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IBM DataPower Gateway vs MuleSoft API Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
5.9
IBM DataPower Gateway consolidates functions, enhancing security and cost-efficiency, with APIs helping generate income despite perceived high costs.
Sentiment score
5.9
MuleSoft API Manager improves process reusability and automation, enhancing development speed, reducing costs, and ensuring seamless, cost-effective integration.
We count the number of hits and can say we earn and actually get the benefit from it.
Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
This iPaaS platform with CloudHub eliminates variable infrastructure-related costs and saves enterprises on connectivity and operations costs, as everything comes bundled from the MuleSoft side.
Enterprise Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.3
IBM DataPower Gateway's support is efficient and knowledgeable, but fees and delays vary; users suggest faster response times.
Sentiment score
7.3
MuleSoft API Manager's customer service is responsive and knowledgeable, though some users seek better priority clarity and business focus.
In terms of OEM support, it is poor.
Middleware Administrator at Pronteff IT Solutions
I would evaluate customer service and technical support as a little bit weak, so I give it a seven out of ten.
Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Our enterprise pays for a special success program, which provides priority support.
Lead Software Engineer at Franklin Templeton
If bug fixing is required for downtimes or issues, we receive prompt support with alternative solutions or workarounds.
Enterprise Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
They can be slow in addressing security vulnerabilities.
Senior Developer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.6
IBM DataPower Gateway is highly scalable for enterprises but may be costly for smaller firms using on-premises setups.
Sentiment score
7.0
MuleSoft API Manager is praised for scalability, effectively handling growth despite some costly scaling challenges and configuration variability.
Once you install the product, we can't scale the resources on the IBM DataPower Gateway.
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
Regarding availability, especially with iPaaS solutions, they guarantee 99.99%.
Enterprise Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.2
IBM DataPower Gateway is highly stable and reliable, ideal for banks handling heavy transaction volumes in diverse environments.
Sentiment score
7.8
MuleSoft API Manager is praised for stability and reliability, with some concerns about connectors and hardware setup.
IBM DataPower Gateway does not handle all the traffic on a single node.
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
There was an issue when trying to implement a request-reply pattern using JMS, which was not functioning as expected despite being documented.
Senior Developer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

IBM DataPower Gateway users seek cost reduction, enhanced usability, expanded integration, and improved support and automation features.
MuleSoft API Manager needs improved load balancing, integration, affordability, setup, customization, documentation, analytics, and Salesforce integration details.
If we require additional features, we can't configure them on the IBM DataPower Gateway.
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
Whenever I am writing code, it should give recommendations automatically by incorporating AI so I can write the code in a few minutes or seconds.
Middleware Administrator at Pronteff IT Solutions
My experience with the pricing of this product is that pricing is too high and should be reduced.
Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
Introducing features related to auto governance without manual effort would make the API Manager smarter and more efficient for enterprises with complex landscapes.
Lead Software Engineer at Franklin Templeton
Managing the cost of MuleSoft, particularly the billing model based on the number of active cores/threads, has been challenging.
Senior Developer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

IBM DataPower Gateway can be costly, with pricing dependent on licensing, features, and specific customer requirements.
MuleSoft API Manager is pricey, but valued for features; costs can prompt exploration of cheaper integration tools.
I think it costs around 5 Crore in Indian Rupees.
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
The pricing is high, which is the biggest point where some customers are hesitant about adopting it.
Founder at EAIESB
The major challenge they face is the high pricing, which has become notable especially since they transitioned from a VCore to a usage-based subscription.
Enterprise Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
MuleSoft is typically more expensive compared to using Java or Spring Boot APIs hosted in containers.
Senior Developer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
 

Valuable Features

IBM DataPower Gateway provides fast performance, strong security, seamless integration, scalability, and efficient management for comprehensive threat handling.
MuleSoft API Manager offers scalable API management, seamless integration, security features, and low-code tools for efficient development and insights.
No other Gateway offers this as part of the integration offering.
Middleware Administrator at Pronteff IT Solutions
As per the development perspective, there are some limitations with IBM DataPower Gateway because it only supports XML and XSLT language, but it does not support the Java language.
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
IBM DataPower Gateway has positively impacted my organization by allowing me to implement rate limits on the different API usage, which is the benefit.
Deputy director at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees
MuleSoft's ability to connect to third-party monitoring platforms like AWS, Datadog, and Elastic makes operational analysis more efficient.
Lead Software Engineer at Franklin Templeton
It also enables us to create additional layers of authentication, like integrating external providers for OAuth, within reduced timelines.
Senior Developer at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees
In MuleSoft API Manager, I find features like throttling and security to be the most valuable, as these are the things we use and configure as part of our deployments.
Founder at EAIESB
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM DataPower Gateway
Ranking in API Management
11th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) (5th), Application Infrastructure (7th), SOA Application Gateways (1st)
MuleSoft API Manager
Ranking in API Management
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the API Management category, the mindshare of IBM DataPower Gateway is 3.1%, down from 3.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of MuleSoft API Manager is 4.5%, down from 5.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
API Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
MuleSoft API Manager4.5%
IBM DataPower Gateway3.1%
Other92.4%
API Management
 

Featured Reviews

AkshaySawant - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager at CSB Bank Ltd
Security features excel but development limitations emerge
We are using the IBM DataPower Gateway for security purposes. As per the development perspective, there are some limitations with IBM DataPower Gateway because it only supports XML and XSLT language, but it does not support the Java language. This is the only limitation of the IBM DataPower Gateway. For the authentication and authorization purpose, we can use the IBM DataPower Gateway. It's a very good product. We are mostly using the IBM DataPower Gateway for security purposes and load balancing purposes. If we are handling the load for a particular server, then we can use the IBM DataPower Gateway. The IBM DataPower Gateway is mostly used for security purposes. If we have some APIs and we are using some security for those APIs, then we can use it. It can also be used as a load balancer. It's also used for certificate management, user management purposes, authentication, and authorization. For routing, the IBM DataPower Gateway has multiple URL-based routing and content-based routing capabilities. If we have multiple URLs, then we can use an XML script. Using the XSLT language, we can configure multiple URLs and implement URL-based routing. Content-based routing means if we have multiple requests, we can route the request to a particular URL. For this, we need to use the XSLT language only. We can't use XML, Java, or other scripting languages. With IBM DataPower Gateway, we are using all the APIs. All APIs have been configured on the gateway. We have configured the particular TLS profile and some TLS client profiles as well. Using that TLS profile, we have configured the APIs and authentication. We have configured some tokens also, including JWT tokens and different types of auth tokens. There is also a rate limiting feature which we use for handling API loads.
D.Rajesh Kumar - PeerSpot reviewer
Enterprise Architect at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees
Improved Integration Efficiency and Potential for Further Enhancements in Monitoring and User Experience
The policies in MuleSoft API Manager are significant features. We get the policies by default, with more than 25 out-of-the-box policies. If any additional requirement exists specific to the customer, there is a custom policy framework. We can build the policy according to our requirement, and deploy and enable it at the API Manager level to consume across different business groups, environments, or organizations altogether within the platform. Developing the custom policy is not challenging; you just need to follow the custom policy framework to implement. The custom policy and the different levels of SLAs of the API Manager are notable. Regarding the monitoring side of the API Manager, MuleSoft provides substantial monitoring with logs, offering search capability, raw data accessibility, and different subscriptions. With the top tier, integration with third-party platforms such as ELK or Splunk becomes unnecessary because all search capabilities, dashboards, and functional monitoring can be built within the platform itself. This is excellent from the monitoring perspective, and there have been recent improvements focusing on observability. For DevOps, if you want to make your continuous integration and continuous deployment effective, irrespective of the tool, there are options to integrate. For example, you can use the Maven plugin, platform APIs, or CLI to build your end-to-end DevOps cycle.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
29%
Insurance Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise17
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise43
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM DataPower Gateway?
The MPGW (Multi-Protocol Gateway) is great because it allows you to easily expose services using various protocols – web services, REST (JSON), and others. This flexibility simplifies things.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM DataPower Gateway?
This product is definitely expensive because if any issue occurs in the live environment or production environment, and our organization faces some issue with the IBM DataPower Gateway, then the IB...
What needs improvement with IBM DataPower Gateway?
The developer portal should be an integrated part of IBM DataPower Gateway to improve it. I think it is fine as is, and maybe no other additional features should be included in the next release. My...
How does Kong Enterprise compare with Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager?
The Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager was designed with its users in mind. Though it is a reasonably complex piece of software, it is easy to install and upgrade. While there are different things that ...
How does Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager compare with Amazon API Gateway?
I have found that Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager is the best integration tool out there for API management. It is easy to implement and learn; it provides several options for deployment, (including ...
What do you like most about Mulesoft Anypoint API Manager?
The most valuable features of the solution for securing APIs stem from the tool's ability to allow users to deploy policies.
 

Also Known As

WebSphere DataPower, IBM DataPower, IBM WebSphere DataPower
Anypoint API Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

RBL Bank, Availity
Coca-Cola, Splunk, Citrix, UCSF, Vertu, State of Colorado, National Post, TiVo, Deakin, LLS, Oldcastle Precast, ParcelPoint, Justice Systems, Ube, Sumitomo Corporation, PacificComp, University of Witwatersrand, Groupe Initiatives, Camelot, Panviva
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM DataPower Gateway vs. MuleSoft API Manager and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,768 professionals have used our research since 2012.