

Find out in this report how the two API Management solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.
Reducing development hours from eighty to four for an API was possible due to reusing existing scripts from DataPower.
I have seen a return on investment from using IBM API Connect, as we created multiple plans based on customer usage.
Time saved is a relevant metric; it used to take us a week, but now it takes us only a day.
I have seen a return on investment with Kong Konnect, as it helps manage security very well, allows for faster API deployments saving developer time, and reduces salary costs with better uptime and minimal downtime, thus preventing potential business loss.
Support is excellent when it comes to APIC.
Support is extremely good, especially with Sev 1 issues.
It was frustrating that we almost could not install it by ourselves because some information I will never find because IBM keeps it.
Technical support from Proofpoint was absolutely excellent.
When I raise an incident or a support ticket, it gets answered in four hours.
They offer twenty-four-hour support with SLA-based response times.
When you have Kubernetes on cloud or on-premise, scalability is easy.
With container versions, scaling up or down the gateways deployed into pods is a two to three-minute task for the operations team.
It is distributed among IBM MQ, IBM Ace, IBM DataPower, and IBM API Connect.
The platform is fully scalable, providing various ways to manage data planes or runtimes.
Kong Konnect's scalability is very high, handles growth well, and since it is a stateless gateway, it scales easily in Kubernetes using horizontal scaling.
The scalability of Proofpoint was excellent and very scalable.
The runtime engine for the APIC Gateway is still a DataPower component, which has been stable in the industry for about fifteen years.
If it is functioning well, you won't have a bad experience and your application becomes more reliable.
IBM API Connect was very stable.
It was very fast, and we did not experience any interruptions.
Kong Konnect is very stable with no issues regarding reliability in my experience.
Examples include the lack of connectivity to MQ.
You need to know when traffic peaks, so use auto-scaling when traffic comes.
Connectivity to MQ is not available in IBM API Connect.
The licensing model could be simplified, especially in how they charge and track usage.
When comparing documentation, Kong's documentation is not on par with Google, Amazon, or other cloud providers.
Token integration presents challenges and has implementation complexities that need addressing.
Pricing depends on how many instances run across environments.
Pricing was the issue as it becomes very expensive due to the nature of local circumstances.
While the pricing model isn't very clear on how usage is tracked, the initial cost and setup for using Kong Konnect are reasonable.
I purchase it from Kong vendors, not from the cloud marketplace because the cloud marketplace has a limitation on the number of API services it supports.
It offers significant development efficiency, reducing man-hours from eighty to four when creating APIs.
We can add some policies to provide extra security, protect your backend, validate the consumers, and analyze based on the traffic limit to throw things out.
IBM API Connect has a designer and CLI features which can be used to completely automate the API.
The documentation is excellent, and it includes a developer portal, which helps create a common distribution channel for APIs within and outside the enterprise.
When I mention scalability, it means that when we experience peak traffic, Kong made it easy for us to scale and spawn new machines.
The security features of Kong Konnect have helped my team mainly by allowing us to use auth and JWT for applications needing external identity provider authentications, such as LDAP or other authentication providers that need to be connected to back-end applications.
| Product | Mindshare (%) |
|---|---|
| IBM API Connect | 4.5% |
| Kong Konnect | 1.0% |
| Other | 94.5% |

| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 19 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 10 |
| Large Enterprise | 62 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 4 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 2 |
| Large Enterprise | 1 |
IBM API Connect is an API management tool providing robust security, seamless REST and SOAP conversion, and flexible deployment options for diverse cloud environments. It aids organizations in securing and monetizing their APIs while streamlining the development process.
IBM API Connect offers features like a security gateway, API lifecycle management, and integration with DataPower. Its intuitive interface enhances ease of use, supporting extensive analytics and traffic management. However, there are areas for improvement in automation, system integration, and user configuration. Organizations can deploy API Connect on-premises or in the cloud, delivering secure access control and analytics for banking, financial services, and government sectors. Compliance with standards like PSD2 ensures secure external API exposure and integration with multiple systems.
What are the most important features of IBM API Connect?In specific industries like banking, financial services, and government sectors, IBM API Connect plays a crucial role in API management, orchestration, and regulation tasks. It provides secure access, control, and compliance with industry standards, serving as an essential gateway for data exchange and integration across multiple systems.
Kong Konnect facilitates efficient management and integration of APIs, providing a streamlined experience for developers to manage their services with high scalability.
Kong Konnect is a comprehensive platform tailored for API development and management. It offers an intuitive interface that simplifies the process of connecting, managing, and securing APIs. Organizations benefit from its scalable architecture, ensuring it meets diverse operational demands and optimizes service delivery, supporting a robust API ecosystem that aligns with modern development practices.
What are the key features of Kong Konnect?In tech industries, Kong Konnect is often implemented to advance cloud-native applications by enhancing API connectivity and security. Financial services utilize it to ensure compliance and secure data sharing. Telecommunications deploy it to handle high data throughput efficiently.
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