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Akamai API Security vs NGINX App Protect comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 4, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Akamai API Security
Ranking in API Security
1st
Average Rating
6.4
Reviews Sentiment
8.4
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NGINX App Protect
Ranking in API Security
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
24
Ranking in other categories
Web Application Firewall (WAF) (15th), Container Security (21st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the API Security category, the mindshare of Akamai API Security is 20.0%, down from 26.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NGINX App Protect is 2.6%, down from 5.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
API Security
 

Featured Reviews

Deepesh  Singh - PeerSpot reviewer
Excellent API authentication support but needs better analytics and reporting
I conducted a proof of concept for four months to identify PII and financial information exposed through APIs. Primarily, the API part is effective. I have been using Akamai AppMyWAF. The tool's API authentication, tokenization, and enhanced scalability and performance are valuable features. Akamai's support is impeccable, and its plug-and-play features are helpful.
Tomaz Sobczak - PeerSpot reviewer
Signature-based detection, DOS protection, and bot protection
NGINX App Protect is easier to automate and configure, or manage from an API. This is good for securing applications. However, it's not suitable for more complex tasks. NGINX App Protect positively impacted performance changes. There's a cache or it works like a proxy, so it can speed up applications. It can also offload some functions from servers, which NGINX can handle faster.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"API throttling is the most valuable feature of Akamai API Security."
"The API part is effective."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is its integration with API gateways, WAP and with part of their SDLC."
"I tested specific features and evaluated the solution against the Web Application Firewall. I conducted research to test different detection percentages. I did not use it directly for protection but for evaluation purposes."
"The stability of the product is very impressive since it handles 60,000 to 70,000 requests or transactions per second."
"The tool's most valuable feature is the OWASP certification. Additionally, the tool's ability to enforce strong passwords and OTP within minutes is impressive. With its analytics and recommendations, it is a very good solution."
"The tool is not complex and is very user-friendly."
"NGINX App Protect has complete control over the HTTP session."
"The most valuable feature is that there is a link in the system that will help to analyze the security of an application when something abnormal is found."
"There's a cache, or it works like a proxy, so it can speed up applications."
"I would say that the most valuable feature is the ability to operate in a DevOps environment and to be configured through API and pipeline by the developers themselves."
 

Cons

"It would be beneficial to use machine learning and API throttling together to identify how the APIs are called and whether it's coming from the right person or the wrong person."
"I think it would be good if they can integrate more with API gateways as this is currently limited."
"The challenge I found was with contextualization and how analytics are generated."
"The configuration needs to be more flexible because it is difficult to do things that are outside of the ordinary."
"The solution needs to be improved in the e-commerce portal."
"They could provide a better user interface."
"The product's user interface is an area with shortcomings as it can be quite confusing for users, making it an area where improvements are required."
"It would be better if it were easier to implement and if there was more information from F5 regarding hardware requirements and specifications to deploy the service, to avoid disruptions after implementation."
"Its technical support could be better."
"The price of NGINX App Protect could improve."
"The integration of NGINX App Protect could improve."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have a limit to the number of APIs we can use inside a bundle, and we have to pay extra if we exceed that limit."
"There is a license needed to use NGINX App Protect."
"The price of NGINX App Protect is not much different from the products that fall under the leader category of Gartner Magic Quadrant."
"The product's price is high."
"There is a monthly or annual subscription to use NGINX App Protect. There are not any additional costs to the subscription."
"There are not any additional costs we had to pay to use NGINX App Protect."
"Really understand the licensing model, because we underestimated that."
"NGINX is not expensive."
"The solution's price is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
20%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Retailer
7%
Computer Software Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Retailer
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Akamai API Security?
API throttling is the most valuable feature of Akamai API Security.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Akamai API Security?
I mentioned that support from Akamai is expensive yet it is worth it.
What needs improvement with Akamai API Security?
The challenge I found was with contextualization and how analytics are generated. Reports were sent in a raw format without proper analytics. There was no mechanism to identify which APIs will alwa...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NGINX App Protect?
I don't know the pricing yet because in my other project, I was not part of the buying side and I was just starting to look at options.
What needs improvement with NGINX App Protect?
It would be better if it were easier to implement and if there was more information from F5 regarding hardware requirements and specifications to deploy the service, to avoid disruptions after impl...
 

Also Known As

Noname Security
NGINX WAF, NGINX Web Application Firewall
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Akamai API Security vs. NGINX App Protect and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.