Blobr is a no-code SaaS to create your API developer portal. API providers can manage, document, distribute and monetize API products from one place on their terms. Each portal is unique and each API provider has its own. They can add their branding and integrate the portal to their own environment. Blobr has been made so that both technical and non-technical profiles can succeed.
Backstage is an open-source and free developer portal solution created by the Spotify engineering team. It allows organisations to unify all the internal infrastructure tooling, services and documentation - including APIs. The Service Catalog manages all the infrastructure, the Software Template helps to create components and the TechDocs tool documents them. Backstage also comes with dozens of open-source plugins.
The Blobr API Portal is a white-label API marketplace. The API provider defines how public they want the API Portal to be. As Blobr handles user management, they can thoroughly define whom accesses what among their customers. API Products are displayed in tiles, each with a brief description of what it does. Each has a custom API documentation that helps API consumers navigate between the selected endpoints. Subscriptions and billing are handled directly on the platform.
As for APIs, Backstage provides the same features as the other software: a unified catalog, with links to GitHub repositories, a list of its consumers and an OpenAPI definition file. A documentation tool, using Markdown, can be used to provide further information on the APIs. Backstage developer portal is designed for an internal use - for private or composite APIs, it is not build to monetize or share APIs on a self-service base.
Backstage.io provides a clean and useful developer portal for organisations struggling to have a unified experience of their infrastructure. It is open-source and free, and even if its configuration can be time-consuming - as well as its maintenance, the Backstage developer portal is a compelling tool for an internal use.
APIs on the Backstage.io developer portal also are for an internal use or to be shared with a limited audience. APIs are displayed has a whole, integration is not self-service and limited, with no available ressource to monetize them. To be short, Backstage is not made to share or sell APIs, but to manage them inside an organisation.
Backstage alone can’t be the only solution if the aim if to leverage APIs as products.
Blobr takes a different approach by combining API management and the API portal, allowing the API provider to track and manage usage and users, create products from APIs and display documentation accordingly.
Starting for free, Blobr’s white-label developer portal can be configured in minutes through a no-code interface. The logo, color, domain name and Single Sign-on make it an integral part the API provider website.
• No-code and intuitive interface to connect any API in minutes.
• An "API consumer first" approach to optimize adoption and time to first call.
• Product approach to stick to every user’s use-cases, with a product page to explain the product with images or videos, using Markdown.
• Documentation in the form of product-based workflows, to highlight only what is needed, with API consumers who can test the endpoints and code snippets, easing the adoption process.
• API monetization option is available in a few clicks with different business models managed.
• A dashboard to follow the consumption of API consumers and an API log to monitor and debug each call made.