MuleSoft Anypoint Platform Reviews

So what we are trying to do is help a customer create a platform where they can integrate multiple business applications. Previously, they were using point-to-point integrations, but now they want to leverage Mule Anypoint Platform as the integration layer. They have about 60+ applications and close to 300+ endpoints that they want to connect through Mule. They are gradually migrating from SnapLogic and Workato, including data integration currently handled by Talent, to Mule as the unified platform. Our role is to assist in building these integrations. We are retrofitting some of the existing ones into Mule and ensuring a smooth transition from other integration solutions to MuleSoft. Additionally, for new businesses, they plan to build integrations directly on top of Mule Anypoint Platform.

In terms of improving our organisation, the first thing is cost management because there are a lot of licensing costs that people incur. There has been a significant improvement in business processes with a lot of increments because now, every integration request flows through the new platform. A 20% increase in all the connectivity from the enterprise applications. The shift from peer-to-peer or point-to-point integrations to Mule Anypoint Platform enabled this improvement.

The most valuable features for us are flexibility, all the features related to connectivity with multiple connectors to the business, and the flexibility of on-premises and cloud deployments. And the new things for the CI/CD process that MuleSoft is coming up with, like App Connector or Connected Apps, are something that we like. We are actually not using it yet, but we are exploring Connected Apps.

One area we'd like to see improvement in is the error logging and troubleshooting process. Handling errors can sometimes be challenging, but if Mule Anypoint Platform could allow defining user-defined errors and provide better management for them, that would greatly enhance the platform.

Another aspect is the support from MuleSoft. We don't find it easy to get support from their product support team. I'm not sure if it's an issue with our specific team, but the responsiveness from MuleSoft support should be better. We rely on their product for our work, so that's something we hope could be improved.

I have been working with this solution for nine years. We began with Mule Anypoint Platform for Cisco in 2014. Then we upgraded to version 3.4, and now it's coming up for nine years.

We are currently using version 4.3.

We haven't experienced any downtime. I would rate the stability of the solution design, considering that Mule supports the solution. It's around eight out of ten because it's stable for now. However, we haven't looked at the concurrency at this point, but the volume of transactions going via Mule is relatively low. So, for now, it's stable. But we have to consider stability when we have huge volumes of more endpoints and applications onboarded and in use. But for now, it's stable.

I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten; it is a highly scalable solution.

We have around 200 end users using this solution in our company. We use it to its maximum capacity. However, it's not for P1 applications, but definitely for severity two cases (P2 level). It integrates critical applications, but it's not a platform that, if it stops, the entire system would come down. So, it's more like a severity two level.

However, it has the potential to eventually become a P1 platform. Not exactly P1 applications, but a P1 platform. Because now we are still in the transition to migrate everything, all the integrations to Mule Anypoint Platform. But once it's done, then this platform becomes critical. Because even now, we have point-to-point connections.

Getting help from the support team takes time. When we log a ticket, nobody acknowledges it for a few days. Once they acknowledge, it takes more time to get things done.

Neutral

I would rate my experience with the initial setup on-premises an eight out of ten, where one being difficult and ten being difficult to set up. 

The initial setup is very easy. However, I only deal with application deployment using Anypoint Platform, which is easy.

Deployment was mostly handled by the infrastructure team for security reasons.

The solution does require maintenance. Currently, we have a team of 17 engineers working on all the integration applications we have, both onshore and offshore.

We are still actively using Mule Anypoint Platform. We also do a competitive analysis to understand how it stacks up against other IPaaS providers like Microsoft and others in the Magic Quadrant or Gartner reports. Players like Dell Boomi, SnapLogic, and Workato are among the new competitors in the IPaaS space that we analyze.

In the current environment, we used to have point-to-point integrations with tools like Talent, but since I've been working at my current company, I'm exclusively working with Mule due to my expertise. 

I would say it depends upon the business. For small and medium businesses, there might be some restrictions as Mule is more of an enterprise middleware. However, I would still recommend they explore MuleSoft, even for small and medium businesses. But for enterprises, I would highly recommend it because of its scalability, high availability, and robust platform. These are features that you can typically find only in enterprise middleware like MuleSoft. 

Additionally, Salesforce is making it even better by introducing a lot of components. I've also heard that they are incorporating AI into MuleSoft for automated decisions, as mentioned by Salesforce. So, I would definitely highly recommend MuleSoft.

Overall, I would rate the solution an eight out of ten.

I started using it as a developer. Essentially, we use it for application integration. For example, in one organization where I worked, we had an SAP ERP application, and several other applications were integrated with it. It acts as an integration layer for SAP, leveraging APIs rather than traditional methods like SAP's API for scheduled jobs. This allowed us to integrate ERP applications, document management systems, and web applications more efficiently.

Initially, we faced challenges managing numerous scheduled jobs and duplicate entries in our SAP system. To address this, we developed a reusable component in Mule that all applications could use to interact with SAP. This streamlined our integrations, consolidating multiple channels into one. Now, any modifications or updates to SAP only require changes to this single integration channel, reducing complexity and making upgrades smoother. This approach not only improved stability but also simplified our system architecture.

One of the most valuable aspects was its impact on reducing time and effort during upgrades. Previously, SAP upgrades required significant coordination with multiple teams. Now, thanks to our streamlined integration approach, the SAP team interacts primarily with the integration team. When changes are needed, we simply create a new version. This allows application teams to migrate gradually from the old version to the new one, without extensive involvement from the SAP team.

Moreover, our approach has improved reliability by eliminating duplicated efforts. Previously, different teams would often duplicate data sets due to inefficiencies in data naming conventions. We centralized data integration, ensuring that all applications use the same data set.

Over the years, Mule Anypoint Platform has undergone significant improvements. When I first started using it, the API gateway capabilities were fairly basic. However, they have evolved into a mature API gateway solution. In fact, they are well-regarded in Gartner's evaluations of API gateways.

While Anypoint Platform has made strides in monitoring and reporting functionalities, there is still room for improvement in this area. Enhanced reporting and more robust monitoring capabilities would further strengthen the platform's usability and appeal.

I have been using Mule Anypoint Platform for seven years.

MuleSoft is highly flexible whether you're using the on-premises or cloud version. With the on-premises edition, it's straightforward to scale up by adding clusters. Each cluster consisting of multiple nodes of MuleSoft deployment. This setup ensures a scalable environment to handle varying workloads effectively.

Another option is their 'Runtime Fabric' offering, which allows you to replicate the cloud deployment model within your own cloud or data center. This gives you the capability to manage both infrastructure and applications autonomously, similar to the capabilities offered in the cloud. It's a robust solution for maintaining control over your deployment environment while ensuring scalability.

Support is pretty much responsive.

Positive

It's easy to set up. You simply unzip the package and you're ready to go. I haven't encountered any issues with the setup process. The addition of their cloud offering has made deployment even simpler. You can deploy applications to the cloud without needing to manage setup. It automatically spins up containers or allocates resources as needed for the applications

We've automated our deployment process. Once developers finish their development work, we initiate testing. Our testing team conducts tests in the development environment, and upon successful testing, we move the application to the staging environment for user acceptance testing. Once approved, we promote it to production. Our deployment pipeline handles this process seamlessly, minimizing manual intervention except for approval after testing.

The pricing of MuleSoft is on the higher side. Comparatively, it may appear more expensive than some other integration platforms. However, in the two organizations where I've used MuleSoft, the challenge was that they didn't adopt it as the sole enterprise integration platform. Instead, they had multiple integration platforms including MuleSoft. If MuleSoft had been adopted as the primary integration platform, the cost could have been spread across different business teams, leading to economies of scale.

Currently, each team often compares the cost of MuleSoft with other platforms they use. Consolidating to MuleSoft as the primary integration platform could potentially reduce overall costs and streamline integration efforts across the organization.

For every new product, there's typically a learning curve, when you're new to the technology. MuleSoft has simplified the development process with drag-and-drop integration for most simple to medium-level tasks. This approach minimizes the need for extensive coding initially. As integrations become more complex and require detailed data transformations, you may need to familiarize yourself with MuleSoft's data transformation language, DataWeave. While learning DataWeave isn't overly complex, it does require some initial learning. 

I would recommend MuleSoft based on my experience with other integration platforms, particularly Oracle, where I worked extensively for several years before transitioning to MuleSoft. One of the key advantages of MuleSoft is its lightweight nature. Setting up MuleSoft is straightforward. Simply unzip an archive and you're ready to go. In contrast, Oracle requires installation and extensive configuration, making it more complex and time-consuming to set up their integration platforms.

While platforms like Microsoft may initially appear cheaper than MuleSoft, in the long run, the total cost of ownership often balances out between them. MuleSoft allows for scalability, so you can start small and expand as your integration needs grow. This flexibility means you don't need to invest heavily upfront. While the initial cost comparison may favor other platforms, the overall cost efficiency over time can be comparable between MuleSoft and competitors.

Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

The primary use case associated with the product is that it helps enable integrations and expose them to the front-end channels. Our company is in the process of evaluating products which can seamlessly integrate with our head office and back office systems. Also, my company has to do you with some use cases associated with the front-end part. Basically, my company is probably planning to extend the services and products in our channels.

In terms of API management, the product offers ease of API creation while exposing it as another thing. The product is also very compatible. My company is trying to create an API catalog for different services, and I think for it you need a product which offers seamless API creation and exposing capabilities.

With GenAI coming into the picture, it can be used to focus on specific setups and use cases. If you want to have an end-to-end solution, more AI infusion into the product will be beneficial. For example, when it comes to an industry-based solution, and someone approaches our company and states that they want to focus on healthcare or some financial services, we have some specific end-to-end solutions where Anypoint can be used as a backbone. If you are able to enable some AI on top of the functionalities provided by the product, it would be beneficial for users. The inclusion of GenAI in the tool can be good since it is an area that is currently unavailable in the solution. Mule Anypoint Platform can serve as a backbone when trying to build up an end-to-end solution using AI.

I have been using Mule Anypoint Platform for a year.

I think it is a scalable product, but my company has not been going for a large implementation or where there was a need to scale up. To be honest, my company has not tried out the scalability features offered by the product.

The product can be recommended to companies that are mid-sized to large-sized. As my company has not had the opportunity to test out the scalability features of the product, it won't be appropriate for me to comment on whether the product would be suitable for large enterprises, but I believe that for mid-sized enterprises, the product should be good.

My company works with an iPaaS platform like Dell Boomi. My company also uses TIBCO along with Google Apigee API Management. In the past, my company has used a product named Kong for API management and integration.

In terms of the advantages offered by Dell Boomi over Mule Anypoint Platform, I would say that it offers out-of-the-box connectors for different systems, including SAP systems, Salesforce systems, and other tools like CRM systems and ERP systems. I think Dell Boomi comes with a set of connectors, which are already in the form of a plug-and-play process. If the connectors are there, you just need to point out the source data, and in some cases, the source can be in a Salesforce system. If you ask me about Dell Boomi, it offers more in terms of its abilities related to connectors, which you can seamlessly connect to Salesforce, PeopleSoft, or any other systems. The aforementioned area consists of the details associated with Dell Boomi and the areas where it offers a differentiator.

The product's initial setup phase is straightforward.

The product's price seems to be competent in comparison to other products in the market. I don't think that prices are the issue associated with the solution since most of the other products are offered at a similar price point, so I don't see any difference in terms of cost or pricing.

There are multiple ways in which my company is trying to evaluate some products in the market against Mule Anypoint Platform. Google Apigee API Management is one of the products my company is considering against Mule Anypoint Platform.

When evaluating other products in the market, my company wants to be as product agnostic as possible, so in this context, I am looking at different and specific use cases that can be dealt with Mule Anypoint Platform. Some other tools may be useful in other cases. My company is trying to bring in a product-agnostic solution so t that if tomorrow a customer wants to use a tool, we need to have a clear and deep understanding of each of multiple products so that we can, when conceptualizing the solution, we will consider the best platforms based on the use cases. From a consulting standpoint, finding multiple products is a way of looking at things while not necessarily comparing a solution to another one and stating that it is a tool we want to use. It is more of an agnostic solution that we want to develop.

Speaking about whether the product has significantly improved our company's data exchange processes, I would say that at this point in time, we are trying to deal with the concerns associated with the front-end part. For me, seamless exposure is what I was looking for in a product, and so my company is still evaluating multiple solutions apart from Mule Anypoint Platform.

The platform's cloud integration capabilities are good.

In the current scenario, most of the products have to be on the cloud for multiple reasons. It is not only Mule Anypoint Platform but also other platforms that seamlessly integrate with the cloud services. My company was also looking at Dell Boomi for cloud integration since my company wants to use an iPaaS solution. Mule Anypoint Platform's cloud integration is fine and does not have any issues.

Rather than as a data transformation tool, it is more about the seamless connectivity that the product of the head office and back office systems provides, as well as the clear exposure of APIs the solution provides. The aforementioned features of the product will translate to fast time to market, so I can see how fast I can seamlessly integrate and expose. It is beneficial to my business agility, where you can seamlessly connect and expose. If I want to roll out new products and services, the benefits from the time spent on the market because of the seamless access will crop up.

Considering the factors associated with product-agnostic solutions, I would recommend the Mule Anypoint Platform to other people, especially if it matches their use cases. When it comes to some use cases, like Salesforce-specific use cases or SAP-specific use cases, we can have a look at different platforms.

I rate the overall tool an eight and a half out of ten.

With the Mule Anypoint Platform, we have addressed several integration scenarios. For example, when integrating systems like Workday, Oracle, ADS, and QAD, Mule Anypoint Platform has significantly improved API connectivity using its experience API system.

In another case, in the healthcare industry in North America, we faced issues with VDA transactions that occurred over two weeks. We migrated to Mule Anypoint Platform-based APIs, which included scheduling and API connectivity.

The most beneficial features for handling data integration with Mule Anypoint Platform include its ability to integrate seamlessly with other popular platforms like IBM, Dell Boomi, and Microsoft Azure. MuleSoft stands out due to its unique one-point solution for various integration problems, including application and network integration, and its iPaaS services. The

Design Center allows for designing APIs that can be made into reusable assets. Additionally, MuleSoft's capability to handle various technologies, such as Python and Java Spring Boot APIs, and monitor them using the Flex Gateway is valuable.

Regarding API management, MuleSoft offers a gateway facility, including Flex Gateway, which supports API management with robust governance capabilities. Policies like rate limiting, blocklisting, allowlisting, and client ID enforcement can all be managed through the API Manager, providing comprehensive control over API operations.

Mule Anypoint Platform should improve its pricing. In my experience, a customer using the sandbox version couldn't upgrade to the final version because it exceeded their budget.

Another area for improvement is the login mechanism. We need to integrate with third-party products for strong authentication, but it would be better if MuleSoft had its own robust login mechanism.

I have been using the Mule Anypoint Platform for the past seven years.

In terms of stability, the Mule Anypoint Platform is generally stable. Issues arise only when external factors like unstable storage or excessive database loads exist. The platform is reliable and robust, depending on how well our organization manages its resources.

Scalability is crucial in our ability to grow and manage new integrations. With both horizontal and vertical scaling options available in the cloud-based solution, it efficiently handlesincreasing workloads and processing power, supporting our growth.

Customer support from MuleSoft is essential to our operations. They provide crucial assistance post-deployment, ensuring our applications run smoothly.

Positive

The platform is easy to deploy and typically takes about three months to implement.Deployment or maintenance usually requires one architect and one DevOps person for scaling and ongoing maintenance.

Regarding pricing, I believe there could be room for improvement to align with user expectations.

Regarding AI capabilities, the Mule Anypoint Platform is evolving in that direction. While they've made strides with RPA and other AI-related features, I believe there's still progress.

Overall, I would rate Mule Anypoint Platform as nine out of ten. My recommendation to thoseconsidering it would be that if you're looking to scale your business efficiently without extensiveR&D, the Mule Anypoint Platform offers a robust solution ready for deployment, whether on-premises or in hybrid environments.

Mule Anypoint Platform is used as an integration tool to integrate applications and for data transformations. It is mostly used as an integration tool to connect multiple systems, and it comes with pre-built connectors to allow users to connect with multiple systems, like SAP, Salesforce, or any of the message queuing systems, IBM MQ or Apache ActiveMQ. With Mule Anypoint Platform, connecting multiple systems, integrating them, and transferring data from one system to another is easy. The tool helps users have point-to-point connections and achieve an overall integration.

With Mule Anypoint Platform, there is a hybrid cloud deployment model, meaning you may have an on-premises environment or a MuleSoft-supported cloud platform called CloudHub. Users can deploy APIs using Mule Anypoint Platform, as it acts as a single point or place. Users can deploy the APIs from Mule Anypoint Platform to an on-premises environment or CloudHub. Mule Anypoint Platform integrates with CloudHub. In general, Mule Anypoint Platform helps to deploy the APIs and CloudHub. When we talk about the APIs, there are multiple policies one can apply on APIs, like rate limiting policies, OWASP policies, and OWASP security policies, that can be easily configured in Mule Anypoint Platform. Users can apply the policies via Mule Anypoint Platform and deploy the APIs to hybrid cloud deployment models, like on CloudHub, making the tool very helpful for users.

The main area where improvements are required in the product revolves around budgeting. The cost of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required, especially when compared to other tools, like Dell Boomi or Oracle. Mule Anypoint Platform is made available with many components, and whether users use them or not depends on their choices. For example, though there is a tool called Anypoint MQ, our organization prefers to pay and use Kafka, as we don't want to use MuleSoft Anypoint MQ. In Mule Anypoint Platform, there needs to be proper segregation to help users identify what they need and don't need, making it an area where users need to be careful when opting for MuleSoft. Mule Anypoint Platform is an integration tool and not an ETL solution. When a user has to deal with a huge number of data, then Mule Anypoint Platform should not be a preferred choice since it can only be used for lightweight purposes revolving around APIs. There is a need to have a clear architectural decision made before opting for Mule Anypoint Platform. When there is a requirement for heavy data transformation, then users need to decide whether to go with Mule Anypoint Platform or any other platform available in the market. Though the tool comes with many useful components, it depends on whether the user plans to use all of its features. Recently, the product has come up with a new feature that is similar to an API catalog. MuleSoft had come up with the UAPIM feature almost eight months to a year ago, which had some concerns in the area of budgeting. Whether you build APIs using Javacore or any other tools, they can be cataloged using MuleSoft's UAPIM feature, for which users need to pay an extra amount, making it an area of concern for users.

It would be great if MuleSoft's support team could provide help with the area of Kubernetes.

I have been using Mule Anypoint Platform for four to five years. My company has a partnership with MuleSoft.

Stability-wise, I rate the solution a seven to eight out of ten.

Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.

The scalability of the solution does not have any issues if a user chooses to go ahead with RTF Kubernetes since it grants auto-scalability features. In CloudHub, a user needs to pay extra money to activate the scalability features of the product. On an on-premises model, auto-scalability features are difficult to use. There is some downtime that users may experience when trying to access scalability features. There is a need to conduct a proper analysis of how much virtual core or memory is needed to use the scalability feature of the product properly. The scalability option with an on-premises deployment model is pretty much not so straightforward.

For small companies, I can't recommend Mule Anypoint Platform. Mule Anypoint Platform is suitable for enterprise-sized companies.

I rate the technical support a seven out of ten.

Neutral

The product's initial setup phase was complex.

In MuleSoft, there is something called Anypoint Runtime Fabric or RTF Kubernetes, allowing the product to be deployed on Kubernetes from Azure, AWS, or some other solution provider. CloudHub provides all the required environments for infrastructure for deployment to users. In CloudHub, a user just needs to pay for the infrastructure and leave it. For on-premises deployment, users need to take care of the configurations, and when deploying the Mule Anypoint Platform with RTF Kubernetes, users may need to seek help from someone who processes experiences in Azure Kubernetes and MuleSoft, making it one of the challenges a user faces when setting up the product in a particular environment. When users go ahead with RTF Kubernetes configurations in their infrastructure, there is a need to have someone with experience in both Kubernetes and MuleSoft.

The solution is deployed on the cloud, hybrid cloud, and on an on-premises model.

I rate the overall tool a seven out of ten.

We mostly use it for reprocessing messages in case of failures within asynchronous flows across millions of applications.

We use it for integrating different applications within our infrastructure.

We have a use case involving licenses and applications deployed on our CloudHub. We needed a solution within the MuleSoft ecosystem, and that's why we chose Anypoint MQ. 

Our main purpose for using Anypoint MQ is reprocessing. We have a three-layer architecture where we send messages between layers to ensure message persistence. Since the flow is completely asynchronous, messages can be lost if there's an issue on the backend. Anypoint MQ helps us with reprocessing to prevent this.

We use simple queues and exchanges to route messages to multiple queues. The publish/subscribe model is also helpful.

When it comes to external systems, we need to use APIs. So, it needs some extra effort.

When we are integrating with other applications, readily available connectors make it easy. However, when it comes to external applications, connectivity isn't as straightforward. 

We need to use RESTful APIs to get and push messages. While it's doable, it's not as simple as using the pre-built connectors.

In future releases, Anypoint MQ can increase the message size limit a little bit. We faced issues while working with SAP integrations. SAP can have very large files, and we couldn't handle those within the Anypoint MQ limit.

I have been using it for three years. 

So far, it's meeting our requirements well. There are around 300+ applications using it.

Currently, we have three administrators.

The customer service and support are good. 

Positive

I worked on Kafka before, but in this company, Anypoint MQ is the first one.

The advantage for MuleSoft, I see, is it's integrated within the platform. We are trying to have MuleSoft as our primary integration platform, so that meets the use case of the company.

We don't use Anypoint MQ for all the external systems. It's only for the internal communication within MuleSoft applications. It's easy to integrate with MuleSoft products.

It is easy to set it up. Managing queues or exchanges in Anypoint MQ – the usage, is that straightforward as well.

I would recommend using it. If it's for MuleSoft integrations, then definitely a green signal for Anypoint MQ. In the case of external applications, I haven't actually tried it.

Overall, I would rate the solution a seven out of ten. 

Mule Anypoint Platform is used for the integration of different services or customer databases with Microsoft solutions.

The most valuable feature of the solution is a huge list of available connectors for a lot of different platforms, which we can use very easily.

It would be better if we had a clearer view of the solution's future releases. Mule Anypoint Platform is migrating to a new JDK, and the old JDK won't be supported within a year. Currently, we do not have a calendar or scheduler about when all the connectors will support the new JDK 17.

I have been using Mule Anypoint Platform for about one year.

Mule Anypoint Platform is a pretty stable solution.

I rate the solution a nine out of ten for stability.

For the moment, smaller clients would consider choosing MuleSoft as their integration platform. As a rule, the Mule Anypoint Platform is more suitable for middle or large clients.

I rate the solution an eight out of ten for scalability.

MuleSoft provides custom support for every client. You can list your account and have open tickets if you have any problems. We have pretty solid technical support from MuleSoft.

Positive

On a scale from one to ten, where one is difficult and ten is easy, I rate the solution's initial setup an eight out of ten.

With ready API, the solution can be deployed within a few minutes. If you don't have an API at all, a day will be enough to deploy a very simple but useful API from scratch.

Currently, MuleSoft is moving from the license type to the pay-as-you-go type. The solution's pricing, as per the old approach, is expensive. That is the main reason why we don't have a lot of small-sized customers. With MuleSoft's new approach, we will have new opportunities to integrate small businesses.

The solution's API Designer and API Manager have improved the management of our client's already established APIs. The most valuable features of the solution are Design Center and Runtime Manager. Mule Anypoint Platform provides some basic security approaches, including HTTPS protocol and secure configuration opportunities.

My recommendation to users is to use already described or already propagated best practices that help very much in development. The best advice for developers is to be part of the community. MuleSoft has a great community, including different channels or meetups that could help you a lot in certain cases. When you have some problems, you can address any developers, and they will be ready to talk to you.

Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

We are a global company, and Mule Anypoint Platform is at the center of all our e-commerce applications.

The most valuable feature of Mule Anypoint Platform is rapid development.

The solution's licensing methodologies could be improved.

I have been using Mule Anypoint Platform for six years.

Mule Anypoint Platform is a stable solution.

Mule Anypoint Platform is a scalable solution. Around 2,000 users are using the solution in our organization.

We need to provide a lot of information to get technical support, so it's not quick.

Neutral

The solution's initial setup is easy.

Two people can deploy the solution in two days.

Mule Anypoint Platform is an expensive solution.

The solution's maintenance is easy and can be done by one person.

Overall, I rate Mule Anypoint Platform an eight out of ten.