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API Management · head to head

Apigee vs Directus

Apigee logo

Apigee

API Management

API management platform for designing, securing, and scaling APIs

From
$500/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Directus logo

Directus

API Management

Open-source data platform providing REST and GraphQL APIs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Directus has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Apigee the free evaluation is a sandbox limited to 60 days; Directus free permissive use of the self hosted product is limited to organisations under $5M annual revenue with fewer than 50 employees, so crossing either threshold turns a free dependency into a paid licence
  • They diverge on capability: Apigee covers API Gateway, Directus covers REST API.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Apigee and Directus actually diverge.

Attributes where Apigee and Directus differ
AttributeApigeeDirectus
Starting price$500/monthlyFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionopen-source
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsCloud, Hybrid, On-premisesNode.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker
Founded20062014

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (API Management).

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 Apigee

  • API Gateway
  • API Analytics
  • Developer Portal
  • Google Cloud services
  • Azure
  • AWS
  • Okta
  • Hybrid support

Only in Directus

  • REST API
  • GraphQL API
  • Database management
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • SQLite
  • Webhooks
  • Node.js support

Both cover

  • Cloud support

What people use each for

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

Apigee

  • Publishing, securing and versioning APIs for an enterprise API programnot Directus
  • Monetizing APIs and running a developer portalnot Directus
  • Analyzing API traffic and defending APIs against bots and abusenot Directus

Directus

  • Wrapping an existing SQL database in a REST and GraphQL API with an admin interfacenot Apigee
  • Running a self hosted headless CMS over a schema you already ownnot Apigee

Where each one falls short

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

Apigee

  • The free evaluation is a sandbox limited to 60 days
  • Pay-as-you-go has no SLA available at all
  • Pay-as-you-go bills environments separately from API calls, with a Base environment costing $365 per month per region
  • The Base environment is capped at 50 QPS with an SLA of up to 99%
  • Standard API Proxy calls are billed at $20 per 1M calls up to 50M, and Extensible API Proxy calls at $100 per 1M calls up to 50M
  • API Analytics is a paid add-on at $20 per 1M API calls and cannot be bought on a Base environment
  • Advanced API Security is a paid add-on at $350 per 1M API calls and cannot be bought on a Base environment
  • Monetization is unavailable on pay-as-you-go and requires a subscription tier
  • Additional API proxy deployments beyond those included cost $0.04 per hour per region on a Comprehensive environment
  • Subscription tiers Standard, Enterprise and Enterprise Plus are quote only with no published price
  • Google Cloud networking charges for IP addresses, data transfer out and forwarding rules are billed on top of Apigee usage

Directus

  • Free permissive use of the self hosted product is limited to organisations under $5M annual revenue with fewer than 50 employees, so crossing either threshold turns a free dependency into a paid licence
  • The free Core tier is a hard limit of 3 seats, 25 collections and 5 flows
  • The Team plan is $499 a month billed annually, or $599 monthly, with extra seats at $50 each
  • Team caps collections at 50, expandable to 100, and flows at 20

Pricing, plan by plan

Apigee

$500/monthly
  • Starter$500/monthly
    • API gateway
    • Analytics
    • Developer portal
  • Professional$2500/monthly
    • Advanced security
    • Traffic management
    • Monetization
  • Enterprise$undefined/monthly
    • Custom deployment
    • SLA
    • Dedicated support

Directus

Free
  • CommunityFree
    • Self-hosted Directus
    • Community support
  • Cloud$25/monthly
    • Managed cloud
    • Automatic updates
    • Backups

Which should you pick?

Choose Apigee if

  • You need api gateway.
  • You work on Cloud, Hybrid, On-premises.
  • You also want api analytics.
Apigee review

Choose Directus if

  • You need rest api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
  • You also want graphql api.
Directus review

Questions people ask

Is Apigee or Directus better?
Neither clearly leads. Apigee starts at $500/monthly and Directus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Apigee or Directus?
Directus has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $500/monthly for Apigee and Free for Directus.
Does Apigee or Directus run on more platforms?
Apigee runs on Cloud, Hybrid, On-premises. Directus runs on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
Can I use Directus for free?
Yes. Directus has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Apigee starts at $500/monthly.
What is Apigee best used for?
Apigee is most often used for publishing, securing and versioning apis for an enterprise api program, monetizing apis and running a developer portal, analyzing api traffic and defending apis against bots and abuse. Of those, publishing, securing and versioning apis for an enterprise api program and monetizing apis and running a developer portal are not what Directus is typically brought in for.
What can Apigee do that Directus cannot?
Apigee covers API Gateway, API Analytics, Developer Portal, Google Cloud services. Directus covers REST API, GraphQL API, Database management, PostgreSQL. Both handle Cloud support.
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