# KrakenD: how AI models rank it, September 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition. Named in 8 judge labels across 2 categories by 5 of 12 models. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/vendors/krakend/

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| API gateways | 2% | 6 | 0% | 7 |
| API management | 0% | 28 | 0% | 1 |

## What the models said for it

- "If you want a fully free, self-hosted solution, Kong or KrakenD are excellent." (Mistral Small, API gateways)
- "if you have an exceptionally strong, self-sufficient platform engineering team that prefers highly performant, open-source, stateless, and declarative gateways" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, API management)
- "lightweight alternatives like KrakenD, Apache APISIX, or Gloo Edge offer GitOps-friendly configurations" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, API gateways)
- "Runs on minimal hardware (can easily sit on a $5/month VPS) and does not require a database to operate." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, API gateways)

## Record

- Method: https://it-ai-index.com/methodology/
- Raw judge labels and full responses: https://it-ai-index.com/data/
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as IT AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition, it-ai-index.com.