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Layer7 API Management vs Microsoft Azure API Management 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
6.7
Layer7 API Management offers business growth and protection, with varying ROI timelines; quick benefits are observed by many users.
Sentiment score
6.6
Microsoft Azure API Management cuts integration times by 90%, supports multi-environment apps, saves costs, and enhances operations.
Proper configuration of the solution, implementation strategy and correct scaling tier selection are other factors that influence the ROI.
Most of the time, where we work in companies, it is more of an internal policy or security guidance that we need to have an API gateway.
It helps connect all multi-environment applications to a single dashboard and give beautiful reports.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Layer7 API Management is praised for support and resources, though some users note post-acquisition service challenges.
Sentiment score
6.7
Microsoft Azure API Management provides efficient service, though improvements in response speed and flexibility are needed, especially across time zones.
Technical support is excellent, and I would rate them as ten.
Technical support is very poor and needs a lot of improvement.
We have regular sessions with Microsoft where we can have private previews of new features.
I rate the support from Microsoft Azure API Management a ten out of ten.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Layer7 API Management efficiently scales to handle significant traffic, supporting millions of daily requests with proper configuration.
Sentiment score
7.9
Microsoft Azure API Management is praised for scalability, flexibility, and regional integration, despite potential scaling costs.
All nodes communicate with one primary database, affecting connections and causing crashes under high load.
I rate the scalability of Microsoft Azure API Management a ten out of ten.
Because it is on Microsoft Azure, we don't have to worry about scalability.
It can host it in different regions, and we can point to the same set of backups and try to expose the APIs.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Layer7 API Management is stable and reliable, with minor scalability issues, often resolved through updates and support.
Sentiment score
8.0
Microsoft Azure API Management is generally reliable, with minor performance issues, rated eight or nine for stability.
Without rebooting for ninety to one hundred eighty days, cache builds up in Linux boxes, causing memory utilization issues.
This is the best service we have used within Azure and it has high availability.
I can't guarantee its stability or flexibility until all our databases and financial systems are integrated.
Microsoft Azure API Management is very stable.
 

Room For Improvement

Layer7 API Management needs improvements in UI, documentation, integration, functionality, training, policy tools, monitoring, reporting, and migration.
Microsoft Azure API Management needs improvements in scalability, integration, security, cost efficiency, deployment, and user experience for better functionality.
Broadcom's push for upgrades from version nine to ten, ten to 10.3, and onwards to twelve needs improvement in migration processes, especially with service dependencies.
The service is extensive and expensive, and this added flexibility would make it more manageable and less prone to errors.
Support for GraphQL, which is a different communication specification, needs to improve.
It's quite expensive, which could be a barrier for some users.
 

Setup Cost

Layer7 API Management offers competitive pricing with Essential and Enterprise tiers, though perceived costly for smaller enterprises.
Microsoft Azure API Management offers competitive pricing, but premium features and additional service charges require careful cost management.
Seeing other products makes the tool's pricing seem high.
Moreover, there are additional costs to the standard licensing fees.
The more enterprise-level features you go to, the more expensive it gets.
The solution is highly expensive.
 

Valuable Features

Layer7 API Management excels with robust security, scalability, and features like content routing and drag-and-drop functionality.
Microsoft Azure API Management offers robust access control, seamless integration, and scalability, supporting diverse enterprise needs effectively.
The flexibility to develop APIs for various platforms, from front-end applications to ATM machines, is valuable.
It's a low-code, no-code model of API hosting.
The platform's most valuable features are its rule-based permissions and comprehensive API lifecycle management capabilities.
The ability to create a subscription model for APIs allows companies to monetize valuable data and share it securely.
 

Categories and Ranking

Layer7 API Management
Ranking in API Management
12th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
112
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Azure API Management
Ranking in API Management
1st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
80
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the API Management category, the mindshare of Layer7 API Management is 3.0%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure API Management is 19.1%, down from 19.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
API Management
 

Featured Reviews

Ronald D'Souza - PeerSpot reviewer
Has great drag-and-drop features and it requires minimal coding
I have mainly implemented using Layer 7 API Management. Some of the major challenges we were able to meet with a quick release to market methodology. Some of the tasks which we achieved for our customers were: 1. Translation service from SOAP to REST and vice versa. 2. API service to DB (Oracle, MySQL, MSSQL, Snowflake, SAP HANA) -- Created Swagger APIs that were able to perform CRUD operation to the backend API mentioned above and provided routes to query and get data. 3. Integration with Payment gateway service providers to perform (transaction on behalf of the customer with third-party payment gateway service providers white labeled with our APIs ) -- Followed TMF standards for payment gateway integration with the Telcom world. 4. Orchestration of the API. Build multiple microservers and provided orchestration based on route, path, and data in the request and perform actions that would be communicated with multiple APIs and provide a single consolidated response. 5. Provided API-driven security (Oauth 2.0, JWT, SAML, Basic, and a variety of means) to access the API giving the developer the freedom to concentrate only on application/service/microservice and let the gateway handle the threat. 6. Seamless Mutual Authentication allowed good segregation between APIs in the DMZ and internal network.
Rajiv Bala Balasubramanian - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficiently manages and monetizes API
It is a scalable solution. You can add more computing power to your APM gateway. It also gives you the ability to have VNet integrations with your on-prem. It is one of the leading products in the API management space. It is not just software for users but software to handle requests. For example, for a B2C e-commerce store, all requests that users make from within the store pass through this API gateway. So it is defined by the number of requests to the API gateway, not by the number of actual users who use it. If you look at the number of requests, it would be a lot from all the different systems we have within Pampers.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
19%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Insurance Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Layer7 API Management?
Layer7 API Management could be improved in its logging and alert mechanisms. Furthermore, although cloud deployment has been introduced, I am not familiar with all recent updates. In previous versi...
How does Apigee differ from Azure API Management?
Apigee offers both cloud-based and on-prem options while Microsoft Azure API Management currently only offers a cloud-based solution. Both solutions are easy to use. Apigee allows for the ability...
Which is better - Azure API Management or Amazon API Gateway?
If you use Azure products, API Management is a great solution. It solves many of the problems of externalizing web services. For example, when you need versioning, establish a developer portal and ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure API Management?
Microsoft Azure API Management is a good, comprehensive solution for enterprise implementation.
 

Also Known As

CA API Management, CA Live API Creator, Espresso Logic, CA API Gateway
Azure API Management, MS Azure API Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

1. IBM  2. Microsoft  3. Oracle  4. Salesforce  5. SAP  6. Cisco  7. Dell  8. HP  9. Adobe  10. VMware  11. Accenture  12. Capgemini  13. Deloitte  14. PwC  15. Ernst & Young  16. Infosys  17. TCS (Tata Consultancy Services)  18. Wipro  19. Cognizant  20. HCL Technologies  21. Tech Mahindra  22. Fujitsu  23. Hitachi  24. NEC  25. NTT Data  26. Ericsson  27. Nokia  28. Siemens  29. AT&T  30. Verizon  31. Vodafone  32. Orange
adnymics GmbH, LG CNS, Centrebet, netfabb GmbH, MedPlast, Accelera Solutions, Sochi Organizing Committee, realzeit GmbH, Opensistemas
Find out what your peers are saying about Layer7 API Management vs. Microsoft Azure API Management and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,296 professionals have used our research since 2012.