Azure API Gateway vs API Management: What’s the Difference?

Many teams refer to Azure API Gateway when they actually mean Azure Application Gateway. This isn’t just semantics, as it can lead to using the wrong service for your needs. Although both Azure API Management (APIM) and Azure Application Gateway inspect HTTP(S) traffic, they solve very different problems.

APIM is a dedicated API governance platform, delivering features like subscription keys, versioning, developer portals, rate limiting, and request transformations. In contrast, Application Gateway is a Layer 7 load balancer with WAF and SSL termination, meant for securing and routing web traffic rather than managing APIs. Confusing the two often results in architectures that lack essential API controls or, conversely, pay for unnecessary WAF features.

In this guide, we’ll clarify the difference between these two services, compare their capabilities side by side, and show how Zuplo’s code-first, edge-deployed approach unifies API management and gateway capabilities for developer-centric teams. By the end, you’ll know which solution (or combination) fits your requirements and how to avoid common pitfalls when exposing APIs on Azure.

Table of Contents#

• Security & Access Control
• Traffic Routing & Transformation
• Developer Experience & API Management
• Performance & Scalability
• Cost Considerations
• Which Azure Service Wins for Your Needs?
• Zuplo Represents the Best of Both Worlds: High-Performance Load Balancing and Comprehensive API Governance
• Real-World Applications: Which Service Fits Your Scenario?
• Azure API Gateway vs API Management vs Zuplo: At A Glance
• Zuplo Deploys Auth, Rate Limiting, and Routing Logic Instantly

Security & Access Control#

Both APIM and Application Gateway provide security features, but APIM focuses on API-specific authentication and authorization, while Application Gateway secures web traffic at the network level with a WAF.

APIM Offers API-Specific Authentication#

With APIM, you get native OAuth 2.0 and JWT validation, seamless Azure AD integration, and client certificate support, all enforced through a policy engine. Subscription keys and product-based access control enable you to group related APIs, issue keys through a developer portal, and track usage automatically. Additionally, its programmable rate-limiting policies protect your backend from abusive traffic.

Application Gateway Secures Network-Level Traffic#

On the other hand, Azure Application Gateway secures at the web-traffic level. Its integrated Web Application Firewall (WAF) protects against OWASP Top 10 threats (like SQL injection and XSS) and handles TLS termination at the edge, offloading CPU overhead from your backend servers. You can define custom WAF rules and enforce IP or VNet filters. However, for API authentication and rate limiting, you must rely on additional services or custom code; Application Gateway itself does not manage API keys or tokens.

Our Recommendation#

Choose APIM when you require out-of-the-box, API-centric authentication and fine-grained access control. It’s ideal for public or partner-facing APIs with quotas, billing, and developer self-service. When network-level protection (SSL offload and WAF) is your primary goal and you can manage API tokens or rate-limits through other means, Azure Application Gateway offers a simpler, more cost-effective solution.

Traffic Routing & Transformation#

APIM and Application Gateway both route HTTP(S) traffic, but APIM is built for API-centric transformations and conditional routing, whereas Application Gateway excels at high-throughput, path-based load balancing without modifying request or response payloads.

APIM Offers Advanced Routing & Payload Transformation#

APIM’s XML-based policy framework offers advanced routing and payload transformation. You can rewrite URLs, route requests based on headers or query parameters, and convert legacy SOAP payloads into modern REST responses, all without touching backend code. Versioning policies let you direct traffic to different API versions seamlessly.

Application Gateway Provides High-Performance Path-Based Routing#

Azure Application Gateway excels at high-performance, path-based routing. It makes decisions based on URL paths and host headers, provides cookie-based session affinity, and offloads SSL to free backend servers. When paired with Azure Front Door or Traffic Manager, you get global traffic distribution automatically. However, Application Gateway cannot perform payload transformations or protocol conversions. It simply routes HTTP(S) traffic.

Our Recommendation#

Here’s what we recommend: opt for APIM when you require protocol transformations (for example, SOAP to REST), conditional routing, or version-based traffic steering. Its policy engine is built for sophisticated API workflows. Choose Application Gateway when you need fast, path-based load balancing and global distribution for web applications, without modifying request or response bodies.

Developer Experience & API Management#

While both APIM and Application Gateway route traffic, APIM is designed with developers in mind, offering self-service tools and built-in API management, whereas Application Gateway focuses on operational routing and security without native support for developer-facing features.

APIM Prioritizes Developer Self-Service#

APIM puts developers first. Its built-in developer portal provides interactive documentation, “Try It” consoles, and automated subscription key issuance. Developers can self-register, obtain keys, and immediately test endpoints. The policy editor, although XML-based, enables straightforward configuration of authentication, caching, transformations, and rate limiting. Plus, APIM’s analytics dashboard tracks usage, latency, and errors in one place.

Application Gateway Caters to Operations Teams#

Azure Application Gateway, on the other hand, caters to operations teams. You configure URL path rules, SSL certificates, and WAF policies through the Azure portal or using Infrastructure as Code (IaC). There is no developer portal, so interactive API testing and self-service key management must be handled via separate tools. Documentation, onboarding, and analytics for APIs all require additional services.

Our Recommendation#

With this in mind, you should choose APIM if developer self-service, interactive API docs, and built-in analytics matter. Its portal automates key distribution and accelerates time to first call. Alternatively, choose Application Gateway when your focus is strictly on network operations and you have alternative solutions for developer onboarding. Operations-centric teams gain a simpler interface for routing and WAF without API lifecycle features.

Performance & Scalability#

Both APIM and Application Gateway excel under load. That said, APIM offers API-centric scaling with multi-region and self-hosted options, while Application Gateway delivers raw HTTP(S) throughput with automatic autoscaling for web traffic.

APIM’s Flexible, API-Centric Scaling#

APIM scales through multiple SKUs—Developer, Basic, Standard, Premium, and Consumption—to match distinct workloads. The Premium tier supports multi-region deployments, ensuring that API calls are routed to the nearest gateway, which reduces latency. The self-hosted gateway option allows you to deploy a containerized APIM gateway anywhere—on-premises, at edge locations, or in hybrid clouds—keeping API processing close to your backends and reducing cold-start times for serverless functions.

Application Gateway’s High-Throughput Layer-7 Performance#

That said, Azure Application Gateway (v2 SKU) is a dedicated Layer 7 load balancer that automatically autoscales to handle spikes in web traffic. It maintains low single-digit millisecond latencies for HTTP(S) requests, with SSL termination and WAF inspection at the edge. Because it lacks API-specific policies, simple routing scenarios incur minimal overhead, making it ideal for high-throughput web applications.

Our Recommendation#

Ideally, you should pick APIM for hybrid or multi-region API deployments where consistent policy enforcement and low latencies are crucial, especially if you require containerized or serverless backends in your network. Application Gateway, on the other hand, is a better choice when raw HTTP(S) throughput and autoscaling for web traffic are top priorities, and you do not need integrated API governance or transformations.

Cost Considerations#

APIM’s tiered pricing offers API lifecycle features at a premium, whereas Application Gateway’s capacity-unit model delivers simpler routing and WAF protection at a lower base cost.

APIM’s Tiered Model for Comprehensive API Management#

APIM pricing is tiered: Developer and Basic SKUs cover dev or low-volume workloads but lack production-grade features. Standard and Premium tiers unlock multi-region failover, VNet integration, and higher SLAs, but at a higher per-unit cost. The Consumption tier offers a serverless, pay-per-call model that can be economical for sporadic traffic but may become expensive as volumes grow.

Application Gateway’s Capacity-Unit Billing for Efficient Routing#

In contrast, Azure Application Gateway charges by capacity units and data processed. Its v2 SKU’s autoscaling model means you only pay for the capacity you consume, which is ideal for unpredictable web traffic. Adding WAF rules increases the per-capacity fee, and data processing charges apply per gigabyte. If all you need is Layer 7 routing and WAF protection, Application Gateway typically costs less than APIM, since you aren’t paying for developer portal or policy engine features.

Our Recommendation#

Choose APIM when the value of API lifecycle management, built-in billing, and developer self-service justifies the higher cost—its analytics and key-management capabilities often accelerate ROI by reducing development effort. However, when you require cost-effective Layer 7 load balancing and WAF for web applications without the need for API-centric features, Application Gateway is the ideal choice.

Which Azure Service Wins for Your Needs?#

After weighing Azure API Management and Azure Application Gateway across security, traffic management, developer experience, performance, and cost, it’s clear that each shines in different scenarios.

Zuplo Represents the Best of Both Worlds: High-Performance Load Balancing and Comprehensive API Governance#

While Azure Application Gateway and API Management each excel in their respective domains, Zuplo eliminates the need to choose between them by delivering both capabilities through a unified, code-first platform. Unlike Azure's configuration-heavy approaches, which require learning proprietary XML policies or navigating complex GUI interfaces, Zuplo leverages the TypeScript and JavaScript skills your developers already possess, enabling them to write sophisticated API policies, security rules, and traffic management logic as actual code.

Edge-Native Architechture#

Zuplo deploys your API management logic across 300+ global points of presence, delivering sub-50ms latency regardless of user location—something neither Azure service can match without complex multi-region setups and significant cost increases. When Application Gateway requires separate WAF configurations and API Management demands XML policy syntax, Zuplo lets you implement the same functionality (and more) through intuitive TypeScript functions that execute at the edge, combining the raw performance benefits of a global CDN with the sophisticated API governance capabilities enterprises demand.

Enterprise-Level Scalability#

Most importantly, Zuplo's approach scales with your team's existing workflows rather than forcing adoption of vendor-specific tooling. Your API policies live in Git alongside your application code, deploy through familiar CI/CD pipelines, and benefit from the same code review processes, testing frameworks, and IDE support that accelerate your core development work.

This eliminates the operational overhead of managing separate gateway infrastructure while providing enterprise-grade security, monitoring, and scalability that automatically adapts to traffic patterns across the globe, making it the clear choice for teams who refuse to compromise between developer productivity and production-ready API management.

Real-World Applications: Which Service Fits Your Scenario?#

Choosing between Azure API Management, Azure Application Gateway, and Zuplo comes down to each organization’s unique blend of performance, security, and developer experience needs. Below are four common scenarios, followed by how Zuplo’s unified, edge-first approach can simplify or replace multi-service architectures.

Microservices with Strict Governance: APIM vs Zuplo#

Financial firms often turn to APIM in this context because its policy engine enforces consistent authentication (OAuth 2.0, JWT) across dozens of microservices. They use APIM to:

• Manage per-service rate limits and quotas, preventing any single endpoint from overloading backends.

• Automate partner onboarding via the developer portal, speeding time to first call.

• Gain detailed usage analytics, enabling proactive monitoring and troubleshooting.

Zuplo achieves the same outcome with a single code artifact. Developers write a “validate token + throttle” policy in TypeScript, deploy it to Zuplo’s edge, and every request is validated at the nearest PoP. Usage metrics flow into existing observability tools, and partner onboarding becomes issuing an API key—no separate portal configuration required.

High-Performance Web Applications: Application Gateway vs Zuplo#

E-commerce platforms handling thousands of concurrent shoppers demand sub-50 ms response times—even under flash-sale traffic spikes. In those situations, Application Gateway’s v2 SKU shines: SSL offload removes encryption overhead from backend servers, path-based routing distributes requests intelligently, and its built-in WAF blocks SQL injection or XSS attempts at layer 7.

Zuplo delivers an equivalent or better experience because its edge PoPs handle SSL termination and WAF checks alongside developer-defined rate limits. Instead of relying on a single regional Application Gateway instance, Zuplo’s “single policy” is replicated to every PoP, so shoppers anywhere connect to the same secure, low-latency endpoint. This approach eliminates the need to stitch together Azure Front Door + Application Gateway, as Zuplo enforces WAF rules, API authentication, and routing logic in one unified layer-7 proxy. As a result, teams skip complex VNet integrations and enjoy simpler, globally consistent performance.

Global Reach Without the Latency: Azure vs Zuplo#

Streaming services, SaaS platforms, and consumer apps often require sub-100 ms p95 latencies in every major region. The typical Azure pattern combines Application Gateway with Azure Front Door, where Front Door handles global edge caching and traffic acceleration, and then routes users to regional Application Gateways for SSL offload and final load balancing.

Zuplo replaces both layers entirely with a single code-first gateway deployed to 300+ data centers. Instead of Front Door + Application Gateway, you write routing logic (for example, “if client city is within APAC, forward to our Singapore backend”) and push it to Zuplo’s edge. Zuplo automatically handles global anycast routing, SSL termination, and WAF protections. The result is a simpler architecture: no separate Front Door or Application Gateway instances, while still guaranteeing sub-50 ms latencies worldwide.

Enterprise-Grade Security: Azure vs Zuplo#

Large organizations often adopt a layered defense: Application Gateway at the perimeter for WAF protection, followed by APIM to enforce API-specific policies. In some cases, Application Gateway serves as the initial entry point—blocking OWASP threats and handling TLS termination—while APIM behind it manages OAuth flows, subscription keys, and usage quotas for partner APIs. This complementary setup delivers:

• Network-level security via WAF, stopping bots and injection attacks before they reach compute resources.

• API-level controls (token validation, rate limits, logging) applied consistently across environments.

• Separate operational teams: DevOps managed the WAF rules, while API teams focused on policy and billing.

Zuplo accomplishes both layers in a single platform. Its edge PoPs enforce WAF rules (configured via policy code) and run custom authentication and authorization logic in the same deployment. Rather than maintaining two separate Azure services, you write a unified “WAF + auth + throttle” function once, and Zuplo handles everything at the edge, meeting enterprise compliance while eliminating the overhead of dual-service management.

Azure API Gateway vs API Management vs Zuplo: At A Glance#

The table below compares Azure Application Gateway, Azure API Management, and Zuplo across the most critical factors for API infrastructure decisions: security features, developer experience, performance, scalability, and pricing models.

Zuplo Deploys Auth, Rate Limiting, and Routing Logic Instantly#

If you find yourself torn between APIM’s depth and Application Gateway’s speed, consider Zuplo’s code-first, edge-native approach. Instead of configuring two separate Azure services or wrestling with XML policy files, you write your authentication, rate-limiting, and routing logic in TypeScript or JavaScript and deploy it instantly to 300+ global PoPs.

Start your free Zuplo trial today to see how easily you can write, deploy, and manage your API policies at the edge. Sign up now and spend less time wrestling with configuration and more time delivering features.