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APIs · head to head

GraphQL Playground vs Griffin

GraphQL Playground logo

GraphQL Playground

APIs

GraphQL IDE and documentation tool for building GraphQL APIs

From
Free
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

  • Only GraphQL Playground has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: GraphQL Playground apollo's own documentation states GraphQL Playground is officially retired and no longer recommended, directing users to Apollo Sandbox instead; 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: GraphQL Playground covers Query building, 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 GraphQL Playground and Griffin actually diverge.

Attributes where GraphQL Playground and Griffin differ
AttributeGraphQL PlaygroundGriffin
Starting priceFree£100/month
Pricing modelopen-sourcePer month with usage drawdown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Electron, Self-hostedWeb, REST API
Founded2018Unknown

Identical on both: 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 GraphQL Playground

  • Query building
  • Schema introspection
  • Real-time testing
  • GraphQL servers
  • Apollo Studio
  • Custom servers
  • Web support
  • Electron 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.

GraphQL Playground

  • API Developmentnot Griffin
  • API Gatewaynot Griffin
  • API Testingnot Griffin
  • API Documentationnot Griffin
  • Microservicesnot Griffin

Griffin

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

Where each one falls short

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

GraphQL Playground

  • Apollo's own documentation states GraphQL Playground is officially retired and no longer recommended, directing users to Apollo Sandbox instead

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

GraphQL Playground

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full GraphQL IDE
    • Community 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 GraphQL Playground if

  • You need query building.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Electron, Self-hosted.
  • You also want schema introspection.
GraphQL Playground 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 GraphQL Playground or Griffin better?
Neither clearly leads. GraphQL Playground starts at Free and Griffin at £100/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, GraphQL Playground or Griffin?
GraphQL Playground has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for GraphQL Playground and £100/month for Griffin.
Does GraphQL Playground or Griffin run on more platforms?
GraphQL Playground runs on Web, Electron, Self-hosted. Griffin runs on Web, REST API.
Can I use GraphQL Playground for free?
Yes. GraphQL Playground has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Griffin starts at £100/month.
What is GraphQL Playground best used for?
GraphQL Playground is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what Griffin is typically brought in for.
What can GraphQL Playground do that Griffin cannot?
GraphQL Playground covers Query building, Schema introspection, Real-time testing, GraphQL servers. Griffin covers Bank accounts by API, UK payment rails, Integrated ledger, Automated onboarding.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

GraphQL Playground: Is GraphQL Playground free to use?

GraphQL Playground is a testing tool for Apollo Server and is free to use as part of the Apollo Server documentation. However, the broader Apollo GraphQL platform has various paid tiers available for production use.

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.

GraphQL Playground: Is GraphQL Playground part of a paid product?

GraphQL Playground is a testing tool within the Apollo ecosystem. While Playground itself is free, Apollo offers paid tiers starting at $5 per million requests for the Developer tier, with Standard and Enterprise plans available at custom pricing.

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.

GraphQL Playground: What is the cost structure for Apollo GraphQL's paid plans?

Apollo uses volume-based tiered pricing for requests: first 250M operations cost $5.00 per million plus $2.00 for performance add-on; next 750M operations are $4.25 per million plus $1.50 add-on; additional tiers scale down to $3.00 per million plus $0.50 add-on for operations over 5 billion.

Source
Griffin: Does it cover Europe?

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

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