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kgateway
What it is
kgateway is a free, self-hosted Kubernetes ingress controller and API gateway control plane for Linux. It configures an Envoy data plane through the Kubernetes Gateway API, supporting deployments from small service-to-service microgateways to centralized gateways handling billions of API calls. Documented traffic functions include routing and aggregation, load balancing, rate limiting, traffic splitting, and request transformations. Security options include TLS and mTLS, external authentication, API keys, JWT, OAuth2/OIDC, and IP access control. Resilience features include circuit breakers, fault injection, retries, timeouts, and outlier detection. Integrations cover Istio, AWS load balancers, Argo Rollouts, ExternalDNS, cert-manager, and OpenTelemetry. Installation uses Helm or Argo CD in a Kubernetes cluster. The project launched in 2018 as Gloo, created by Solo.io, and is now a Cloud Native Computing Foundation sandbox project with free community support.
For and against
For
- Free plan for self-hosted Linux deployments
- Uses Kubernetes Gateway API with Envoy
- Includes routing, load balancing, and rate limiting
- Offers TLS, mTLS, JWT, and OAuth2/OIDC
- Installs through Helm or Argo CD
Against
- Requires a Kubernetes cluster
- Self-hosted deployment requires infrastructure management
- AI, MCP, and LLM connectivity uses another project
The verdict
kgateway provides a broad Kubernetes-native gateway feature set without a listed software charge. Teams should account for self-hosting responsibilities and use Agentgateway for the separately directed AI connectivity needs.
Who it suits
kgateway is aimed at Kubernetes platform teams and API-focused engineering groups running self-hosted infrastructure. It fits organizations needing configurable ingress, security, traffic management, and resilience controls.
Plans and prices
Solo Enterprise for kgateway
Pricing varies by deployment; no single price list stated
Read 29 Sep 2026 · solo.io
On the record
- Installation
- The kgateway control plane installs into a Kubernetes cluster using Helm or Argo CD.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Integrations
- Documented integrations include Istio, AWS load balancers, Argo Rollouts, ExternalDNS, cert-manager, and OpenTelemetry.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Naming scope
- The kgateway documentation directs AI, MCP, and LLM connectivity readers to the separate Agentgateway project.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Open source status
- Kgateway is a Cloud Native Computing Foundation sandbox project.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Project history
- Kgateway launched in 2018 as Gloo and was originally created by Solo.io.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Purpose
- Kgateway is a Kubernetes-native ingress controller and API gateway control plane that configures an Envoy data plane using the Kubernetes Gateway API.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Resilience
- The documentation lists circuit breakers, fault injection, retries, timeouts, and outlier detection among its resilience features.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Scale
- Kgateway supports deployments ranging from lightweight microgateways between services to centralized gateways handling billions of API calls.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Security
- Documented security features include TLS and mTLS, external authentication, API keys, JWT, OAuth2/OIDC, IP access control, and rate limiting.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Support
- Solo offers free community support through its Gloo Community and public GitHub repository.solo.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Supported audience
- The maker describes Solo Enterprise for kgateway and Istio as serving API pioneers and Kubernetes platform teams.solo.io · read 29 Sep 2026
- Traffic features
- Documented capabilities include routing and aggregation, load balancing, rate limiting, traffic splitting, and request transformations.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
- Use cases
- The project describes security, traffic management, and resilience as kgateway use cases.kgateway.dev · read 29 Sep 2026
