Softwr

Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Akamai vs Consul

Akamai logo

Akamai

Cloud & Infrastructure

Leading content delivery and security platform

From
$1000/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Consul logo

Consul

Network & Connectivity

Service discovery, networking, and security

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Consul has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Akamai only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price; Consul namespaces, admin partitions and other multi tenancy controls are Consul Enterprise only
  • They diverge on capability: Akamai covers CDN, Consul covers Service discovery.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Akamai and Consul actually diverge.

Attributes where Akamai and Consul differ
AttributeAkamaiConsul
Starting price$1000/monthFree
Pricing modelquoteopen-source
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, ApiLinux, Windows, Mac, Cloud
CategoryCloud & InfrastructureNetwork & Connectivity
Founded19982014

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 Akamai

  • CDN
  • DDoS Protection
  • Web Application Firewall
  • Bot Management
  • Image Optimization
  • Video Platform
  • API Gateway
  • Analytics

Only in Consul

  • Service discovery
  • Health checking
  • Key/value store
  • Multi-datacenter
  • DNS interface
  • Service mesh
  • Load balancing
  • Configuration management

Both cover

  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Akamai

  • Content delivery and web performance through Ion and adaptive media deliverynot Consul
  • DDoS protection, bot management and API securitynot Consul
  • Running compute, Kubernetes and managed databases on Akamai's cloudnot Consul
  • Edge compute with EdgeWorkersnot Consul
  • Zero trust access for enterprise applicationsnot Consul

Consul

  • Service discovery and health checking across dynamic infrastructurenot Akamai
  • Running a service mesh with mutual TLS between servicesnot Akamai
  • Distributed key value configuration storage for applicationsnot Akamai

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Akamai

  • Only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price
  • Cloud pricing varies by region across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific rather than being a single rate

Consul

  • Namespaces, admin partitions and other multi tenancy controls are Consul Enterprise only
  • Audit logging, OIDC authentication and FIPS 140-2 builds require Consul Enterprise, so compliance driven deployments cannot use the free edition
  • Automated backups, redundancy zones, read replicas and automated server upgrades are Enterprise only
  • Long Term Support releases are Enterprise only, so community users must upgrade to stay supported
  • Service mesh and advanced traffic management sit in the Premium Enterprise tier above Standard Enterprise
  • HashiCorp does not publish a Consul rate on its pricing page, which lists per resource prices for Terraform instead

Pricing, plan by plan

Akamai

$1000/month
  • CDN$1000/month
    • Content delivery
    • Global edge network
    • Real-time analytics
  • Security Suite$2000/month
    • DDoS protection
    • WAF
    • Bot management

Consul

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Service discovery
    • Health checking
    • KV store

Which should you pick?

Choose Akamai if

  • You need cdn.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want ddos protection.
Akamai review

Choose Consul if

  • You need service discovery.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud.
  • You also want health checking.
Consul review

Questions people ask

Is Akamai or Consul better?
Neither clearly leads. Akamai starts at $1000/month and Consul at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Akamai or Consul?
Consul has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $1000/month for Akamai and Free for Consul.
Does Akamai or Consul run on more platforms?
Akamai runs on Web, Api. Consul runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Cloud.
Can I use Consul for free?
Yes. Consul has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Akamai starts at $1000/month.
What is Akamai best used for?
Akamai is most often used for content delivery and web performance through ion and adaptive media delivery, ddos protection, bot management and api security, running compute, kubernetes and managed databases on akamai's cloud, edge compute with edgeworkers. Of those, content delivery and web performance through ion and adaptive media delivery and ddos protection, bot management and api security are not what Consul is typically brought in for.
What can Akamai do that Consul cannot?
Akamai covers CDN, DDoS Protection, Web Application Firewall, Bot Management. Consul covers Service discovery, Health checking, Key/value store, Multi-datacenter. Both handle Cloud deployment.
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