Cilium vs Kong

Struggling to choose between Cilium and Kong? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Cilium is a Network & Admin solution with tags like networking, containers, kubernetes, ebpf, xdp.

It boasts features such as eBPF-based networking, Identity-based security policies, Transparent encryption, Load balancing, Direct server return, Bandwidth manager, Observability and analytics and pros including High performance networking, Simple to operate, Native Kubernetes integration, Flexible security policies, Scalability.

On the other hand, Kong is a Development product tagged with api, microservices, gateway.

Its standout features include API Gateway, Service Mesh, Traffic routing, Security, Monitoring, Load balancing, Authentication, Rate limiting, Transformations, Caching, Logging, and it shines with pros like Open source, Scalable, Extensible via plugins, Supports multiple protocols, Easy integration, Active community.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Cilium

Cilium

Cilium is an open source software for providing and securing network connectivity between application services deployed using Linux container management platforms like Kubernetes. It uses eBPF/XDP for high performance container networking.

Categories:
Network & Admin Container Networking
networking containers kubernetes ebpf xdp

Cilium Features

  1. eBPF-based networking
  2. Identity-based security policies
  3. Transparent encryption
  4. Load balancing
  5. Direct server return
  6. Bandwidth manager
  7. Observability and analytics

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

High performance networking

Simple to operate

Native Kubernetes integration

Flexible security policies

Scalability

Cons

Complex architecture

Steep learning curve

Limited supported platforms

Immature technology

Kong

Kong

Kong is an open-source API gateway and service mesh designed for managing APIs and microservices. It provides functionality like traffic routing, security, monitoring and more to help developers manage complex architectures.

Categories:
Development Api Management
api microservices gateway

Kong Features

  1. API Gateway
  2. Service Mesh
  3. Traffic routing
  4. Security
  5. Monitoring
  6. Load balancing
  7. Authentication
  8. Rate limiting
  9. Transformations
  10. Caching
  11. Logging

Pricing

  • Open Source
  • Commercial License

Pros

Open source

Scalable

Extensible via plugins

Supports multiple protocols

Easy integration

Active community

Cons

Steep learning curve

Complex configurations

No GUI

Limited documentation

Upgrades can be difficult