API Management · head to head
3scale vs Okta

3scale
API Management
API management platform for designing, securing, and monetizing APIs
- From
- $300/monthly
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Okta has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: 3scale red Hat's managed 3scale services end on 30 June 2027, so anyone adopting the hosted option now is choosing a product with a published end date; Okta requires $1,500 annual minimum contract
- They diverge on capability: 3scale covers API Gateway, Okta covers Single sign-on (SSO).
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which 3scale and Okta actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in 3scale
- API Gateway
- Developer Portal
- API Monetization
- Red Hat OpenShift
- Azure
- Kubernetes
- Cloud support
- On-premises support
Only in Okta
- Single sign-on (SSO)
- Multi-factor authentication
- Lifecycle management
- Universal directory
- API access management
- B2B integration
- Passwordless authentication
- Adaptive MFA
Both cover
- AWS
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
3scale
- API gateway and lifecycle managementnot Okta
- Rate limiting and traffic control across API consumersnot Okta
- Developer portal and access key managementnot Okta
- Monetising APIs with usage-based plansnot Okta
- Hybrid deployment across on-premises and cloudnot Okta
Okta
- Employee SSOnot 3scale
- Customer identitynot 3scale
- B2B integrationnot 3scale
- Zero Trust securitynot 3scale
- Compliancenot 3scale
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
3scale
- Red Hat's managed 3scale services end on 30 June 2027, so anyone adopting the hosted option now is choosing a product with a published end date
- Sold as part of Red Hat middleware rather than standalone, and 3scale.net redirects into redhat.com
- Pricing is not published and a subscription is required for some services
Okta
- Requires $1,500 annual minimum contract
- Admin-only MFA can be vulnerable to push notification fatigue attacks
- Implementation requires significant services and integration fees in year one
Pricing, plan by plan
3scale
$300/monthly- Starter$300/monthly
- API gateway
- Developer portal
- Basic analytics
- Professional$750/monthly
- Advanced features
- API monetization
- Enhanced support
- Enterprise$undefined/monthly
- Custom deployment
- Dedicated support
- Premium SLA
Okta
Free- Starter Suite$6/user/month
- SSO
- MFA
- Universal Directory
- Core Essentials Suite$14/user/month
- Adaptive MFA
- Privileged Access
- Lifecycle Management
- Essentials Suite$17/user/month
- Same as Core Essentials
- Most popular
- Professional Suite$null/custom
- Device Access
- Identity Security Posture
- Threat Protection
Which should you pick?
Choose 3scale if
- You need api gateway.
- You work on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid.
- You also want developer portal.
Choose Okta if
- You need single sign-on (sso).
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, SaaS.
- You also want multi-factor authentication.
Questions people ask
- Is 3scale or Okta better?
- Neither clearly leads. 3scale starts at $300/monthly and Okta at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, 3scale or Okta?
- Okta has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $300/monthly for 3scale and Free for Okta.
- Does 3scale or Okta run on more platforms?
- 3scale runs on Cloud, On-premises, Hybrid. Okta runs on Web, SaaS.
- Can I use Okta for free?
- Yes. Okta has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. 3scale starts at $300/monthly.
- What is 3scale best used for?
- 3scale is most often used for api gateway and lifecycle management, rate limiting and traffic control across api consumers, developer portal and access key management, monetising apis with usage-based plans. Of those, api gateway and lifecycle management and rate limiting and traffic control across api consumers are not what Okta is typically brought in for.
- What can 3scale do that Okta cannot?
- 3scale covers API Gateway, Developer Portal, API Monetization, Red Hat OpenShift. Okta covers Single sign-on (SSO), Multi-factor authentication, Lifecycle management, Universal directory. Both handle AWS.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Okta: What is the minimum contract for Okta Workforce Identity?
Okta requires a $1,500 annual minimum contract for Workforce Identity plans. Pricing starts at $6 per user per month (Starter) and ranges to $17 per user per month (Essentials), billed annually.
SourceOkta: Does Okta offer a free trial?
Yes, Okta provides a 30-day free trial so customers can explore all product capabilities before committing to a paid plan.
SourceOkta: How many pre-built integrations does Okta support?
Okta offers over 7,000 pre-built integrations with popular enterprise applications including Salesforce, Slack, Workday, Box, Confluence, and Zendesk.
SourceOkta: What security features does Okta provide for admins?
Okta provides multi-factor authentication, adaptive MFA, single logout, and identity threat detection and response. However, only 94% of Okta customers have MFA enabled for administrators.
SourceOkta: Can Okta integrate with on-premises directories?
Yes, Okta's Universal Directory and lifecycle management support cloud and on-premises identity sources, including Active Directory and LDAP.
SourceRelated pages
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- Okta vs Appwrite
- Okta vs Hasura
- Okta vs PocketBase
- Okta vs Sanity
- Okta vs Apigee
- Okta vs Bruno
- Okta vs KeystoneJS
- Okta vs Parse Server
- Okta vs Stoplight
- Okta vs Strapi
- Okta vs Swagger/OpenAPI
- Okta vs Thunder Client
- Okta vs WSO2 API Manager
- Okta vs Akana
- Okta vs Asyncapi
- Okta vs AWS API Gateway
- Okta vs Microsoft Azure API Management
- Okta vs Backendless
- Okta vs Asana
- Okta vs ClickUp
- Okta vs Figma
- Okta vs Linear
- Okta vs Monday.com
- Okta vs Greenhouse
- Okta vs Notion
- Okta vs Amplitude
- Okta vs Datadog
- Okta vs PostHog
- Okta vs PyCharm
- Okta vs Sketch
- Okta vs Docker
- Okta vs Netlify
- Okta vs Aha!
- Okta vs Coda
- Okta vs Dashlane
- Okta vs GitHub

