# Amazon API Gateway vs Zuplo

Canonical: https://inetgeek.com/compare/aws-api-gateway-vs-zuplo/

Every value below is read from Amazon API Gateway's and Zuplo's own documentation. See https://inetgeek.com/methodology/ for how.

## At a glance

| Criterion | Amazon API Gateway | Zuplo |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Kind of free offer | Free credit | Free tier |
| Entry paid plan | None. There are no minimum fees and no upfront commitments — you pay per request from the first one, at $1.00 per million for HTTP APIs and $3.50 per million for REST APIs in us-east-1. | $25 a month for Builder, which includes 100,000 requests and then charges $100 per additional 100,000. Enterprise starts at $1,000 a month on an annual contract. |
| Pricing model | Per request, and the rate depends on which of two API types you deploy: $1.00 per million HTTP API requests falling to $0.90 above 300 million, against $3.50 per million REST API requests falling to $1.51 above 20 billion. WebSocket APIs are billed separately at $1.00 per million messages plus $0.25 per million connection-minutes. Data transfer out is charged on top, except on Private APIs. | Per request, in blocks: Builder includes 100,000 a month and bills $100 per 100,000 beyond it, which works out far above the per-million rates AWS and Apigee quote and is aimed at low volume rather than scale. The MCP gateway, AI gateway and developer portal are included on every plan rather than sold separately. |
| Uptime SLA | 99.95% Monthly Uptime Percentage per region, backed by service credits. | 99.5% as the baseline, rising to as much as 99.999% on Enterprise. The lowest published floor in this category and the highest published ceiling, both on the same page. |

## Where they differ

### Kind of free offer

- Amazon API Gateway: Free credit ([source](https://aws.amazon.com/api-gateway/pricing/))
- Zuplo: Free tier ([source](https://zuplo.com/pricing))

### Entry paid plan

- Amazon API Gateway: None. There are no minimum fees and no upfront commitments — you pay per request from the first one, at $1.00 per million for HTTP APIs and $3.50 per million for REST APIs in us-east-1. ([source](https://aws.amazon.com/api-gateway/pricing/))
- Zuplo: $25 a month for Builder, which includes 100,000 requests and then charges $100 per additional 100,000. Enterprise starts at $1,000 a month on an annual contract. ([source](https://zuplo.com/pricing))

### Pricing model

- Amazon API Gateway: Per request, and the rate depends on which of two API types you deploy: $1.00 per million HTTP API requests falling to $0.90 above 300 million, against $3.50 per million REST API requests falling to $1.51 above 20 billion. WebSocket APIs are billed separately at $1.00 per million messages plus $0.25 per million connection-minutes. Data transfer out is charged on top, except on Private APIs. ([source](https://pricing.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/offers/v1.0/aws/AmazonApiGateway/current/us-east-1/index.json))
- Zuplo: Per request, in blocks: Builder includes 100,000 a month and bills $100 per 100,000 beyond it, which works out far above the per-million rates AWS and Apigee quote and is aimed at low volume rather than scale. The MCP gateway, AI gateway and developer portal are included on every plan rather than sold separately. ([source](https://zuplo.com/pricing))

### Uptime SLA

- Amazon API Gateway: 99.95% Monthly Uptime Percentage per region, backed by service credits. ([source](https://aws.amazon.com/api-gateway/sla/))
- Zuplo: 99.5% as the baseline, rising to as much as 99.999% on Enterprise. The lowest published floor in this category and the highest published ceiling, both on the same page. ([source](https://zuplo.com/pricing))

## Which should you choose?

Pick Amazon API Gateway if APIs that already live in AWS, where the gateway can reach a Lambda or a private VPC service without leaving the account. Nothing is bought in advance: no minimum fee, no upfront commitment, and $1.00 per million HTTP API requests from the first one.

Pick Zuplo if Getting an API behind a gateway without a procurement conversation: 100,000 requests a month free forever, no card, with the developer portal, AI gateway and MCP gateway included rather than sold as tiers.

Consider something else: Amazon API Gateway — You would pick the wrong API type by accident. REST APIs cost $3.50 per million against HTTP APIs at $1.00 — the same traffic, three and a half times the bill — and the choice is made when you create the API, not when the invoice arrives.

Consider something else: Zuplo — Volume is the point. Builder bills $100 per additional 100,000 requests — $1,000 per million against AWS at $1.00 and Apigee at $20 — so the pricing is built for low traffic and gets expensive quickly above it.

## Documented by only one

- What the free plan includes: Zuplo: 100,000 requests a month, one day of analytics, live logs and traces, up to two developer seats and GitOps from GitHub. No card, and no expiry — the only standing free tier in this category rather than a trial or a credit.
- SAML single sign-on: Zuplo: Supported — Enterprise tier, with RBAC alongside it
- Audit logs: Zuplo: A full management audit trail, listed as an Enterprise-tier feature.

## Questions this comparison answers

**Entry paid plan: Amazon API Gateway or Zuplo?**

Amazon API Gateway: None. There are no minimum fees and no upfront commitments — you pay per request from the first one, at $1.00 per million for HTTP APIs and $3.50 per million for REST APIs in us-east-1.
Zuplo: $25 a month for Builder, which includes 100,000 requests and then charges $100 per additional 100,000. Enterprise starts at $1,000 a month on an annual contract.

**Should I choose Amazon API Gateway or Zuplo?**

Pick Amazon API Gateway if APIs that already live in AWS, where the gateway can reach a Lambda or a private VPC service without leaving the account. Nothing is bought in advance: no minimum fee, no upfront commitment, and $1.00 per million HTTP API requests from the first one.
Pick Zuplo if Getting an API behind a gateway without a procurement conversation: 100,000 requests a month free forever, no card, with the developer portal, AI gateway and MCP gateway included rather than sold as tiers.