specification: FinOps Framework
specificationVersion: '1.0'
schema: https://www.finops.org/framework/
provider: KrakenD
providerId: krakend
created: '2026-05-04'
# Provenance stamped 2026-08-11: this artifact was written by the API Evangelist
# bulk sweep dated 2026-05-04, not harvested from the provider. See roadmap#35.
method: generated
modified: '2026-05-05'
reconciled: true
tags:
  - FinOps
  - FOCUS
  - API Gateway
  - Open Source
  - API Management
description: 'FOCUS-aligned FinOps for KrakenD: shipped software with a flat Enterprise license fee that
  is explicitly not metered by API count or throughput, plus zero-cost Community Edition. The largest
  FinOps lever is operator infrastructure (compute, network, observability) — not vendor charges.'
sources:
  - https://www.krakend.io/enterprise/
alignedWith:
  framework: FinOps Foundation Framework
  frameworkUrl: https://www.finops.org/framework/
  dataSpec: FOCUS
  dataSpecVersion: '1.3'
  dataSpecUrl: https://focus.finops.org/focus-specification/v1-3/
publisherName: KrakenD SL
serviceCategory: API Management
billingModel:
  pricingCategory: Flat Subscription (Self-Hosted)
  billingFrequency: Annual
  billingCurrency: EUR/USD
  chargeCategories:
    - Purchase
    - Adjustment
focusColumns:
  ServiceName: KrakenD
  ServiceCategory: Developer Tools
  ServiceSubcategory: API Gateway
  ProviderName: KrakenD
  PublisherName: KrakenD SL
  InvoiceIssuerName: KrakenD SL
  BillingCurrency: EUR
meters:
  - name: enterprise_license
    unit: license-year
    aggregation: max
    dimensions:
      - environment
  - name: gateway_instances
    unit: instance
    aggregation: max
    dimensions:
      - environment
      - region
    notes: Operator-tracked, not billed by KrakenD; predict cost by sizing infra.
  - name: requests_processed
    unit: request
    aggregation: sum
    dimensions:
      - environment
      - endpoint
    notes: Tracked operationally, not billed by KrakenD.
  - name: support_hours
    unit: hour
    aggregation: sum
    notes: Engineering hours for custom plugins / architecture reviews under Enterprise contract.
principles:
  - name: Visibility
    description: KrakenD does not bill on usage, but operators should still expose request count, latency,
      and rejection metrics through KrakenD's telemetry exporters (OpenTelemetry, Prometheus) to manage
      the underlying compute spend.
  - name: Allocation
    description: Tag KrakenD instances and endpoints by team / product so the underlying compute (Kubernetes
      pods, VMs) can be charged back; the license itself is centrally owned.
  - name: Optimization
    description: Use KrakenD's stateless scaling and aggressive caching/aggregation to reduce backend
      and egress cost; the gateway license is fixed, so all marginal optimization happens at the infra
      layer.
  - name: Accountability
    description: Platform team owns the Enterprise contract renewal; product teams own backend cost and
      are accountable for sizing their own gateway capacity through their infra budget.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: kin@apievangelist.com