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Kong Gateway Enterprise vs WSO2 API Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 16, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.2
Kong Gateway Enterprise scales cost-effectively, enabling quick API delivery and efficient problem detection, with free community accessibility.
Sentiment score
7.7
WSO2 API Manager offers cost-effective, flexible, and robust open-source solutions, enhancing operational efficiency with excellent support and integration.
Since you can scale it and maintain your work, it is effective.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.9
Kong Gateway Enterprise's support is responsive and capable, with some feedback on response times and communication improvements needed.
Sentiment score
6.6
WSO2 API Manager's support praised for enterprise users, but open-source users report mixed experiences with accessibility and response times.
The technical support from Kong Gateway Enterprise would be rated about eight, as we missed local technical support.
Enterprise Architect at El Al
I believe the support is a significant strength for WSO2.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
The support is good, with well-defined documentation and helpful blogs.
Senior Principal Architect at 6d Technologies
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Kong Gateway Enterprise offers scalable integration for diverse environments, excelling in deployments but facing some geographical licensing limitations.
Sentiment score
7.5
WSO2 API Manager's scalability varies, influenced by deployment strategy and version, with benefits in Docker and Kubernetes environments.
The scalability of this solution would be rated about eight or nine.
Enterprise Architect at El Al
For the cases I have experienced, WSO2 API Manager is easy to scale.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Kong Gateway Enterprise is rated highly for stability, with users praising its reliable performance and improved documentation.
Sentiment score
7.3
WSO2 API Manager is stable, but can have memory issues; users recommend proper architecture and open-source versions may need updates.
I do not face any issues regarding API security from OAuth 2 based authentication. It is secured and well-secured, and I have not faced any security-related issues.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
The system is stable for our low-concurrency use cases.
Senior Principal Architect at 6d Technologies
 

Room For Improvement

Kong Gateway Enterprise needs improvements in pricing, connectivity, usability, documentation, API features, integration, and intuitive scaling options.
WSO2 API Manager needs interface modernization, clearer documentation, better integration, security improvements, enhanced support, and improved pricing strategy.
Security is a major concern, especially with new security architecture coming into place.
Business Consultant at Ernst & Young
More plugins for additional integrations would be helpful and openness for traditional development languages, such as .NET, because many enterprises are looking for .NET solutions or incorporating with .NET solutions.
Enterprise Architect at El Al
Our integrations do not handle high-volume transactions.
Senior Principal Architect at 6d Technologies
WSO2 released other products that solved everything related to my concern.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
 

Setup Cost

Kong Gateway Enterprise pricing is competitive, with varying costs, and a cost-benefit analysis is recommended for specific needs.
WSO2 API Manager is free open-source, but enterprise support requires a costly subscription based on feature needs and deployment size.
 

Valuable Features

Kong Gateway Enterprise offers scalability, security, seamless Kubernetes integration, and customization, enhancing API management with a user-friendly dashboard.
WSO2 API Manager excels in flexibility, scalability, integration, with user-friendly UI and security, enhancing microservices and API management.
The most valuable features of Kong Gateway Enterprise are its seamless integration with Kubernetes and cloud, many plugins that can be incorporated in a solution, and its incorporation with low-code function systems.
Enterprise Architect at El Al
Price is not a concern for us, but based on our experience working with financial institutions, maintainability and security are the primary concerns and areas they focus on.
Business Consultant at Ernst & Young
The product's capabilities for integrating with REST APIs are valuable.
Senior Principal Architect at 6d Technologies
The Lifecycle Management feature helps me manage my APIs when I'm using it.
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
 

Categories and Ranking

Kong Gateway Enterprise
Ranking in API Management
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
26
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WSO2 API Manager
Ranking in API Management
9th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
42
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the API Management category, the mindshare of Kong Gateway Enterprise is 5.8%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WSO2 API Manager is 4.3%, down from 4.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
API Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Kong Gateway Enterprise5.8%
WSO2 API Manager4.3%
Other89.9%
API Management
 

Featured Reviews

ES
Enterprise Architect at El Al
Seamless integration and efficient security boost API management capabilities
More plugins for additional integrations would be helpful and openness for traditional development languages, such as .NET, because many enterprises are looking for .NET solutions or incorporating with .NET solutions. I mostly missed local resellers or partners that we could use within our enterprise, because it was difficult for some tech personnel to work with remote tech support.
MM
Manager, Integration Technical Delivery at United Delta
Middleware integration has become smoother and manages API lifecycles and scopes effectively
Regarding WSO2 API Manager, I have no drawbacks or areas for improvement. However, regarding the Micro Integrator, I had some issues while developing complex services because it was mainly designed to be used for simple services, not complex ones. While using complex services, I encountered some issues. I communicated this with WSO2, and they released other products that solved everything related to my concern. These products were released before my concern was raised. When I explored them, they were pretty good, and I did not see the same issues I had experienced. WSO2 is enhancing themselves, and their products are fine. The previous concern was about the previous product, so it is resolved now since there are new products available. I would like WSO2 to improve quality or response time in support, or both.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Insurance Company
5%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Large Enterprise20
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise21
 

Questions from the Community

How does Kong Enterprise compare with Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager?
The Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager was designed with its users in mind. Though it is a reasonably complex piece of software, it is easy to install and upgrade. While there are different things that ...
What do you like most about Kong Enterprise?
The tool's feature that I find most beneficial is rate limiting. In our usage, especially in the financial sector, we prioritize limiting API usage. This is crucial because we provide APIs to other...
What needs improvement with Kong Enterprise?
More plugins for additional integrations would be helpful and openness for traditional development languages, such as .NET, because many enterprises are looking for .NET solutions or incorporating ...
What do you like most about WSO2 API Manager?
It is possible to scale up and scale down with the solution...I can say that I have not seen any issues related to scalability.
What needs improvement with WSO2 API Manager?
We have encountered some concerns with concurrency. Our integrations do not handle high-volume transactions, and when benchmarking, some issues arose with concurrent testing. It is uncertain whethe...
What is your primary use case for WSO2 API Manager?
We use WSO2 API Manager ( /products/wso2-api-manager-reviews ) to integrate our telecom products with third-party REST APIs. We are orchestrating services where our business process defines the int...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Cargill, Zillow, Ferrari, WeWork, Healthcare.gov, Yahoo! Japan, Giphy, SkyScanner
1. eBay 2. StubHub 3. Cisco 4. Verizon 5. T-Mobile 6. Vodafone 7. Orange 8. BT Group 9. Telstra 10. Deutsche Telekom 11. Swisscom 12. AT&T 13. Sprint 14. Telefonica 15. O2 16. British Airways 17. Lufthansa 18. Emirates 19. Qatar Airways 20. Etihad Airways 21. Air France 22. KLM 23. American Express 24. Visa 25. Mastercard 26. PayPal 27. Western Union 28. Citibank 29. HSBC 30. Barclays 31. Santander 32. Goldman Sachs
Find out what your peers are saying about Kong Gateway Enterprise vs. WSO2 API Manager and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.