APIs · head to head
Akana vs Highnote
Highnote
APIs
Card issuing, acquiring and ledger on one platform for embedded payments
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Akana owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com; Highnote card issuing requires a sponsor bank, and that bank sets programme approval, compliance obligations and often minimum volumes, so a small programme can be rejected regardless of technical fit.
- They diverge on capability: Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, Highnote covers Card issuing.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Akana and Highnote actually diverge.
Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).
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 Akana
- API Lifecycle Management
- API Security
- Governance Controls
- OAuth
- SAML
- LDAP
- Active Directory
- Cloud support
Only in Highnote
- Card issuing
- Merchant acquiring
- Unified ledger
- Spend controls
- GraphQL API
- Programme management
- Dispute handling
- Real time authorisation webhooks
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Akana
- API lifecycle management across REST, SOAP and GraphQLnot Highnote
- Applying OAuth, JWT and SAML policies at the gatewaynot Highnote
- Running the same platform on-premises, in Kubernetes or across cloudsnot Highnote
- Developer portal and API monetisationnot Highnote
- Monitoring API traffic and enforcing quotasnot Highnote
Highnote
- A marketplace that both pays out to sellers and issues them spend cards, wanting one settlement ledgernot Akana
- A vertical software company embedding card acceptance and card issuing for the same customer basenot Akana
- A fintech launching a commercial charge card programme with custom authorisation logicnot Akana
- A platform replacing separate issuing and acquiring vendors to remove cross system reconciliationnot Akana
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Akana
- Owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com
- Pricing is not published; only a 30 day trial is offered
Highnote
- Card issuing requires a sponsor bank, and that bank sets programme approval, compliance obligations and often minimum volumes, so a small programme can be rejected regardless of technical fit.
- Pricing is entirely quoted, including platform fees, per active card charges and monthly minimums that do not appear on the website, so the true cost per card is only visible late in a sales process.
- Interchange sharing is the real revenue model for most customers, and the split is negotiated, capped for regulated debit under the Durbin amendment and sensitive to your spend mix, so revenue projections built on headline interchange rates overstate income.
- Running issuing and acquiring with one provider concentrates risk: an outage or a compliance action affects both money in and money out at the same time.
- Highnote is a younger company than the established issuer processors, so long term programme continuity, network certifications in new geographies and international coverage are thinner than the incumbent alternatives.
Pricing, plan by plan
Akana
$2500/monthly- Professional$2500/monthly
- API Gateway
- Developer Portal
- Basic analytics
- Enterprise$5000/monthly
- Advanced governance
- Multi-cloud support
- Premium support
- Custom$undefined/monthly
- Custom solutions
- Dedicated support
- SLA guarantee
Highnote
On request- Highnote platform$undefined/year
- Quoted per programme with no public rate card
- Requires a sponsor bank relationship for card issuing
- Interchange sharing terms negotiated per programme
Which should you pick?
Choose Akana if
- You need api lifecycle management.
- You work on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid.
- You also want api security.
Choose Highnote if
- You need card issuing.
- You work on Web, API.
- You also want merchant acquiring.
Questions people ask
- Is Akana or Highnote better?
- Neither clearly leads. Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Highnote at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Akana or Highnote?
- Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Highnote at On request.
- Does Akana or Highnote run on more platforms?
- Akana runs on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid. Highnote runs on Web, API.
- What is Akana best used for?
- Akana is most often used for api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql, applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway, running the same platform on-premises, in kubernetes or across clouds, developer portal and api monetisation. Of those, api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql and applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway are not what Highnote is typically brought in for.
- What can Akana do that Highnote cannot?
- Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, API Security, Governance Controls, OAuth. Highnote covers Card issuing, Merchant acquiring, Unified ledger, Spend controls.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Akana: What does Akana API Platform include?
Akana provides mediation and integration capabilities for creating easy-to-consume API products from API code, with features for API governance, security, and operational management.
SourceHighnote: Do I need a sponsor bank?
Yes for card issuing in the United States. Highnote is a processor and programme platform, not a bank, and the sponsor bank sets approval and compliance terms.
Akana: How does Akana help secure APIs?
Akana addresses the security challenges that come with more APIs and more endpoints, providing tools for enterprise API governance and compliance management.
SourceHighnote: How do customers make money on a card programme?
Mostly interchange sharing. Negotiate the split explicitly and model it against your actual spend mix, since regulated debit interchange is capped.
Highnote: Can Highnote handle both accepting and issuing payments?
Yes since its 2025 acquiring launch, on the same ledger, which is its main structural differentiator.
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