Microsoft Azure API Management and MuleSoft API Manager compete in the API management solutions category. MuleSoft seems to have the upper hand in terms of flexibility and feature set, particularly for API orchestrations and ensuring robust security measures.
Features: Microsoft Azure API Management offers tight integration with Azure services, detailed analytics, and robust security through Azure Active Directory. It simplifies API gateway setups and quick solution deployments. MuleSoft API Manager provides extensive connectivity options, solid API lifecycle management, and straightforward policy application, enabling microservices development and seamless integration with diverse enterprise systems.
Room for Improvement: Microsoft Azure API Management could enhance API versioning and third-party solution integration. Its premium tier can be costly, and improved on-premises environment support would increase flexibility. MuleSoft API Manager should streamline pricing, enhance integration continuity across environments, and offer more comprehensive analytics support without additional costs. Documentation and user interface usability could also be improved.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both solutions offer various deployment options, with Azure's detailed support through its cloud infrastructure appealing to Azure Cloud users. MuleSoft provides significant versatility for cloud and on-premises deployments, fitting a wider range of needs. Azure support receives generally positive reviews but could improve in flexibility, while MuleSoft is acknowledged for strong support, though initial response times for technical issues could be faster.
Pricing and ROI: Azure is commended for competitive pricing at lower tiers but can become expensive with premium features. Its integration with existing Azure environments may provide cost advantages for those embedded in the Microsoft ecosystem. The ROI is gained through ease of integration and reduced API deployment lead times. MuleSoft's pricing is considered high, especially for premium connectors, but extensive features may justify costs with effective use and planning, offering ROI through enhanced integration efficiency and reduced development timelines.
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.
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.
Our enterprise pays for a special success program, which provides priority support.
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.
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.
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.
Introducing features related to auto governance without manual effort would make the API Manager smarter and more efficient for enterprises with complex landscapes.
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.
The cost for using MuleSoft is approximately $500,000 USD per year.
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.
MuleSoft's ability to connect to third-party monitoring platforms like AWS, Datadog, and Elastic makes operational analysis more efficient.
Microsoft Azure API Management is essential for managing APIs, facilitating integration, and ensuring secure internal and external communication.
Organizations leverage Microsoft Azure API Management for seamless integration and effective API management. It supports microservices, legacy modernization, and platform orchestration in sectors like healthcare, telecom, and finance. Features such as developer portals and centralized libraries simplify usage. While it showcases strengths in hybrid cloud support and scalability, improvements are suggested in versioning and multi-tenancy.
What key features does it offer?Microsoft Azure API Management aids modernization across healthcare, telecom, and financial services by enabling legacy system updates and facilitating smooth platform orchestration.
Mulesoft API Manager is the portion of the Anypoint Platform that is used for the designing, building, managing, and publishing of APIs. Anypoint Platform uses Mule as its core runtime engine.
Mulesoft API Manager is an extremely versatile solution. It offers users the ability to deploy their APIs in a number of different settings. You can use API Manager on a public cloud, a private cloud, or a hybrid. Additionally, users can use the solution to manage their deployments with ease. A few clicks are all you need to alter your deployment.
Benefits of Mulesoft API Manager
Some of the benefits of using Mulesoft API Manager include:
Reviews from Real Users
Mulesoft API Manager is a highly effective piece of software whose purpose is to enable users to design, build, manage, and publish APIs. It stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are the ease with which users can connect it to their applications and the high level of value that its support offers. It provides users with the ability to easily connect this solution with whatever program they need to join it with. Users can create connections without having to write code. It offers different types of support which ensure that users have a high level of understanding about the product and how to use it.
PeerSpot user Tolulope A., a technical lead specializing in integration and middleware at a financial services firm, notes the ease with which users can connect Mulesoft API Manager to their applications. He writes, “One good thing about MuleSoft is that they have a lot of connectors to those back-end applications. We don't really need to write code to be able to connect to a database or to connect with SAP. You just need credentials and the connectivity details. Most of the development of what we do is just drag and drop. They're able to connect with applications using standard connectors that are provided by ESB, by MuleSoft.”
The CEO & Co-Founder at a computer retailer notes the value of Mulesoft’s supporting documentation. They write, “The documentation is great; it is always up-to-date and well-presented. If any details are missing, then there is a blog available that contains a lot of details. There are also channels on YouTube to help you better understand the solution and what some of the processes look like.”
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