Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Dokku VS Amazon API Gateway

Compare Dokku VS Amazon API Gateway and see what are their differences

Dokku logo Dokku

Docker powered mini-Heroku in around 100 lines of Bash

Amazon API Gateway logo Amazon API Gateway

Create, publish, maintain, monitor, and secure APIs at any scale
  • Dokku Homepage
    Homepage //
    2024-08-26
  • Dokku Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-24
  • Amazon API Gateway Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-12

Dokku features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Dokku provides simple commands and clear documentation, making it straightforward to deploy, manage, and scale applications using a process similar to Heroku.
  • Heroku Compatibility
    Dokku uses a Heroku-like buildpack system, which allows users to deploy applications with ease if they are already familiar with Heroku.
  • Cost-Effective
    Being an open-source project, Dokku itself is free to use, which can significantly reduce the cost of deploying applications compared to using premium services.
  • Customizability
    As an open-source tool, Dokku allows for extensive customization according to user needs, offering flexibility in deployment settings and configurations.
  • Plugin System
    Dokku supports a wide range of plugins, enabling users to extend its functionality easily, such as adding database support, monitoring capabilities, and more.

Possible disadvantages of Dokku

  • Initial Setup Complexity
    Setting up Dokku for the first time might be challenging, especially for users with limited experience in server management and Linux administration.
  • Limited Built-In Features
    Compared to fully-managed PaaS solutions, Dokku has fewer built-in features, potentially requiring more effort to implement certain functionalities such as load balancing and extensive monitoring.
  • Scalability Challenges
    While Dokku supports basic scaling, it might not handle extensive scaling needs as efficiently as more robust enterprise-level solutions.
  • Resource Management
    Dokku's resource management capabilities are limited compared to dedicated orchestration tools like Kubernetes, making it less suitable for complex and large-scale application deployments.
  • Community Support
    Even though Dokku has a growing community, it is not as large or as active as some of the more popular platforms, which can limit the availability of community-driven support and resources.

Amazon API Gateway features and specs

  • Scalability
    API Gateway automatically scales to handle the number of requests your API receives, ensuring high availability and reliability.
  • Ease of Integration
    Seamlessly integrates with other AWS services like Lambda, DynamoDB, and IAM, enabling a cohesive environment for developing serverless applications.
  • Built-in Security
    Provides features such as IAM roles, API keys, and AWS WAF integration for safeguarding your APIs from potential threats.
  • Monitoring and Logging
    Supports CloudWatch integration for monitoring API requests and responses, helping you maintain observability and troubleshoot issues effectively.
  • Cost-Effective
    You only pay for the requests made to your APIs and the amount of data transferred out, making it a cost-effective solution for many use cases.
  • Caching
    Built-in caching at the API Gateway level can improve performance and reduce latency for frequently accessed data.

Possible disadvantages of Amazon API Gateway

  • Complexity in Configuration
    Setting up and managing API Gateway can be complex, especially for users who are not familiar with AWS services and cloud infrastructure.
  • Cold Start Latency
    When integrated with AWS Lambda, cold starts can introduce latency which can affect the performance of your API.
  • Cost for High Throughput
    While cost-effective for low to moderate usage, the costs can escalate with high throughput and large data transfers.
  • Debugging Issues
    Diagnosis can be complicated due to the multi-tenant nature of the service and the need to dive into multiple AWS logs and services.
  • Limited Customization
    There might be constraints regarding customizations and fine-tuning your APIs compared to self-hosting solutions.
  • Vendor Lock-in
    Dependence on AWS infrastructure can lead to vendor lock-in, making it challenging to migrate to other cloud providers or solutions.

Analysis of Dokku

Overall verdict

  • Dokku is a solid option for teams or developers looking for a cost-effective way to deploy and manage applications with the flexibility of a self-hosted solution. While it might not be as polished or feature-rich as commercial PaaS providers like Heroku or AWS Elastic Beanstalk, its open-source nature and community support make it a reliable choice for those who are comfortable with a bit more hands-on management.

Why this product is good

  • Dokku is often hailed as a self-hosted Platform as a Service (PaaS) solution, which is based on Docker. It simplifies the deployment process by allowing developers to manage applications similar to how they would on Heroku, but with more control and flexibility. Dokku is lightweight, can be scaled easily, and integrates well with various databases and programming languages. It is also open-source and can be installed on any server that supports Docker, making it a cost-effective solution for many projects.

Recommended for

  • Small to medium-sized projects
  • Developers who prefer open-source solutions
  • Teams looking for a Heroku-like experience on their own infrastructure
  • Cost-conscious developers or startups
  • Technical users who are comfortable managing their server environment

Analysis of Amazon API Gateway

Overall verdict

  • Amazon API Gateway is considered a good choice for businesses and developers who are looking for a reliable and scalable API management solution, especially if they are already using other AWS services.

Why this product is good

  • Amazon API Gateway is a fully managed service that makes it easy for developers to create, publish, maintain, monitor, and secure APIs at any scale. It is highly scalable, offers robust features like automatic security patches, supports multiple authentication mechanisms, and integrates seamlessly with other AWS services. Additionally, it provides detailed monitoring and logging, which facilitates effective API management.

Recommended for

  • Developers building serverless applications on AWS, particularly with AWS Lambda.
  • Organizations that require secure, scalable, and highly available APIs.
  • Businesses seeking seamless integrations within the AWS ecosystem.
  • Teams that need detailed monitoring, logging, and security features for their APIs.

Dokku videos

00028 Creating Your Own PaaS with Dokku

More videos:

  • Review - Dokku - An open source PAAS alternative to Heroku. You could save $$$ money!
  • Review - Rise Up and Deploy Your Own Heroku-like Service with Dokku in Minutes! #webdevelopment #tutorial

Amazon API Gateway videos

Building APIs with Amazon API Gateway

More videos:

  • Review - Create API using AWS API Gateway service - Amazon API Gateway p1

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Dokku and Amazon API Gateway)
Cloud Computing
74 74%
26% 26
API Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Cloud Hosting
72 72%
28% 28
APIs
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Dokku and Amazon API Gateway

Dokku Reviews

35+ Of The Best CI/CD Tools: Organized By Category
Dokku is a great alternative if you’re working with a stringent budget. It’s a miniaturized self-hosted platform as a service. You can deploy applications to it using Git. Because it’s a Heroku derivative, it’s compatible with Heroku apps.
Heroku vs self-hosted PaaS
CapRover is in many ways similar to Dokku. It uses Docker for deployment just like Dokku but CapRover does not support buildpack deployments as it uses Dockerfiles only. This is not necessarily a bad thing since Dockerfile deployments are great in Dokku as well. You don’t have to write your own dockerfiles however for simple deployments as there are multiple defaults for...
Source: www.mskog.com

Amazon API Gateway Reviews

We have no reviews of Amazon API Gateway yet.
Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Amazon API Gateway should be more popular than Dokku. It has been mentiond 108 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Dokku mentions (21)

  • Show HN: Wiederhol – GitHub for Checklists
    Android users can install https://wiederhol.com/ as a PWA (Progressive Web Application). Tech stack: Ruby on Rails, React, PostgreSQL, https://dokku.com/ for hosting on Hetzner, https://pwabuilder.com for the iOS app. PS: Wiederhol means 'repeat' (imperative verb form) in German. - Source: Hacker News / 2 months ago
  • Self-Hosting like it's 2025
    I am going to continue to stan for dokku for hosting web apps, docker images included https://dokku.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 3 months ago
  • Deploy a NestJS Application with Dokku
    In this article, we will deploy a NestJS application using Dokku (https://dokku.com). - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • Hosting your own PaaS: Open-Source Tools to Help You Exit the Cloud!
    # download the installation script Wget -NP . https://dokku.com/bootstrap.sh # run the installer Sudo DOKKU_TAG=v0.35.10 bash bootstrap.sh # configure your server domain Dokku domains:set-global your-domain.com # add your ssh key to the dokku user PUBLIC_KEY="your-public-key-contents-here" Echo "$PUBLIC_KEY" | dokku ssh-keys:add admin # create your first app Dokku apps:create test-app. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Stop Paying Vercel: Self-Host Unlimited NextJS Apps for $19/month
    Use GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Dokku or any CI/CD tool you prefer. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
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Amazon API Gateway mentions (108)

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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Dokku and Amazon API Gateway, you can also consider the following products

Google App Engine - A powerful platform to build web and mobile apps that scale automatically.

AWS Lambda - Automatic, event-driven compute service

Salesforce Platform - Salesforce Platform is a comprehensive PaaS solution that paves the way for the developers to test, build, and mitigate the issues in the cloud application before the final deployment.

Postman - The Collaboration Platform for API Development

Google Cloud Functions - A serverless platform for building event-based microservices.

Apigee - Intelligent and complete API platform