API Management · head to head
Apollo GraphQL vs Strapi

Apollo GraphQL
API Management
GraphQL platform and API orchestration layer for building unified graphs
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Apollo GraphQL pricing beyond the Developer tier requires contacting sales, making cost comparison harder for mid-size teams.; Strapi cloud pricing is per project, not per account, so a second project doubles the bill
- They diverge on capability: Apollo GraphQL covers Apollo Connectors, Strapi covers REST API.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Apollo GraphQL and Strapi actually diverge.
| Attribute | Apollo GraphQL | Strapi |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | freemium | open-source |
| Platforms | web, api | Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker |
| Founded | Unknown | 2015 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Apollo GraphQL
- Apollo Connectors
- GraphOS Router
- Schema registry
- Schema checks
- Response caching
- Audit logging
Only in Strapi
- REST API
- GraphQL API
- Content management
- PostgreSQL
- MySQL
- MongoDB
- AWS
- Webhooks
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Apollo GraphQL
- Federating multiple backend services into one GraphQL APInot Strapi
- Wrapping legacy REST APIs for frontend consumptionnot Strapi
- Enterprise API governance with schema checks and audit logsnot Strapi
- Reducing frontend over-fetching and under-fetching of datanot Strapi
Strapi
- Running a self hosted headless CMS with a REST or GraphQL APInot Apollo GraphQL
- Giving editors a content admin panel over a custom content modelnot Apollo GraphQL
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Apollo GraphQL
- Pricing beyond the Developer tier requires contacting sales, making cost comparison harder for mid-size teams.
- Adopting GraphOS effectively requires buy-in to the GraphQL paradigm, which is a larger architectural shift than adding a REST gateway.
- The free plan's 1-day data retention and 60 req/min self-hosted router limit make it unsuitable for production use.
- Volume-based per-request pricing can become expensive at very high request volumes compared to flat-rate API gateways.
Strapi
- Cloud pricing is per project, not per account, so a second project doubles the bill
- Starter at $35 a month allows 100,000 API requests, and overage is $1.50 per 25,000
- Extra bandwidth is $30 per 100 GB and extra asset storage $0.60 per GB
- Backups start at the Pro plan, weekly, and only become daily at Business
- An uptime SLA is Business only, at $450 a month per project
- Additional environments cost $60 a month on Pro and $300 a month on Business
Pricing, plan by plan
Apollo GraphQL
Free- FreeFree
- Up to 3 developers
- 1-day data retention
- Community support
- Developer$5/month
- $5 per million requests with volume discounts
- $50 usage credit for new signups
- Up to 10 developers
- Standard$undefined/month
- Up to 30 developers
- 90-day data retention
- Standard support with SLA
- Enterprise$undefined/month
- Unlimited developers
- 18-month data retention
- 24x7x365 support with SLA
Strapi
Free- CommunityFree
- Self-hosted Strapi
- Community support
- Pro$99/monthly
- Cloud hosting
- Advanced features
- Priority support
- Business$undefined/monthly
- Enterprise features
- Custom SLA
- Dedicated support
Which should you pick?
Choose Apollo GraphQL if
- You need apollo connectors.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on web, api.
- You also want graphos router.
Choose Strapi 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.
Questions people ask
- Is Apollo GraphQL or Strapi better?
- Neither clearly leads. Apollo GraphQL starts at Free and Strapi at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Apollo GraphQL or Strapi?
- Apollo GraphQL starts at Free and Strapi at Free.
- Does Apollo GraphQL or Strapi run on more platforms?
- Apollo GraphQL runs on web, api. Strapi runs on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
- Can I use Apollo GraphQL for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Apollo GraphQL best used for?
- Apollo GraphQL is most often used for federating multiple backend services into one graphql api, wrapping legacy rest apis for frontend consumption, enterprise api governance with schema checks and audit logs, reducing frontend over-fetching and under-fetching of data. Of those, federating multiple backend services into one graphql api and wrapping legacy rest apis for frontend consumption are not what Strapi is typically brought in for.
- What can Apollo GraphQL do that Strapi cannot?
- Apollo GraphQL covers Apollo Connectors, GraphOS Router, Schema registry, Schema checks. Strapi covers REST API, GraphQL API, Content management, PostgreSQL.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Apollo GraphQL: What does Apollo GraphQL cost?
The Free plan supports up to 3 developers at no cost. Developer plan starts at $5 per million requests with a $50 signup credit, while Standard and Enterprise require contacting sales for custom pricing.
SourceApollo GraphQL: Is there a free plan and what are its limits?
Yes, the Free 'Forever Free' plan supports up to 3 developers, 1-day data retention for checks and insights, and a self-hosted router capped at 60 requests per minute.
SourceApollo GraphQL: How is usage metered on paid plans?
Standard requests are billed per million operations with tiered volume discounts, starting at $5.00/million for the first 250M and dropping to $3.00/million beyond 5B, with similar tiered pricing for subscription update events.
SourceRelated pages
More on Apollo GraphQL
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- Strapi vs Pusher
- Strapi vs Kong Gateway
- Strapi vs PubNub
- Strapi vs Treblle
- Strapi vs Bruno
- Strapi vs KeystoneJS
- Strapi vs Moesif
- Strapi vs Parse Server
- Strapi vs Stainless
- Strapi vs Stoplight
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