Question 1

Is Zuplo easier to manage than Kong?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Kong (especially self-hosted) requires managing databases (Postgres/Cassandra) and complex infrastructure updates. Zuplo is fully serverless and managed. You never have to patch a server, upgrade a database, or scale a node.

Question 2

Do I need to learn Lua to extend Zuplo like I do with Kong?

Accepted Answer

Kong's plugin architecture relies heavily on Lua, a language few developers know well. Zuplo is programmable via TypeScript. This opens up plugin development to the vast majority of developers without a learning curve.

Question 3

How does global scaling compare?

Accepted Answer

Scaling Kong globally requires deploying and syncing clusters across regions manually. Zuplo deploys to the edge automatically. Your API is instantly available in 300+ cities worldwide without configuring a single region or load balancer.

Question 4

Is Zuplo more cost-effective than Kong Enterprise?

Accepted Answer

Kong Enterprise licensing is expensive and often opaque. Kong Open Source requires significant DevOps time (which is hidden money). Zuplo offers transparent pricing that covers both the platform and the hosting, often resulting in much lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

Question 5

Does Kong offer built-in monetization?

Accepted Answer

Kong offers monetization features but typically only in their expensive enterprise tiers or via complex plugins. Zuplo makes monetization accessible to everyone via a native Stripe integration that takes minutes to set up.

Question 6

How does the "Time to First Request" compare?

Accepted Answer

Setting up Kong involves installing Docker containers, setting up databases, and configuring routes. You can sign up for Zuplo and handle your first API request in under 2 minutes. The time-to-value with Zuplo is significantly faster.

Question 7

Is the Developer Portal better on Zuplo?

Accepted Answer

Kong's Dev Portal is an add-on that can be rigid. Zuplo's portal is core to the product, auto-updating with your OpenAPI specs, and includes self-service API key management for your users out of the box.

Question 8

Can I use Zuplo if I don't want to manage Kubernetes?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely. Kong is often deployed on Kubernetes, adding K8s management overhead to your API team. Zuplo requires no Kubernetes knowledge; it is a SaaS platform that abstracts the infrastructure away entirely.

Feature	Zuplo	Kong API Gateway
Simpler Deployment	Fully-managed and auto-scaled in the cloud	Complex DIY Kubernetes setup with 12 installation options
Lower Total Cost	Free tier available with high availability built-in for all plans	$650/month base cost
Developer-Friendly	TypeScript-based programmability with git integration	cURL-based API calls and Lua plugins
Rate Limiting	One-click support for per API, per user, or per API key rate limits	Enable via curl requests to the Admin API
GitOps Support	All config in version control with native GitHub integration	Requires DB-less mode or custom GitHub Actions integration
Authentication	API key and JWT management with unlimited keys and self-service	Support via plugins for API keys, JWTs, HMAC, LDAP, OpenID Connect
Developer Portal	Automatic builds from OpenAPI definition with self-serve API keys	Build manually after writing documentation and uploading OpenAPI definition
High Availability	Built-in across all tiers	Yes, if you pay extra and handle management

Zuplo vs Kong API Gateway

Complex DIY Setup

High Cost

Steep Learning Curve

As an alternative to Kong, developers use Zuplo's API management platform for its complexity-free architecture, seamless integration with the tools and workflows they know best, and developer portals with automatic Stripe-quality documentation.

Simpler Deployment

Lower Total Cost

Developer-Friendly

Feature-by-feature comparison

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to make the switch?