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APIs · head to head

Apigee vs Griffin

Apigee logo

Apigee

APIs

API management platform for designing, securing, and scaling APIs

From
$500/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Griffin logo

Griffin

APIs

UK banking-as-a-service from a company that holds its own full banking licence

From
£100/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Apigee the free evaluation is a sandbox limited to 60 days; Griffin platform banking carries a one-off onboarding fee from 15,000 pounds and a 3,500 pound monthly minimum, which prices out early-stage companies entirely.
  • They diverge on capability: Apigee covers API Gateway, Griffin covers Bank accounts by API.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Apigee and Griffin actually diverge.

Attributes where Apigee and Griffin differ
AttributeApigeeGriffin
Starting price$500/monthly£100/month
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer month with usage drawdown
PlatformsCloud, Hybrid, On-premisesWeb, REST API
Founded2006Unknown

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 Apigee

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

Only in Griffin

  • Bank accounts by API
  • UK payment rails
  • Integrated ledger
  • Automated onboarding
  • Debit cards
  • Interest on balances

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 Griffin
  • Monetizing APIs and running a developer portalnot Griffin
  • Analyzing API traffic and defending APIs against bots and abusenot Griffin

Griffin

  • A wealth platform that must hold client money in a licensed bank rather than an EMI safeguarding accountnot Apigee
  • A lender wanting UK accounts and payment rails without becoming a bank itselfnot Apigee
  • A fintech burned by sponsor bank instability that wants the deposit holder and the API provider to be the same entitynot Apigee
  • A platform needing sub-account ledgering for pooled client funds with a clean audit trailnot 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

Griffin

  • Platform banking carries a one-off onboarding fee from 15,000 pounds and a 3,500 pound monthly minimum, which prices out early-stage companies entirely.
  • It is UK-only, so a business with European or US operations needs a second banking provider and a second integration for those entities.
  • It is a young bank with a small balance sheet relative to incumbents, and enterprise counterparties still ask hard questions about concentration risk.
  • Holding a banking licence means Griffin applies bank-grade due diligence to its own clients, so onboarding is slower and more selective than an EMI-based provider.
  • Feature breadth is narrower than long-established providers, particularly in card programme management and in payment types beyond core UK rails.

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

Griffin

£100/month
  • Business Banking$100/month
    • From 100 pounds per month
    • Interest or commission from around 1.75 percent AER variable
    • Operational accounts and UK payment rails
  • Platform Banking$3500/month
    • One-off onboarding fee from 15,000 pounds
    • Minimum monthly spend of 3,500 pounds, drawn down by usage
    • Higher committed tiers at 5,000 and 10,000 pounds with discounts
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom pricing
    • Bespoke account structures and volumes
    • Negotiated interest or commission share

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 Griffin if

  • You need bank accounts by api.
  • You work on Web, REST API.
  • You also want uk payment rails.
Griffin review

Questions people ask

Is Apigee or Griffin better?
Neither clearly leads. Apigee starts at $500/monthly and Griffin at £100/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Apigee or Griffin?
Apigee starts at $500/monthly and Griffin at £100/month.
Does Apigee or Griffin run on more platforms?
Apigee runs on Cloud, Hybrid, On-premises. Griffin runs on Web, REST API.
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 Griffin is typically brought in for.
What can Apigee do that Griffin cannot?
Apigee covers API Gateway, API Analytics, Developer Portal, Google Cloud services. Griffin covers Bank accounts by API, UK payment rails, Integrated ledger, Automated onboarding.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Apigee: Does Apigee offer a free tier?

Yes, Apigee offers an always-free tier with access to 20+ products for common API management use cases, and a separate free trial providing $300 in credit for proof-of-concept projects.

Source
Griffin: Is Griffin actually a bank?

Yes. It received a UK banking licence with restrictions in March 2023 and a full licence in March 2024 after exiting mobilisation.

Apigee: What is Apigee's pricing model?

Apigee uses a pay-as-you-go pricing model where customers pay based on API calls and usage, with a new pay-as-you-go model designed to optimize costs.

Source
Griffin: What does it cost?

Business banking from 100 pounds a month; platform banking from a 15,000 pound onboarding fee plus a 3,500 pound monthly minimum drawn down by usage.

Apigee: Is there a commitment required to start with Apigee?

No. The free trial provides $300 in credit with no automatic charges or commitment required, allowing customers to evaluate the platform risk-free.

Source
Griffin: Does it cover Europe?

No. Griffin is a UK bank serving UK accounts and UK payment rails.

Apigee: Are there usage limits I should know about?

Apigee documentation includes a limits page covering usage constraints, though specific limits are not detailed in the pricing section.

Source
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