API security platforms · November 2026 Edition
Salt Security vs Kong Gateway
Two of fourteen models named Salt Security first on the direct prompt; zero named Kong Gateway. Salt Security was named by fourteen of the fourteen models and Kong Gateway by nine and Salt Security carries 55 labels and Kong Gateway 16, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in three categories this edition.
First-choice share16%4%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate16%12%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#8A position in a field of 15; printed, not drawn.
Labels5516A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Salt Security reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Salt Security vs Zuplo · Salt Security vs Wallarm API Security · Salt Security vs Cloudflare API Shield
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the API security platforms page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Salt SecurityFirst choices, of fourteen modelsKong Gateway
Direct203 against Salt Security
Paraphrase50
Comparative100
Budget-constrained023 against Salt Security
Scale-constrained10
Negative103 against Salt Security · 2 against Kong Gateway
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Salt Security and Kong Gateway stood in it.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | | | ||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | | ||||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | | | | ||
| Perplexity Sonar | | | | | ||
| Grok 4.20 | | | | | | |
| Mistral Small | | | | | ||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | | ||
| Llama 4 Maverick | ||||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | | | | |
| Kimi K2 | | | | | ||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | ||||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | | | |
| GPT-6 Luna | | |||||
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | | | |
Salt Security Kong Gateway first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Salt Security on the left and Kong Gateway on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Salt Security and Kong Gateway stood in it.
Salt Security first, Kong Gateway not the choice
2 of 14 modelsKong Gateway was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Grok 4.20Salt Security alternatives: Cequence Unified API Protection, Cloudflare API Shield, Fastly, Traceable API Security Platform, Wallarm API Security
MiniMax M2.5Salt Security alternatives: Cequence Unified API Protection, Imperva API Security, Noname Security, Traceable API Security Platform
Neither was the first choice, one was named
7 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Claude Haiku 4.5Orca Security alternatives: Check Point CloudGuard WAF, Cloudflare API Shield, Imperva API Security, Invicti API Security, Salt Security, Traceable API Security Platform
GPT-5.4 miniAkamai API Security alternatives: 42Crunch, Akto, Imperva API Security, Salt Security, Traceable API Security Platform, Wallarm API Security
Gemini 3.5 FlashWallarm API Security alternatives: 42Crunch, Cloudflare API Shield, Salt Security, Traceable API Security Platform
Mistral SmallGravitee, Zuplo alternatives: Graylog, Kong Gateway
Qwen 3.7 Flash42Crunch, Zuplo alternatives: Aikido Security, Salt Security
GPT-6 LunaWallarm API Security alternatives: Akamai API Security, Cloudflare API Shield, Salt Security
Muse Glimmer 30BZuplo alternatives: 42Crunch, Akamai API Security, Cloudflare Application Security and Performance, Imperva Application Security Platform, Salt Security
Neither was named
5 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Perplexity SonarCloudflare API Shield alternatives: 42Crunch, Traceable API Security Platform
DeepSeek V4 FlashWallarm API Security alternatives: 42Crunch, Akamai API Security, Cequence Unified API Protection, Cloudflare API Shield, Traceable API Security Platform
Llama 4 MaverickWallarm API Security alternatives: Aikido Security, Gravitee, OWASP ZAP, Zuplo
Kimi K2Levo.ai alternatives: 42Crunch, StackHawk, Wallarm API Security
GLM 4.7 FlashXZuplo alternatives: Akamai API Security, Cequence Unified API Protection
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Kong Gateway leads by two points.
Kong Gateway2%#– of 13Salt Security0%#13 of 13Mid-marketThe figures above
The order flips: Salt Security leads at mid-market.
Salt Security16%#1 of 15Kong Gateway4%#8 of 15Enterprise
Salt Security leads by forty-two points.
Salt Security44%#1 of 13Kong Gateway2%#10 of 13What the models said about Salt Security
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“What to Avoid (Unless You Have Enterprise Budget) | Salt Security | ~$50k–$100k+ | Enterprise-only sales; heavy tuning required” Kimi K2 · direct prompt · hard negative
“Enterprise-grade tools like Salt Security, Akamai API Security, or Cequence often start at thousands per month and are better suited for larger organizations.” Grok 4.20 · budget prompt · soft negative
“Best for mid-market companies with complex API ecosystems, though it is often recommended more for larger organizations” Mistral Small · direct prompt · soft negative
“Salt Security | AI-driven behavioral analysis, cloud-native architecture, continuous learning from traffic patterns | Large, dynamic API estates needing dedicated API-specific defense” Kimi K2 · comparative prompt · first choice
“Positioned as best for large enterprises requiring advanced API discovery and threat protection... Described as best behavioral runtime in 2026 rankings.” Muse Glimmer 30B · comparative prompt · first choice
“1. Salt Security ... Best For: Large enterprises seeking deep, out-of-band behavioral analysis across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
What the models said about Kong Gateway
No label in this category carried a quote.
Also compared
Salt Security vs ZuploSalt Security vs Wallarm API SecuritySalt Security vs Cloudflare API ShieldSalt Security vs OWASP ZAPSalt Security vs Akamai API SecuritySalt Security vs Traceable API Security PlatformZuplo vs Kong GatewayWallarm API Security vs Kong GatewayCloudflare API Shield vs Kong GatewayOWASP ZAP vs Kong GatewayAkamai API Security vs Kong GatewayTraceable API Security Platform vs Kong GatewayAll twenty-eight head-to-head pages and the full API security standing
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.