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Apache Web Server vs IBM DataPower Gateway comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 5, 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

Apache Web Server
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
IBM DataPower Gateway
Ranking in Application Infrastructure
9th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) (5th), SOA Application Gateways (1st), API Management (12th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Application Infrastructure category, the mindshare of Apache Web Server is 11.3%, up from 9.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM DataPower Gateway is 4.6%, up from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Infrastructure
 

Featured Reviews

Sakthivel Veeramuthu - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to optimize for high performance and handle heavy traffic
Most of the features I liked were related to the performance during peak hours. Because I needed to optimize the Apache web server to run it as a high performer during my customers' usage, then I needed to reduce my Apache web server resource usage for that. So that part of the thing is what I was more interested in doing. So, I mainly liked the performance and security.
Mehdi El Filahi - PeerSpot reviewer
Security features meets compliance needs and offers MPGW (Multi-Protocol Gateway) that simplifies integration efforts
While I like IBM products, I'm not an evangelist. I work with Java, Microsoft ASP.NET, and various technologies. I'm not tied to any specific vendor. However, I do find IBM to be a bit greedy. It's a large, profit-driven company. The support team is mostly based in India, and they follow a very structured process and protocol. Sometimes, it feels like playing ping pong with them – lots of back and forth before the problem gets escalated. You might even have to get your sales rep involved to push things along. For me, the support it could be better. Indian support teams aren't inherently bad, but with IBM, it feels impersonal. They respond, sure. But if it's a complex technical issue, they might ask you a lot of questions that just seem designed to waste your time. Sometimes it feels like they hope you'll get frustrated and solve the problem yourself.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is scalable."
"Its community is its most valuable feature. Solving problems is easier on Apache because so many people know this product."
"Apache Web Server is free of cost."
"The most significant advantage is the ability to swiftly enable HTTPS services when my DNS is configured correctly."
"It's very stable, and it hosts one of the biggest of many biggest web applications in the world."
"The best thing about Apache is that it is open-source, so implementing my platform on-premises is less expansive than other solutions."
"Most of the features I liked were related to the performance during peak hours."
"It is more secure to use Apache and you will have fewer problems than other web services."
"My company has a good impression of IBM DataPower Gateway. What I like about it is that because it's an appliance, it's a turnkey solution that's very fast and out of the box. Compared to other gateways, I also like that IBM DataPower Gateway is function-rich. For example, for one of the projects, there was a need for specific transformation and security features available in IBM DataPower Gateway out of the box, so my team just needed to configure the appliance. There was no need for separate development, and I found it quite neat. Another valuable feature of IBM DataPower Gateway is that it's easy to integrate with other products."
"Support for PCA and non-PCA services is valuable."
"Its initial setup was straightforward."
"Since it is a gateway, it provides a lot of security features."
"The scalability of the solution is good."
"It can look for the various security threats, productions, payload scanning, and perform routing based on the content type."
"The most valuable feature is the security appliance, it's very secure."
"The product's most valuable features are AAA policies and security features."
 

Cons

"Its stability could be better."
"Adding a reverse proxy to Apache Web Server would be a significant improvement."
"So far, for us, everything is okay."
"It would be great if technical support for Apache were available in Iran. It is a very important need."
"There is a security-related problem that depends on the web server's configuration."
"The GUI for the less experienced users needs some improvement. For some companies, it is hard to configure it if they have not had any experience."
"The interface has room for improvement."
"By optimizing the infrastructure to allow the webserver to directly handle queries from memory—particularly by prioritizing the storage of queries in memory and processing them through the web server interface—I could potentially cut down the required instances from five hundred to two hundred."
"The product's cost for data appliances or hardware is quite high. It needs improvement."
"The programming language is only supported in XSLT and Gateway script."
"The IBM community does not have much engagement from the IT community in Saudi Arabia and developers for this solution are difficult to find."
"The solution requires a lot of training manuals in order to get to know it better and to be able to use it effectively."
"DataPower isn't the most user-friendly tool. It is not an easy tool to use. Some things could use better wizards to guide you through processes."
"They should add features to manage API integrations."
"In terms of OEM support, it is poor. If I raise a CBRT one, as per the SLA, they should respond in one hour, however, sometimes it takes four or five hours to respond."
"For the workloads that are not too high, appliance is a little bit expensive."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an open-source solution."
"It is a free-of-cost solution."
"There is no licensing cost for the product."
"The apache software is free, open-source."
"The tool's initial costing is expensive for small banks and financial institutions."
"The licensing cost is very expensive."
"The appliance is a bit on the expensive side for the workloads that are not too high."
"The solution is expensive in comparison to other products."
"As far as I know, they have a perpetual license for this product. They are paying perpetual fees rather than an annual subscription or annual pricing."
"The cost of this product varies from customer to customer and the relationship with IBM, including how many offerings from IBM are already being used."
"The solution has a return on investment but is a little expensive."
"It's expensive when you compare it with others."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
29%
Insurance Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Apache Web Server?
The product's initial setup phase is straightforward.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Apache Web Server?
Apache Web Server is a free product, with no associated setup costs or licensing fees.
What needs improvement with Apache Web Server?
There is no need for substantial improvements as we have a dedicated team managing the server, ensuring everything runs smoothly.
What do you like most about IBM DataPower Gateway?
The MPGW (Multi-Protocol Gateway) is great because it allows you to easily expose services using various protocols – web services, REST (JSON), and others. This flexibility simplifies things.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM DataPower Gateway?
I would rate the pricing a two out of ten, with one being high price, and ten being low price. It's high-priced for smaller companies. But it is okay for enterprises. So, the price could be more fl...
What needs improvement with IBM DataPower Gateway?
The DCDR process should be less complex. AI should improve developer efficiency and effort. Whenever I am writing code, it should give recommendations automatically by incorporating AI so I can wri...
 

Also Known As

Apache HTTP Server
WebSphere DataPower, IBM DataPower, IBM WebSphere DataPower
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Cisco, Intuit, General Electric, Adobe, VMware, PayPal, HP, EMC, eBay, Apple, SAP, Qualcomm, SanDisk, Allstate, FedEx
RBL Bank, Availity
Find out what your peers are saying about Apache Web Server vs. IBM DataPower Gateway and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
864,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.