10 Best API Management Tools That You Must Know
Tags: tooling, technology, software
Published: 2020-12-11 12:43:02

Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) are the foundation of current application and empowers features of complex software to be extended and integrated in many different ways. And this has enormously boomed  the market for API management tools that offer various features and lets organizations to develop, manage and secure APIs. API management tools helps developers in the planning, design and development phase. There are lots of API management tools available in the market but choosing the best one among them is a crucial task. So we came up with the best tips to select an API management tool. 

If you are new to this, then you must know details of API management at- All About API Management That You Should Know.

Tips To Select Best API Management Tool-
While selecting and APImanagement vendor, know these important criteria that organizations should consider.

You must have an idea of how to integrate APIs into existing or new development workflows. Is it fit with the tool that you’re choosing?
Different vendors have different degrees of integrations with developer and CI/CD tooling. Check your plans, whether it fits with your goals?
Vendor offerings for API management can be different in the ways to include the ability to help monetize APIs, analytics of api deployments. This capability may be critical to buyers’ concerns.

#Top 10 API Management Tools-
**1. MuleSoft Anypoint Platform-**
It is a unified, productive, hybrid integration platform which creates seamless app network of applications, data and devices with API-led connectivity. This platform solves many issues across SOA, SaaS, and APIs. It combines data and app integration across legacy systems, SaaS apps and APIs with hybrid deployment options for more flexibility. Mulesoft integrates a set of security controls, including API policies, data tokenizing and securing using the edge gateway. It has a web based dashboard for control of integrations and secures data gateway for cloud/on-premise activity.

**2. Apigee-**
Google acquired this tool in 2016 and has a steady integrated API management platform into its broader Google Cloud platform efforts. Apigee API management is for consumer apps, cloud apps, partner apps, record systems, employee apps and IoT. This tool provides great features like analytics, security, run-time monetization, monetization, monitoring and developer portal. It has an ability to deliver solution as a proxy, agent or hybrid solution. With this tool, developers can build and deliver applications. Developers can use data and tools required for building new cloud-based applications. Analytics of Apigee will provide information about API traffic and you can measure the KPIs.

**3. IBM API Management-**
It provides a cloud-based solution for API creation and management through API connect. This tool is popular for its built-in security and governance functionalities. It is a great tool for simple coding, self-service developer portals and real time analytics. For APIs and data protection, this tool provides traffic management and built-in security features. You can do API testing and monitoring without coding and is one of the great benefit of this tool. It has multi-cloud support for deployment of components on Docker, AWS, Azure, IBM cloud private etc.

**4. Kong-**
It is most widely used open-source Microservice API gateway that can easily and rapidly make secure, managing and orchestrating microservice APIs. It can be deployed on-premise, in the cloud or as a hybrid solution. Functionality of Kong can be extended using plugins. Kong community edition offers features like API & Microservices Gateway, load balancing, Open-source plugins, service discovery, health checks, community support and so on. Whereas Kong Enterprise Edition offers features like Managing Kong Cluster, Powerful One-click operations, Manage APIs, Manage Kong Plugins, Admin RBAC, Open ID Connect etc.  

**5. Microsoft Azure API Management-**
With this platform you can manage all your APIs at one place. This platform is an user-friendly option for enterprises of any size which allows organizations to manage APIs with self-service approach. It provides you a token, key and IP filtering functionalities to secure your APIs. You will easily get insights through API analytics. It publishes APIs for internal and external customers. It’s lifecycle management for APIs includes version control and consumption tracking. Main technology behind Azure API management comes from Apiphany, acquired by Microsoft in 2013.

**6. Red Hat 3Scale-**
It includes various API tools to integrate into Red Hats broader development toolset and this makes it a good choice for startups, small, medium, or large businesses. This tool eases the internal and external users management.  Also it allows you to share, secure, distribute, control and monetize your APIs.  There are a lot of options available for traffic control like open source gateways, plugins, CDN options, hosted cloud service, etc. Core elements of the platform are monetization option and full analytics for API program management. Users can deploy 3scale components on-premises or in the cloud.

Know more at- [https://solaceinfotech.com/blog/10-best-api-management-tools-that-you-must-know/]