Higress Alternatives 2025: Top 10 Picks

Updated November 2025

If you’re evaluating Higress alternatives, this guide stacks the options like a builder would. First, we clarify what Higress is—an AI-native, cloud-native API gateway built on Istio and Envoy with Wasm plugin support and a UI console—then we compare the 10 best alternatives. We place ShareAI first for teams that want one API across many providers, a transparent marketplace (price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type) before routing, instant failover, and people-powered economics (70% of spend flows to providers).

What Higress is (and isn’t)

Higress and positions itself as an “AI Gateway | AI Native API Gateway.” It’s based on Istio and Envoy, fusing traffic, microservice, and security gateway layers into a single control plane and supporting Wasm plugins (Go/Rust/JS). It also offers a console and deployment via Docker/Helm. In short: a governance-first gateway for AI and microservices egress, not a transparent model marketplace.

Useful context: Higress emphasizes a “triple-gateway integration” (traffic + microservices + security) to reduce operational cost. It’s open source and community-backed.

Aggregators vs Gateways vs Agent Platforms

• LLM aggregators: one API across many models/providers with pre-route transparency (price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type) and smart routing/failover.
• AI gateways: policy/governance at the edge (keys, rate limits, guardrails) + observability; you bring the providers. Higress sits here.
• Agent/chatbot platforms: packaged UX (sessions/memory/tools/channels), geared to shipping assistants rather than provider-agnostic aggregation.

How we evaluated the best Higress alternatives

• Model breadth & neutrality: proprietary + open; easy switching; no rewrites.
• Latency & resilience: routing policies, timeouts, retries, instant failover.
• Governance & security: key handling, scopes, regional routing.
• Observability: logs/traces and cost/latency dashboards.
• Pricing transparency & TCO: compare real costs before you route.
• Developer experience: docs, SDKs, quickstarts; time-to-first-token.

Top 10 Higress alternatives

#1 — ShareAI (People-Powered AI API)

What it is. A multi-provider API with a transparent marketplace and smart routing. With one integration, browse a large catalog of models and providers, compare price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type, and route with instant failover. Economics are people-powered: 70% of every dollar flows to providers (community or company) who keep models online.

Why it’s #1 here. If you want provider-agnostic aggregation with pre-route transparency and resilience, ShareAI is the most direct fit. Keep a gateway if you need org-wide policies; add ShareAI for marketplace-guided routing.

• One API → 150+ models across many providers; no rewrites, no lock-in.
• Transparent marketplace: choose by price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type.
• Resilience by default: routing policies + instant failover.
• Fair economics: 70% of spend goes to providers (community or company).

Quick links — Browse Models · Open Playground · Create API Key · API Reference · User Guide · Releases · Sign in / Sign up

For providers: earn by keeping models online. Anyone can become a ShareAI provider—Community or Company. Onboard via Windows, Ubuntu, macOS, or Docker. Contribute idle-time bursts or run always-on. Choose your incentive: Rewards (money), Exchange (tokens/AI Prosumer), or Mission (donate a % to NGOs). As you scale, you can set inference prices and gain preferential exposure. Provider Guide

#2 — Kong AI Gateway

What it is. Enterprise AI/LLM gateway—governance, policies/plugins, analytics, observability for AI traffic at the edge. It’s a control plane, not a marketplace.

#3 — Portkey

What it is. AI gateway emphasizing observability, guardrails, and governance—popular with regulated teams.

#4 — OpenRouter

What it is. Unified API over many models; great for fast experimentation across a wide catalog.

#5 — Eden AI

What it is. Aggregates LLMs + broader AI (image, translation, TTS), with fallbacks/caching and batching.

#6 — LiteLLM

What it is. Lightweight Python SDK + self-hostable proxy that speaks an OpenAI-compatible interface to many providers.

#7 — Unify

What it is. Quality-oriented routing and evaluation to pick better models per prompt.

#8 — Orq AI

What it is. Orchestration/collaboration platform that helps teams move from experiments to production with low-code flows.

#9 — Apigee (with LLMs behind it)

What it is. Mature API management/gateway you can place in front of LLM providers to apply policies, keys, quotas.

#10 — NGINX

What it is. Use NGINX or APISIX to build custom routing, token enforcement, and caching for LLM backends if you prefer DIY control.

Higress vs ShareAI (which to choose?)

If you need one API over many providers with transparent pricing/latency/uptime/availability and instant failover, choose ShareAI. If your top requirement is egress governance—centralized credentials/policy enforcement and observability—Higress fits that lane (Istio/Envoy base, Wasm extensibility). Many teams pair them: gateway for org policy + ShareAI for marketplace routing.

Quick comparison

Platform	Who it serves	Model breadth	Governance & security	Observability	Routing / failover	Marketplace transparency	Provider program
ShareAI	Product/platform teams needing one API + fair economics	150+ models, many providers	API keys & per-route controls	Console usage + marketplace stats	Smart routing + instant failover	Yes (price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type)	Yes — open supply; 70% to providers
Higress	Teams wanting egress governance	BYO providers	Centralized credentials/policies; Wasm plugins	Istio/Envoy-friendly metrics	Conditional routing via filters/plugins	No (infra tool, not a marketplace)	n/a
Kong AI Gateway	Enterprises needing gateway-level policy	BYO	Strong edge policies/plugins	Analytics	Proxy/plugins, retries	No (infra)	n/a
Portkey	Regulated/enterprise teams	Broad	Guardrails & governance	Deep traces	Conditional routing	Partial	n/a
OpenRouter	Devs wanting one key	Wide catalog	Basic API controls	App-side	Fallbacks	Partial	n/a
Eden AI	Teams needing LLM + other AI services	Broad	Standard controls	Varies	Fallbacks/caching	Partial	n/a
LiteLLM	DIY/self-host proxy	Many providers	Config/key limits	Your infra	Retries/fallback	n/a	n/a
Unify	Quality-driven teams	Multi-model	Standard API security	Platform analytics	Best-model selection	n/a	n/a
Orq	Orchestration-first teams	Wide support	Platform controls	Platform analytics	Orchestration flows	n/a	n/a
Apigee / NGINX / APISIX	Enterprises / DIY	BYO	Policies	Add-ons / custom	Custom	n/a	n/a

Pricing & TCO: compare real costs (not just unit prices)

Raw $/1K tokens hides the real picture. TCO shifts with retries/fallbacks, latency (which affects usage), provider variance, observability storage, and evaluation runs. A transparent marketplace helps you choose routes that balance cost and UX.

TCO ≈ Σ (Base_tokens × Unit_price × (1 + Retry_rate)) + Observability_storage + Evaluation_tokens + Egress

• Prototype (~10k tokens/day): Optimize for time-to-first-token (Playground, quickstarts).
• Mid-scale (~2M tokens/day): Marketplace-guided routing/failover can trim 10–20% while improving UX.
• Spiky workloads: Expect higher effective token costs from retries during failover; budget for it.

Migration guide: moving to ShareAI

From Higress

Keep gateway-level policies where they shine, add ShareAI for marketplace routing + instant failover. Pattern: gateway auth/policy → ShareAI route per model → measure marketplace stats → tighten policies.

From OpenRouter

Map model names, verify prompt parity, then shadow 10% of traffic and ramp 25% → 50% → 100% as latency/error budgets hold. Marketplace data makes provider swaps straightforward.

From LiteLLM

Replace the self-hosted proxy on production routes you don’t want to operate; keep LiteLLM for dev if desired. Compare ops overhead vs managed routing benefits.

From Unify / Portkey / Orq / Kong

Define feature-parity expectations (analytics, guardrails, orchestration, plugins). Many teams run hybrid: keep specialized features where they’re strongest; use ShareAI for transparent provider choice and failover.

Developer quickstart (copy-paste)

Use an OpenAI-compatible surface. Replace YOUR_KEY with your ShareAI key — get one at Create API Key. See the API Reference for details. Then try the Playground.

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# cURL (bash) — Chat Completions
# Prereqs:
#   export SHAREAI_API_KEY="YOUR_KEY"
curl -X POST "https://api.shareai.now/v1/chat/completions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SHAREAI_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "llama-3.1-70b",
    "messages": [
      { "role": "user", "content": "Give me a short haiku about reliable routing." }
    ],
    "temperature": 0.4,
    "max_tokens": 128
  }'

// JavaScript (fetch) — Node 18+/Edge runtimes
// Prereqs:
//   process.env.SHAREAI_API_KEY = "YOUR_KEY"
async function main() {
  const res = await fetch("https://api.shareai.now/v1/chat/completions", {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      "Authorization": `Bearer ${process.env.SHAREAI_API_KEY}`,
      "Content-Type": "application/json"
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      model: "llama-3.1-70b",
      messages: [
        { role: "user", content: "Give me a short haiku about reliable routing." }
      ],
      temperature: 0.4,
      max_tokens: 128
    })
  });
  if (!res.ok) {
    console.error("Request failed:", res.status, await res.text());
    return;
  }
  const data = await res.json();
  console.log(JSON.stringify(data, null, 2));
}
main().catch(console.error);

Security, privacy & compliance checklist (vendor-agnostic)

• Key handling: rotation cadence; minimal scopes; environment separation.
• Data retention: where prompts/responses are stored, for how long; redaction defaults.
• PII & sensitive content: masking; access controls; regional routing for data locality.
• Observability: prompt/response logging; ability to filter or pseudonymize; propagate trace IDs consistently (OTel).
• Incident response: escalation paths and provider SLAs.

FAQ — Higress vs other competitors (and when ShareAI fits)

Higress vs ShareAI — which for multi-provider routing?

ShareAI. It’s built for marketplace transparency (price, latency, uptime, availability, provider type) and smart routing/failover across many providers. Higress is an egress governance tool (Istio/Envoy, Wasm, centralized policy). Many teams use both.

Higress vs Kong — two AI gateways?

Both are gateways (policies, plugins, analytics), not marketplaces. Kong leans enterprise plugins; Higress leans Istio/Envoy + Wasm. Pair either with ShareAI for transparent multi-provider routing.

Higress vs Traefik — thin AI layer or Istio/Envoy stack?

Traefik-style gateways bring middlewares and OTel-friendly observability; Higress rides on Istio/Envoy with Wasm extensibility. For one API over many providers with pre-route transparency, add ShareAI.

Higress vs Apache APISIX — Envoy vs NGINX/Lua

Higress is Envoy/Istio-based; APISIX is NGINX/Lua-based. If you want marketplace visibility and failover across many model providers, use ShareAI alongside.

Higress vs NGINX — DIY vs turnkey AI gateway

NGINX gives powerful DIY control; Higress packages a modern, Istio-friendly gateway. Add ShareAI when you need provider-agnostic routing and live pricing/latency before you choose.

Higress vs Apigee — AI egress vs API management

Apigee is broad API management; Higress is an AI-native gateway. ShareAI complements either with multi-provider access and marketplace transparency.

Higress vs Portkey — who’s stronger on guardrails?

Both emphasize governance/observability; depth and ergonomics differ. If your main need is transparent provider choice and instant failover, add ShareAI.

Higress vs OpenRouter — quick multi-model access or gateway controls?

OpenRouter makes multi-model access quick; Higress centralizes gateway policy. If you also want pre-route transparency, ShareAI combines multi-provider access with a marketplace view and resilient routing.

Higress vs LiteLLM — self-host proxy or managed gateway?

LiteLLM is a DIY proxy; Higress is a managed/operated gateway. Prefer ShareAI if you don’t want to run infra and need marketplace-driven routing.

Higress vs Unify — best-model selection vs policy enforcement?

Unify focuses on evaluation-driven model selection; Higress on policy/observability. For one API over many providers with live marketplace stats, use ShareAI.

Higress vs Orq — orchestration vs egress?

Orq helps orchestrate workflows; Higress governs egress traffic. ShareAI complements either with transparent provider choice.

Higress vs Eden AI — many AI services or egress control?

Eden AI aggregates several AI services (LLM, image, TTS). Higress centralizes policy/credentials. For transparent pricing/latency across many providers and instant failover, choose ShareAI.

OpenRouter vs Apache APISIX — aggregator vs NGINX/Lua gateway

OpenRouter: unified API over many models. APISIX: NGINX/Lua gateway you operate. If you need pre-route transparency and failover across providers, ShareAI is purpose-built.

Kong vs Traefik — enterprise plugins vs thin AI layer

Both are gateways; depth differs. Teams often keep a gateway and add ShareAI for marketplace-guided routing.

Portkey vs Kong — guardrails/observability vs plugin ecosystem

Different strengths; ShareAI introduces provider-agnostic routing plus marketplace metrics.

LiteLLM vs OpenRouter — self-host proxy vs aggregator

LiteLLM: you host; OpenRouter: managed aggregator. ShareAI adds pre-route transparency + failover across many providers.

NGINX vs Apigee — DIY gateway vs API management

NGINX: custom policies/caching; Apigee: full API management. If you also want transparent, multi-provider LLM routing, add ShareAI.

Unify vs Portkey — evaluation vs governance

Unify centers on model quality selection; Portkey on governance/observability. ShareAI complements with live price/latency/uptime and instant failover.

Orq vs Kong — orchestration vs edge policy

Orq orchestrates flows; Kong enforces edge policy. ShareAI handles cross-provider routing with marketplace visibility.

Eden AI vs OpenRouter — multi-service vs LLM-centric

Eden AI spans multiple modalities; OpenRouter focuses on LLMs. ShareAI gives transparent pre-route data and failover across providers.

Try ShareAI next

• Open Playground — run a live request to any model in minutes
• Create your API key
• Browse Models
• Read the Docs
• See Releases
• Sign in / Sign up