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 between Kong and Zuplo?

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

How do Kong and Zuplo compare for AI and MCP workloads?

Accepted Answer

Both platforms now support AI and MCP workloads. Zuplo includes a built-in AI gateway with MCP server hosting, an MCP Gateway for centralized governance of multiple MCP servers, semantic caching, provider failover, and budget enforcement — all integrated into the core platform. Kong introduced AI Gateway and MCP proxy capabilities in Gateway 3.12 (October 2025) as plugins, with an enterprise MCP gateway as a separate offering. Zuplo's approach is more deeply integrated, while Kong's is plugin-based.

Question 6

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 7

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 8

How does Zuplo's Developer Portal compare to Kong's?

Accepted Answer

Kong's Dev Portal is a paid Konnect add-on that can be rigid and requires manual documentation setup. Zuplo's portal is core to the product on every plan, auto-updating with your OpenAPI specs, and includes self-service API key management for your users out of the box.

Question 9

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.

Question 10

How does data residency compare between Kong and Zuplo?

Accepted Answer

Kong self-hosted gives you full control over data location, but you manage all infrastructure. Konnect offers EU control plane and Dedicated Cloud Gateways in EU regions. Zuplo offers three hosting options — Managed Edge (300+ global PoPs), Managed Dedicated (dedicated environments in your choice of cloud and region for EU data sovereignty), and Self-Hosted — providing EU data residency with managed operational simplicity.

Question 11

What is the migration path from Kong to Zuplo?

Accepted Answer

API routes can be recreated as OpenAPI-defined routes in Zuplo. Kong plugins (rate limiting, auth, transforms) map to Zuplo's built-in policies or short TypeScript custom policies. Teams using mostly built-in Kong plugins can often complete migration in under a week. Zuplo's OpenAPI-native approach means you can import your existing API spec and have routes configured immediately. See the full migration guide at https://zuplo.com/learning-center/migrate-from-kong-to-zuplo.

Question 12

Which is the best API gateway — Kong or Zuplo?

Accepted Answer

Zuplo is the best API gateway for most teams in 2026. It delivers edge-native performance across 300+ global locations, TypeScript programmability with full IDE support and npm ecosystem access, GitOps-native workflows with automatic preview environments on every pull request, and a built-in developer portal on every plan. Kong requires managing PostgreSQL databases, NGINX clusters, and Lua plugins, and its developer portal requires a paid Konnect subscription (not available in the open-source edition). Zuplo also offers lower total cost of ownership as a fully managed platform. Kong remains a strong choice for teams needing a Kubernetes ingress controller. See the detailed comparison at https://zuplo.com/learning-center/kong-vs-zuplo.

Question 13

How does Zuplo compare to Kong for API management in 2026?

Accepted Answer

Zuplo and Kong take fundamentally different approaches to API management. Zuplo is edge-native and fully managed — it deploys your gateway across 300+ global data centers with zero infrastructure to operate. Kong is built on NGINX and requires managing databases, clusters, and data plane nodes. Zuplo uses TypeScript for custom logic; Kong relies on Lua. Zuplo includes a developer portal on every plan; Kong's portal requires a paid Konnect plan. Zuplo deploys globally in under 20 seconds via Git push; Kong has a 5-second default configuration propagation window. For most teams, Zuplo offers better developer experience, lower operational overhead, and faster time to production.

Feature	Zuplo	Kong API Gateway
Simpler Deployment	Fully managed and auto-scaled across 300+ edge locations — deploy globally in seconds with a Git push	Complex DIY Kubernetes setup with 12 installation options, plus database management for Postgres or Cassandra
Lower Total Cost	Free tier available with production-ready features, Builder plan at $25/month, transparent pricing with no hidden infrastructure costs	Konnect uses consumption-based pricing (per-service + per-request) that quickly reaches hundreds per month, plus enterprise plugin fees
Developer Experience	TypeScript-based programmability with instant preview environments for every PR and Git-native configuration	Lua, Go, Python, or JavaScript plugins for custom logic, cURL-based Admin API, and YAML declarative configuration via decK CLI
Rate Limiting	Programmable per-user, per-key, and per-API rate limits with TypeScript logic — distributed across all edge locations	Plugin-based rate limiting backed by Redis — requires managing Redis infrastructure for distributed rate limiting
GitOps & CI/CD	Git-native workflow where the repo is the source of truth — every push deploys automatically, every PR gets a live preview environment	decK CLI for declarative config sync, but the database (not Git) is the source of truth — no built-in preview environments
Authentication	Built-in API key and JWT management with unlimited keys and self-service key management for API consumers	Support via plugins for API keys, JWTs, HMAC, LDAP, and OpenID Connect — wide protocol coverage
Developer Portal	Auto-generated from OpenAPI spec with self-serve API key management, interactive docs, and monetization support — included on all plans	Available in Konnect (paid tier) with manual documentation upload — not included in open-source Gateway
AI & MCP Gateway	Integrated AI gateway with MCP server hosting, MCP Gateway for centralized governance, semantic caching, provider failover, and budget enforcement — built into the core platform	AI Gateway with MCP proxy plugin available since Kong Gateway 3.12 — plugin-based approach with enterprise MCP gateway as a separate offering
Global Edge Performance	V8 isolate-based runtime across 300+ edge locations with near-zero cold starts — requests processed at the nearest PoP	Self-hosted in your infrastructure or Konnect Cloud with regional deployment — global distribution requires multi-region cluster management
High Availability	Built-in across all tiers with automatic failover across edge locations	Available with proper infrastructure setup — requires operational expertise to configure and maintain HA

Zuplo vs Kong API Gateway

Complex DIY Setup

High Cost

Steep Learning Curve

Simpler Deployment

Lower Total Cost

Developer Experience

GitOps & CI/CD

Developer Portal

AI & MCP Gateway

Feature-by-feature comparison

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to make the switch?