IBM API Connect vs Layer7 API Management comparison

IBM and Broadcom are both solutions in the API Management category. IBM is ranked #8 with an average rating of 8.3, while Broadcom is ranked #10 with an average rating of 7.6. IBM holds a 6.1% mindshare in APIM, compared to Broadcom’s 2.7% mindshare. Additionally, 90% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

IBM API Connect

Read 76 IBM API Connect reviews

6,992 Views
6,782 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

Layer7 API Management

Read 112 Layer7 API Management reviews

3,748 Views
3,748 Comparison Views

90% willing to recommend

IBM API Connect

Layer7 API Management

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 17, 2024

Layer7 API Management and IBM API Connect are competitors in the API management category. Based on the available data, IBM API Connect appears to have an edge due to its strong integration with legacy systems and robust features suitable for large enterprises.

Features: Layer7 API Management supports REST-to-SOAP conversions and security token translation, essential for mobile-first strategies. It offers built-in identity management, content-based routing, and comprehensive security features. IBM API Connect integrates well with IBM DataPower for enhanced security and monitoring, supports strong enterprise integration, and facilitates efficient legacy system integration.

Room for Improvement: Layer7's documentation and developer portal need improvements, and additional purchases might be required for complete functionality. IBM API Connect faces challenges with pricing complexity and requires better documentation and feature enhancements like API rate-limiting and non-Java service support.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Layer7 is flexible across multiple deployment environments, including on-premises and hybrid cloud. However, inconsistencies in technical support were noted post-Broadcom acquisition. IBM API Connect supports cloud-native solutions with broad deployment options, offering robust technical support, though pricing issues were mentioned.

Pricing and ROI: Layer7 is seen as cost-effective with varied licensing models, although some consider it pricey. It delivers good value with proper negotiations. IBM API Connect is generally perceived as expensive, posing a barrier for smaller businesses, yet justifies its cost with enterprise-level features and the potential for high ROI depending on use case and scale.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM API Connect vs. Layer7 API Management Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

IBM API Connect vs. Layer7 API Management

September 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score

6.9

IBM API Connect enhances profitability and efficiency by reducing development time, improving security, and enabling seamless system integration.

Sentiment score

6.7

Layer7 API Management offers business growth and protection, with varying ROI timelines; quick benefits are observed by many users.

Reducing development hours from eighty to four for an API was possible due to reusing existing scripts from DataPower.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

No quotes available

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Customer Service

Sentiment score

6.4

IBM API Connect support is proactive and expert but variable in speed, with regional availability challenges noted by users.

Sentiment score

7.3

Layer7 API Management is praised for support and resources, though some users note post-acquisition service challenges.

Support is excellent when it comes to APIC.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

Technical support is excellent, and I would rate them as ten.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

7.4

IBM API Connect offers excellent scalability through on-premise and cloud solutions, supporting enterprise-level operations and customization features.

Sentiment score

7.3

Layer7 API Management efficiently scales to handle significant traffic, supporting millions of daily requests with proper configuration.

With container versions, scaling up or down the gateways deployed into pods is a two to three-minute task for the operations team.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

All nodes communicate with one primary database, affecting connections and causing crashes under high load.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

7.3

IBM API Connect is generally stable and reliable, especially in government and banking, despite occasional upgrade issues.

Sentiment score

7.6

Layer7 API Management is stable and reliable, with minor scalability issues, often resolved through updates and support.

The runtime engine for the APIC Gateway is still a DataPower component, which has been stable in the industry for about fifteen years.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

Without rebooting for ninety to one hundred eighty days, cache builds up in Linux boxes, causing memory utilization issues.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Room For Improvement

IBM API Connect needs better integration, automation, monitoring, documentation, and usability, facing issues in setup, costs, and support.

Layer7 API Management needs improvements in UI, documentation, integration, functionality, training, policy tools, monitoring, reporting, and migration.

Examples include the lack of connectivity to MQ.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

Broadcom's push for upgrades from version nine to ten, ten to 10.3, and onwards to twelve needs improvement in migration processes, especially with service dependencies.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Setup Cost

IBM API Connect offers scalable solutions with high costs, suitable for large enterprises, available in SaaS and on-premise versions.

Layer7 API Management offers competitive pricing with Essential and Enterprise tiers, though perceived costly for smaller enterprises.

Pricing depends on how many instances run across environments.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

Seeing other products makes the tool's pricing seem high.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Valuable Features

IBM API Connect excels with strong security, integration, usability, analytics, flexibility, and scalability, enhancing API management and monetization.

Layer7 API Management excels with robust security, scalability, and features like content routing and drag-and-drop functionality.

It offers significant development efficiency, reducing man-hours from eighty to four when creating APIs.

KANCHAN CHALASANI

Software Engineer IV at Royal Cyber Inc.

For more quotes and insights, download the IBM API Connect report

The flexibility to develop APIs for various platforms, from front-end applications to ATM machines, is valuable.

C Vvanigalla

Works

For more quotes and insights, download the Layer7 API Management report

Categories and Ranking

IBM API Connect

Ranking in API Management

8th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) (8th)

Layer7 API Management

Ranking in API Management

10th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

112

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the API Management category, the mindshare of IBM API Connect is 6.1%, down from 6.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Layer7 API Management is 2.7%, down from 3.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

API Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
IBM API Connect	6.1%
Layer7 API Management	2.7%
Other	91.2%

API Management

Featured Reviews

Shanmugasundaram Shanmuganathan

Solutions Architect at Synechron

Offers basic API orchestration and provides robust security and governance features

While Azure API Management offers configurable scalability, IBM API Connect relies on Kubernetes clusters. This might seem manual and require defining cluster instances upfront, but it's completely customizable and not on-the-fly scaling. It's completely custom-driven, not on-the-fly scaling, which some may consider cumbersome. Overall, I would rate the scalability an eight out of ten. Almost all applications we've been exposing lately go through this middleware, so it's used extensively. There are around sixty applications directly using it, but six Kubernetes clusters serve those applications. It's heavily used for integration, including system-to-system integration and product integrations. Our usage has been increasing year-on-year based on our needs.

Read full review

NikhilChaudhari

Senior Associate Software at Intelliswift Software

Valued for its drag-and-drop functionalities, the available policy options, and the excellent security features

I work as a PG developer, primarily dealing with Layer7 API Management and MuleSoft API management. My focus is mainly on VM management platforms such as Layer7 and Apigee Layer7 API Management is most valued for its drag-and-drop functionalities, the available policy options, and the excellent…

Read full review

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

19%

Insurance Company

12%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

18%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	19
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	58

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	23
Midsize Enterprise	13
Large Enterprise	84

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM API Connect?

Publishers can easily identify, create, and publish APIs on the developer portal, defining plans, packages, and potentially billing rules.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM API Connect?

Pricing depends on how many instances run across environments. I don't deal with licensing, but compared to other IBM products, the licensing is not significantly higher.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM API Connect?

When comparing API Gateway with DataPower Gateway, several features in DataPower Gateway are absent in the APIC layer. Examples include the lack of connectivity to MQ ( /categories/message-queue-mq...

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What do you like most about Layer7 API Management?

The solution's technical support is good.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Layer7 API Management?

Pricing is more than average. While I am used to Layer7 API Management ( /products/layer7-api-management-reviews ), seeing other products makes the tool's pricing seem high.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Layer7 API Management?

Broadcom's push for upgrades from version nine to ten, ten to 10.3, and onwards to twelve needs improvement in migration processes, especially with service dependencies. The migration path sometime...

See all answers

Comparisons

IBM DataPower Gateway vs IBM API Connect

Compared 27% of the time

Apigee vs IBM API Connect

Compared 20% of the time

Microsoft Azure API Management vs IBM API Connect

Compared 14% of the time

Amazon API Gateway vs IBM API Connect

Compared 6% of the time

IBM Cloud Pak for Integration vs IBM API Connect

Compared 2% of the time

More IBM API Connect Competitors

Apigee vs Layer7 API Management

Compared 26% of the time

MuleSoft API Manager vs Layer7 API Management

Compared 15% of the time

Kong Gateway Enterprise vs Layer7 API Management

Compared 14% of the time

Amazon API Gateway vs Layer7 API Management

Compared 14% of the time

IBM DataPower Gateway vs Layer7 API Management

Compared 3% of the time

More Layer7 API Management Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM API Connect

September 2025

Download IBM API Connect product report

Buyer's Guide

Layer7 API Management

September 2025

Download Layer7 API Management product report

Also Known As

No data available

CA API Management, CA Live API Creator, Espresso Logic, CA API Gateway

Overview

IBM API Connect is an API management tool providing robust security, seamless REST and SOAP conversion, and flexible deployment options for diverse cloud environments. It aids organizations in securing and monetizing their APIs while streamlining the development process.

IBM API Connect offers features like a security gateway, API lifecycle management, and integration with DataPower. Its intuitive interface enhances ease of use, supporting extensive analytics and traffic management. However, there are areas for improvement in automation, system integration, and user configuration. Organizations can deploy API Connect on-premises or in the cloud, delivering secure access control and analytics for banking, financial services, and government sectors. Compliance with standards like PSD2 ensures secure external API exposure and integration with multiple systems.

What are the most important features of IBM API Connect?

Security Gateway: Provides robust protection and data security for APIs.
Seamless Conversion: Facilitates easy conversion between REST and SOAP protocols.
API Management: Supports full API lifecycle management for efficient development.
DataPower Integration: Integrates seamlessly with DataPower for enhanced functionality.
Developer Portal: Offers a user-friendly interface for managing APIs and developers.
Analytics: Delivers powerful insights through comprehensive API analytics.
Flexible Deployment: Supports deployment on different cloud platforms for versatility.

What benefits and ROI can users expect from IBM API Connect?

Traffic Management: Efficiently manages high volumes of API traffic without compromising performance.
Data Protection: Ensures data is protected during API communication.
API Monetization: Facilitates API monetization strategies to drive revenue.
Scalability: Provides scalable solutions to handle growing demands seamlessly.

In specific industries like banking, financial services, and government sectors, IBM API Connect plays a crucial role in API management, orchestration, and regulation tasks. It provides secure access, control, and compliance with industry standards, serving as an essential gateway for data exchange and integration across multiple systems.

IBM

Layer7 API Management is a comprehensive solution that enables organizations to securely expose, manage, and monetize their APIs.

It provides features such as API gateway, developer portal, analytics, and security to ensure seamless integration and control over API traffic.

With Layer7 API Management, businesses can streamline their API operations and drive innovation.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Heineken, Tine, Finologee, Axis Bank

1. IBM 2. Microsoft 3. Oracle 4. Salesforce 5. SAP 6. Cisco 7. Dell 8. HP 9. Adobe 10. VMware 11. Accenture 12. Capgemini 13. Deloitte 14. PwC 15. Ernst & Young 16. Infosys 17. TCS (Tata Consultancy Services) 18. Wipro 19. Cognizant 20. HCL Technologies 21. Tech Mahindra 22. Fujitsu 23. Hitachi 24. NEC 25. NTT Data 26. Ericsson 27. Nokia 28. Siemens 29. AT&T 30. Verizon 31. Vodafone 32. Orange

Buyer's Guide

IBM API Connect vs. Layer7 API Management

September 2025

Free Report: IBM API Connect vs. Layer7 API Management

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