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APIs · head to head

Kong Gateway vs Strapi

Kong Gateway logo

Kong Gateway

APIs

Open-source and cloud API gateway for managing microservices traffic

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Strapi logo

Strapi

APIs

Headless CMS with REST and GraphQL APIs

From
$35/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Kong Gateway has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Kong Gateway the free open-source gateway lacks the analytics, portals, and support of the paid Konnect tiers.; Strapi cloud pricing is per project, not per account, so a second project doubles the bill
  • They diverge on capability: Kong Gateway covers API request routing, Strapi covers REST API.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kong Gateway and Strapi actually diverge.

Attributes where Kong Gateway and Strapi differ
AttributeKong GatewayStrapi
Starting priceFree$35/month
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, linux, apiNode.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker
Founded20172015

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 Kong Gateway

  • API request routing
  • Plugin ecosystem
  • Developer portals
  • AI Gateway
  • Analytics and observability
  • SSO and audit logs

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.

Kong Gateway

  • Routing and securing traffic across microservicesnot Strapi
  • Publishing internal or external developer portalsnot Strapi
  • Managing rate limits and authentication at the API edgenot Strapi
  • Gateway-level routing to multiple LLM providersnot Strapi

Strapi

  • Running a self hosted headless CMS with a REST or GraphQL APInot Kong Gateway
  • Giving editors a content admin panel over a custom content modelnot Kong Gateway

Where each one falls short

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

Kong Gateway

  • The free open-source gateway lacks the analytics, portals, and support of the paid Konnect tiers.
  • Plus tier caps API requests at 1M/month before incurring per-million overage charges.
  • Enterprise pricing is custom and not published, making budgeting harder without sales contact.
  • Configuration and plugin management can require significant operational expertise to run at scale.

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

Kong Gateway

Free
  • Free TrialFree
    • 30-day enterprise functionality trial
    • Unlimited gateways
    • 30-day analytics retention
  • Plus$undefined/month
    • Up to 5 serverless, 2 hybrid, 2 dedicated cloud gateways
    • 1M API requests/month included
    • Up to 2 developer portals
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Unlimited hybrid and dedicated cloud gateways
    • Unlimited developer portals
    • SSO and audit logs

Strapi

$35/month
  • Starter$35/month
    • 100k API requests
    • 50 GB asset storage
    • 50 GB asset bandwidth
  • Pro$90/month
    • 1M API requests
    • 250 GB asset storage
    • 500 GB asset bandwidth
  • Business$450/month
    • 10M API requests
    • 1000 GB asset storage
    • 1000 GB asset bandwidth

Which should you pick?

Choose Kong Gateway if

  • You need api request routing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, linux, api.
  • You also want plugin ecosystem.
Kong Gateway review

Choose Strapi if

  • You need rest api.
  • You work on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
  • You also want graphql api.
Strapi review

Questions people ask

Is Kong Gateway or Strapi better?
Neither clearly leads. Kong Gateway starts at Free and Strapi at $35/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kong Gateway or Strapi?
Kong Gateway has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Kong Gateway and $35/month for Strapi.
Does Kong Gateway or Strapi run on more platforms?
Kong Gateway runs on web, linux, api. Strapi runs on Node.js, Cloud, Self-hosted, Docker.
Can I use Kong Gateway for free?
Yes. Kong Gateway has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Strapi starts at $35/month.
What is Kong Gateway best used for?
Kong Gateway is most often used for routing and securing traffic across microservices, publishing internal or external developer portals, managing rate limits and authentication at the api edge, gateway-level routing to multiple llm providers. Of those, routing and securing traffic across microservices and publishing internal or external developer portals are not what Strapi is typically brought in for.
What can Kong Gateway do that Strapi cannot?
Kong Gateway covers API request routing, Plugin ecosystem, Developer portals, AI Gateway. Strapi covers REST API, GraphQL API, Content management, PostgreSQL.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Kong Gateway: Is Kong Gateway free?

Kong's core gateway is open source and free to self-host. Kong Konnect, the managed cloud platform, offers a 30-day free trial before moving to paid Plus or custom Enterprise pricing.

Source
Strapi: How much do API request overages cost?

Additional API requests beyond the plan limit cost $1.50 per 25000 requests. Extra asset storage costs $0.60 per GB, and additional bandwidth costs $30 per 100 GB.

Source
Kong Gateway: How is usage metered on the Plus plan?

The Plus plan includes 1M API requests per month, with additional usage billed at $200 per extra 1 million requests up to a 10M/month cap, plus per-gateway and per-LLM-model charges.

Source
Strapi: Is yearly billing available?

Yes, yearly billing saves up to 17% compared to monthly billing on Strapi Cloud plans.

Source
Kong Gateway: What support is included?

Plus includes email support with a 2-business-day SLA, while Enterprise adds dedicated success managers and professional services.

Source
Strapi: What is included with the Pro plan?

The Pro plan costs $90 per month per project and includes 1M API requests, 250 GB asset storage, 500 GB bandwidth, multi-environment support, weekly backups, and manual backups.

Source
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