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APIs · head to head

Apigee vs Ory Kratos

Apigee logo

Apigee

APIs

API management platform for designing, securing, and scaling APIs

From
$500/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Ory Kratos logo

Ory Kratos

Cybersecurity

Headless identity and user management API

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Ory Kratos 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; Ory Kratos headless means you build every screen, which is significant work compared with a hosted login page
  • They diverge on capability: Apigee covers API Gateway, Ory Kratos covers Headless API.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Apigee and Ory Kratos actually diverge.

Attributes where Apigee and Ory Kratos differ
AttributeApigeeOry Kratos
Starting price$500/monthlyFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen-source self-hosted, with a paid managed network
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsCloud, Hybrid, On-premisesLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
CategoryAPIsCybersecurity
Founded2006Unknown

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 Apigee

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

Only in Ory Kratos

  • Headless API
  • Self-service flows
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Pluggable identity schemas

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

Ory Kratos

  • Products needing complete control over the look and flow of authenticationnot Apigee
  • Applications that must not hand user identity data to a third partynot Apigee
  • Teams building identity as infrastructure across several servicesnot 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

Ory Kratos

  • Headless means you build every screen, which is significant work compared with a hosted login page
  • More moving parts than a monolithic IAM: Kratos handles identity, and OAuth2 needs Ory Hydra alongside
  • Documentation assumes real familiarity with identity concepts and is not a gentle introduction
  • Self-hosting identity carries the security and availability burden that hosted providers absorb

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

Ory Kratos

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • Full identity server
    • All flows
    • Community support

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 Ory Kratos if

  • You need headless api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want self-service flows.
Ory Kratos review

Questions people ask

Is Apigee or Ory Kratos better?
Neither clearly leads. Apigee starts at $500/monthly and Ory Kratos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Apigee or Ory Kratos?
Ory Kratos has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $500/monthly for Apigee and Free for Ory Kratos.
Does Apigee or Ory Kratos run on more platforms?
Apigee runs on Cloud, Hybrid, On-premises. Ory Kratos runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use Ory Kratos for free?
Yes. Ory Kratos 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 Ory Kratos is typically brought in for.
What can Apigee do that Ory Kratos cannot?
Apigee covers API Gateway, API Analytics, Developer Portal, Google Cloud services. Ory Kratos covers Headless API, Self-service flows, Multi-factor authentication, Pluggable identity schemas.

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
Ory Kratos: Is Ory Kratos free?

Yes, open source and free to self-host. Ory Network is a paid managed service.

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
Ory Kratos: What does headless mean here?

Kratos provides identity flows as APIs and no user interface. You build the login, registration and recovery screens yourself.

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
Ory Kratos: Does Kratos do OAuth2?

No. Kratos handles user identity; OAuth2 and OpenID Connect provider functionality is Ory Hydra, a separate component.

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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