vioscaleAI
Comparison

Apollo GraphQL vs Grafbase

On the evidence we track, Apollo GraphQL leads this comparison with a composite score of 63/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Apollo GraphQL full profile →Grafbase full profile →
Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
★Apollo GraphQL63
Grafbase56
Score
vioscaleAI score
Apollo GraphQL63 / 100medium · 57%
Grafbase56 / 100medium · 71%
Pricing
Free tier
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Model
Apollo GraphQLfreemium
Grafbasefreemium
Price level
Apollo GraphQLfree
Grafbaselow
Transparent
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✗
Integrations
Count
Apollo GraphQL4
Grafbase7
Security
Gdpr
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase–
Scorecard
Apollo GraphQL6
Grafbase–
Soc2
Apollo GraphQL–
Grafbase✓
Trust center
Apollo GraphQLhttps://www.apollographql.com/trust
Grafbase–
Vulnerabilities
Reliability
Sla pct
Apollo GraphQL–
Grafbase99.99
Status page
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
Apollo GraphQL76,434
Grafbase–
Github stars
Apollo GraphQL13,949
Grafbase–
Package downloads weekly
Apollo GraphQL2,385,461
Grafbase–
Activity
Commits last 30d
Apollo GraphQL1
Grafbase–
Release
History
Apollo GraphQL20 items
Grafbase–
License
Spdx
Apollo GraphQLMIT
Grafbase–
Language
Primary
Apollo GraphQLTypeScript
Grafbase–
Market
Availability
Content
Faq
Apollo GraphQL8 items
Grafbase6 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for graphql tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Core
Role
Apollo GraphQLGateway / federation
GrafbaseGateway / federation
Primary language
Apollo GraphQLAPI-agnostic (supports any GraphQL API regardless of implementation language)
GrafbaseGraphQL
Modelling
Schema approach
Apollo GraphQLDB introspection
GrafbaseSchema-first
Scale
Federation / subgraph composition
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Realtime
Real-time subscriptions
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Performance
Response / edge caching
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
DX
Typed code generation
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase-
Automation
Generates API from a database
Apollo GraphQL✗
Grafbase✓
Security
Built-in authz / permissions
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Deployment
Official hosted offering
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
Self-hostable
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

Apollo GraphQL

Leader

Apollo helps organizations build a unified GraphQL layer that combines multiple APIs and services, enabling better integration for AI systems and applications.

Independently observed

Grafbase

A GraphQL federation gateway that aggregates and unifies multiple GraphQL APIs into a single interface, with built-in governance and analytics capabilities.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

Apollo GraphQL

Leader
from $5/moHybridFree tier

From $5 per million requests. Free tier with no credit card required.

  • FreeFree
    • GraphOS platform
    • Any GraphQL API support
    • Self-hosted Router
    • GraphQL Federation
    • Response Caching
    • +3 more
  • Developer$5 per million requests, billed monthly with volume discounts. $50 credit on signup.
    • GraphOS platform
    • Any GraphQL API support
    • Self-hosted Router
    • GraphQL Federation
    • Response Caching
    • +3 more
  • StandardContact sales
    • GraphOS platform
    • Any GraphQL API support
    • Self-hosted Router
    • GraphQL Federation
    • Response Caching
    • +3 more
  • EnterpriseContact sales
    • GraphOS platform
    • Any GraphQL API support
    • Self-hosted Router
    • GraphQL Federation
    • Response Caching
    • +3 more
as of verify ↗

Grafbase

HybridFree tier60-day trial

Free open-source tier. 60-day free trial. Enterprise pricing available via contact sales.

  • Open SourceFree
    • High performance Rust gateway
    • Open-source license
    • No feature gating
    • Community support
  • EnterpriseContact sales
    • Unified schema composition
    • Schema proposal & approval workflows
    • Entity-level caching
    • Persisted queries
    • Intelligent query execution
    • +9 more
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Web
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓
iOS
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✗
CLI
Apollo GraphQL✗
Grafbase✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
Apollo GraphQL✗
Grafbase✓
Self-hosted
Apollo GraphQL✓
Grafbase✓

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

Apollo GraphQL

Leader
4 total
  • Apollo Connectors
  • Apollo MCP Server
  • GraphQL APIs
  • REST APIs
Independently observed

Grafbase

7 total
  • Snowflake
  • NATS
  • Kafka
  • Postgres
  • gRPC
  • REST
  • JWT
Independently observed
Still deciding?

Apollo GraphQL or Grafbase: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.