Apidog vs Scalar
Apidog and Scalar are both API & developer docs tools. Apidog is aimed at developers and small businesses, while Scalar is aimed at developers. Apidog costs less, from $12/mo versus $150/mo for Scalar. Both have a free plan.
All-in-one API design, testing, mocking and docs; a Postman rival
Open-source API docs and client
| Pricing | Freemium · $12 | Open source · $150 |
| Starting price | $12/mo | $150/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 14 days | 7 days |
| Built for | Developers, Small businesses, Enterprise | Developers |
| Platforms | web, macos, windows, linux | web |
| Country | — | DE · 2023 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Apidog if
Small and mid-size engineering teams that want one spec-first tool for API design, debugging, testing, mocking and docs at a lower per-seat cost than Postman.
- Replaces several tools with one spec-first workspace
- Free for up to four users; paid seats cost less than Postman
- Imports Postman, Insomnia, OpenAPI, HAR, cURL and WSDL
Look elsewhere if: Companies whose main need is a polished public developer portal or strict design governance (ReadMe, Mintlify, Stoplight).
Choose Scalar if
Developers wanting modern free API docs.
- Beautiful UI
- Open source
- Free
Look elsewhere if: Enterprise portals.
Apidog vs Scalar pricing
Apidog
- Free$0Up to 4 users; design, debug, test, mock and docs
- Basic$12/user/mo$9/user/mo billed annually; 3 custom domains
- Professional$24/user/mo$18/user/mo billed annually; unlimited change history
- Enterprise$27/user/moBilled annually; SSO, organizations; on-prem separately
Scalar
- Free$0Up to 3 APIs, 1 editor seat, 1 SDK up to 25 endpoints
- Pro$150/mo$125/mo billed yearly; 5 seats, 15 APIs
- Business$600/mo$500/mo billed yearly; SSO, 10 seats, 25 APIs
- EnterpriseCustomSLAs and migration services
Apidog · Key features
- Visual OpenAPI and JSON Schema designer with change history
- Request client for HTTP, GraphQL, gRPC, WebSocket, SOAP and SSE
- Postman-compatible pre and post scripts and database connections
- Visual test scenarios, scheduled runs and performance testing
- Schema-driven smart mocks, cloud mock and self-hosted runner mock
- Interactive API docs with custom domains and free readers
Cons
- Interface is dense and takes time for non-technical users
- Public docs portals are less polished than ReadMe or Mintlify
- Smaller community and plugin ecosystem than Postman
Scalar · Key features
- Modern API reference
- API client
- Framework integrations
- Hosted docs
- Open source
- Themes
Cons
- Younger
- Fewer enterprise features
- Smaller community
Apidog vs Scalar: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Apidog or Scalar?
Apidog starts at $12/mo and Scalar at $150/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Apidog and Scalar have a free plan?
Yes, both Apidog and Scalar have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, Apidog or Scalar?
Apidog lists small businesses as a core audience, while Scalar is aimed more at developers.