, MuleSoft provides a wide range of tools to protect your APIs from hackers.
Pricing
MuleSoft comes with three plans: Gold, Platinum, and Titanium - the pricing packages are built to scale as your API ecosystem expands.
Gold - The plan provides access to the core functionalities of the platform for you to get started.
Platinum - This option unlocks enterprise features to accelerate your growth, including global cloud and flexible hybrid deployment, business groups, and external identity management.
Titanium - The plan unlocks mission-critical capabilities, including advanced data analysis and distributed log management.
4. Akana
Akana offers a powerful API management platform, empowering organizations to accelerate digital transformation.
Akana provides the security, scalability, and performance needed to manage your APIs and microservices.
Top Features
API Lifecycle Management Tools - Design and build your API using the platform to speed up the development process and accelerate digital transformation.
API Importing - Akana allows you to import your existing API in just a few clicks.
Automated API Security - The platform automatically applies pre-built API security policies to ensure the safety of your user base, including OAuth, SSO, JWT, and many more.
Developer Portal - Boost your adoption rates and improve the accessibility of your APIs by deploying a developer portal with custom-tailored interface and functionalities for every key stakeholder.
Pricing
Akana provides you with a custom quote based on your unique API needs upon signing up.
IBM API Connect is a full-cycle API management platform that enables you to create, manage, and monitor APIs to make them scalable, reliable, and secure.
The platform offers a wide range of features that cater to the needs of different users, including authentication and authorization mechanisms, flexible deployment options, and robust API monitoring capabilities.
Top Features
API Productization - Turn your API assets into market-driven products to drive up the value of your corporate API assets.
API Development Tools - IBM API Connect provides you with a comprehensive toolset for designing, creating, and testing your APIs.
IBM® DataPower® Gateway - Secure, manage, and keep track of your API traffic using the built-in API gateway.
Pricing
The API management platforms offer three pricing plans to help you grow your API ecosystem:
IBM API Connect Lite (free) - This free plan provides 50,000 API calls per month, allowing teams to try out the platform at no cost.
IBM API Connect Enterprise ($100 per 100,000 API calls) - This pay-as-you-go plan helps you scale up your expenses as you grow while providing round-the-clock support as well as advanced analytics and deployment options.
Connect Enterprise (custom pricing) - This custom subscription plan helps large organizations manage their API assets in a manageable way while providing superior security, data transfer, and deployment features.
What Are API Management Tools?
API management tools are software platforms that allow you to create, manage, and monitor APIs.
These APIs can be used by developers to access your backend systems and data or by organizations to expose their internal systems to the world.
API management tools also allow you to monetize your APIs through a variety of models and microservices.
Finally, these platforms provide comprehensive security features to protect your APIs against unauthorized access and attacks.
Accelerate Digital Transformation with Achieve Internet
With citizen development on the rise, making your APIs accessible for non-technical users, not just developers, is crucial.
This is where API portals come in, helping you consolidate all of your API assets in one place while improving your adoption rates by providing business units and developers with the tools they need to effectively interact with your APIs.
Do you want to learn more? Get in touch with our team to schedule a free consultation.
