API Management · alternatives
Alternatives to GraphQL Apollo
21 api management tools sit alongside GraphQL Apollo in this directory. Below is what separates each from GraphQL Apollo on the figures we hold, price, model, tier count and rating, and a direct comparison for every one.
- Alternatives listed
- 21
- With a free tier
- 18
- Cheaper to start
- 0
- GraphQL Apollo starts at
- Free
Why people look past GraphQL Apollo
Nothing on the record flags a reason to move. GraphQL Apollo has a free tier, and starts at Free against a category median of $257.5/month. People still switch over fit and workflow, and those are not things a catalogue entry can measure, which is what the comparisons below are for.
What each alternative does differently
Ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry. Differences are drawn from price, pricing model, tier count and rating, the fields the category listing carries. For a feature-level difference, follow the head-to-head link on each card: those pages read both full records.
Open-source Backend as a Service with REST API and SDKs
- Starts $15 a month dearer, at $15/month.
- 2 tiers to GraphQL Apollo's 3.
GraphQL engine that instantly creates production-ready GraphQL API from databases
Priced and rated the same as GraphQL Apollo on the figures we hold. The difference, if there is one, is in the feature records.
Open-source backend with REST API, real-time subscriptions and Admin UI
Priced and rated the same as GraphQL Apollo on the figures we hold. The difference, if there is one, is in the feature records.
Headless CMS with real-time collaborative editing and structured content APIs
- Starts $15 a seat per month dearer, at $15/seat per month.
- Sold on a subscription model rather than open-source.
WebRTC gateway and media server for real-time communication
- 1 tier to GraphQL Apollo's 3.
Command-line tool for transferring data using URLs with wide protocol support
- 1 tier to GraphQL Apollo's 3.
Every GraphQL Apollo alternative at a glance
A dash means the catalogue entry carries no figure, not that the answer is nothing.
| Tool | Entry price | Model | Tiers | Head to head |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GraphQL Apollo (this page) | Free | Open-source | 3 | |
| AppwriteOpen-source Backend as a Service with REST API and SDKs | Free, then $15/month | - | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| HasuraGraphQL engine that instantly creates production-ready GraphQL API from databases | Free | Open-source | - | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| PocketBaseOpen-source backend with REST API, real-time subscriptions and Admin UI | Free | - | - | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| SanityHeadless CMS with real-time collaborative editing and structured content APIs | Free, then $15/seat per month | Subscription | - | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Janus Gateway | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| curl | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Asyncapi | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Hoppscotch | Free | Freemium | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| KeystoneJS | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Directus | Free | Open-source | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| AWS API Gateway | Free | Usage-based | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| GraphQL Playground | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Backendless | Free, then $15/month | - | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| HTTPie | Free | Open-source | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Kong | Free | Open-source | 2 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Bruno | Free | Open-source | 1 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Microsoft Azure API Management | Free | Subscription | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Gravitee | Free | Freemium | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Boomi API Management | $1500/monthly | Subscription | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Akana | $2500/monthly | Subscription | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
| Apigee | $500/monthly | Subscription | 3 | vs GraphQL Apollo |
Ratings are aggregated from third-party sources and imported with each catalogue entry; Softwr hosts no reviews of these products. How each figure is used is set out on the GraphQL Apollo badges page.
Cheaper ways to solve the same problem
Free to start (18)
These publish a tier that costs nothing, so they can be evaluated before any money changes hands.
- Appwrite , Free, then $15/month
- Hasura , Free
- PocketBase , Free
- Sanity , Free, then $15/seat per month
- Janus Gateway , Free
- curl , Free
- Asyncapi , Free
- Hoppscotch , Free
What you would be giving up
GraphQL Apollo is most often brought in for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation, microservices. Anything replacing it has to cover the ones you actually depend on, and a cheaper tool that misses one of them is not cheaper.
Two things this page cannot settle. It compares on price, model, tier count and rating, because those are the fields the category listing carries, feature-level differences need both full records, which is what the head-to-head pages load. And the ratings are third-party aggregates imported with each entry rather than reviews written here, so a 0.2 difference between two tools is noise rather than a finding.
If GraphQL Apollo is broadly right and the question is cost, the GraphQL Apollo pricing breakdown covers every tier and what each one adds. If you want the whole field rather than a shortlist, the API Management category lists everything the directory holds, and best api management tools ranks them.
GraphQL Apollo runs on javascript, node.js, web, mobile. Platform coverage is not carried on the category listing for the alternatives, so it is one more thing to check on each head-to-head page rather than here.
Questions about GraphQL Apollo alternatives
- What are the main alternatives to GraphQL Apollo?
- 21 other api management tools are listed in this directory, led by Appwrite, Hasura, PocketBase, Sanity. They are ordered by the aggregated rating on each catalogue entry, not by any Softwr ranking.
- What is the best free alternative to GraphQL Apollo?
- 18 of the alternatives listed here can be used without paying: Appwrite, Hasura, PocketBase, Sanity, Janus Gateway.
- Is there a reason to switch away from GraphQL Apollo?
- Nothing in the data flags one. GraphQL Apollo has a free tier, and starts at Free against a category median of $257.5/month. Fit and workflow are the usual reasons to move, and those are not things this record can measure.
- What would I give up by switching from GraphQL Apollo?
- GraphQL Apollo is most often brought in for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation, microservices. Anything you replace it with has to cover the ones you actually rely on, the side-by-side comparisons linked from each alternative below put the two feature records against each other.
- Is there an open-source alternative to GraphQL Apollo?
- Hasura, Janus Gateway, curl, Asyncapi, KeystoneJS, Directus, GraphQL Playground, HTTPie, Kong, Bruno are recorded with an open-source licence model.
- How were these GraphQL Apollo alternatives chosen?
- They are the tools filed in the same category, API Management, ordered by the aggregated rating on each entry. There is no editorial shortlist, and nothing on this page is paid: no sponsored slot runs on alternatives pages and the order cannot be bought. Softwr has not used these products.
- Where can I compare GraphQL Apollo against one of these directly?
- Every alternative below has a side-by-side page against GraphQL Apollo covering price, platforms, features and what each one is used for. Those pages read the full record for both products rather than the summary shown here.
- Does this list cover every api management tool?
- No. It covers what this directory holds in the API Management category, 21 tools beside GraphQL Apollo. The category page lists the rest of the catalogue as it grows.