Staxly

Portkey vs Convex

Enterprise AI gateway + observability + guardrails + prompt mgmt
vs. The reactive database where queries are TypeScript code

Portkey websiteConvex website

Pricing tiers

Portkey

Developer (Free)
Free forever. 10k logs/month. Universal API + key management. 3 prompt templates. Basic observability.
Free
Gateway (OSS)
MIT-licensed gateway only (no observability UI). Self-host for routing/fallbacks.
$0 base (usage-based)
Production
$49/month. 100k logs ($9 per additional 100k). Fallbacks, load balancing, retries, semantic caching. Unlimited prompts. RBAC.
$49/mo
Enterprise
Custom. 10M+ logs/month. Custom guardrails, advanced evals, SSO, budget controls, VPC + on-prem, SOC2, HIPAA, GDPR.
Custom
Portkey website

Convex

Starter (Free)
Free with overage via usage-based billing. Great for prototypes.
Free
Professional
$25/developer/month. Overage: $2/M function calls. Daily backups, email support, custom domains.
$25/mo
Business / Enterprise
From $2,500/month. SAML/SSO, SLA, dedicated deployments, Slack Connect support.
$2500/mo
Convex website

Free-tier quotas head-to-head

Comparing free on Portkey vs starter on Convex.

MetricPortkeyConvex
db storage gb0.5 GB
deployments40 deployments
egress gb month1 GB/month
file storage gb1 GB
function calls month1000000 calls/month
team members6 users

Features

Portkey · 18 features

  • AI GatewayUnified OpenAI-compatible API to 250+ LLMs.
  • AlertsThresholds on latency, error rate, cost, usage.
  • Budget ControlsPer-key + per-team spending limits.
  • EvaluationsBuilt-in evaluator templates + custom.
  • FallbacksConfig-driven provider fallback chains.
  • GuardrailsPre/post processors for safety + compliance.
  • Load BalancingRound-robin, weighted, least-latency across providers.
  • MCP SupportUse MCP servers as tools through gateway.
  • ObservabilityLogs, traces, feedback, alerts, cost tracking.
  • OSS GatewayOpen-source gateway (portkey-ai/gateway).
  • Prompt LibraryShared prompt library + public marketplace.
  • Prompt TemplatesVersion + test + collaborate on prompts.
  • RetriesConfigurable retry policies per route.
  • Role-Based Access ControlTeam permissions on prompts + keys.
  • Semantic CachingVector-based cache on query meaning.
  • Simple CachingExact-match cache.
  • Virtual KeysPer-app keys with budget + rate limits + permissions.
  • VPC Deployment (Ent)Deploy in your own VPC for compliance.

Convex · 18 features

  • ActionsNon-deterministic functions for external I/O (fetch, AI APIs, email). Cannot rea
  • AuthenticationConvex Auth (built-in) or BYO provider (Clerk, Auth0, Kinde, WorkOS). ID tokens
  • Convex AgentsAI agent framework with durable memory, threads, tool use. Works with OpenAI / A
  • Convex AuthFirst-party auth library: passwords, magic links, OAuth, phone — stored in your
  • Convex ComponentsReusable backend modules (rate limiter, workflow, aggregate, action-retrier, etc
  • Cron JobsRecurring schedules defined in convex/crons.ts. UTC, cron-style patterns.
  • Durable WorkflowsLong-running multi-step workflows with retries and at-least-once guarantees.
  • Exception ReportingAuto-capture errors to Sentry, Axiom, Datadog.
  • File StorageUpload/download via storage API. Returns storage IDs referenced in documents.
  • Full-Text SearchBM25 search index on table fields. withSearchIndex query helper.
  • HTTP ActionsExpose public HTTP endpoints for webhooks, OAuth callbacks, third-party integrat
  • Log StreamsStream function logs to Axiom, Datadog, Sentry. Pro+.
  • MutationsTransactional write functions. All reads + writes in one mutation are ACID; conf
  • Preview DeploymentsEvery Git branch gets its own isolated deployment. Integrates with Vercel/Netlif
  • QueriesDeterministic read-only TS functions. Automatically cached and re-run when under
  • Real-Time SubscriptionsuseQuery auto-subscribes; server invalidates when data a query read changes. No
  • Schedulerschedule.after / schedule.at — enqueue functions to run later. Durable, survives
  • Vector SearchNative vector index on tables. withIndex + filter fields. Up to 4096 dims.

Developer interfaces

KindPortkeyConvex
CLIPortkey CLIConvex CLI
SDKportkey-ai (Node), portkey-ai (Python)Android / Kotlin Client, iOS / Swift Client, JavaScript/TypeScript Client, Next.js Integration, Python Client, React Client (useQuery), Rust Client, Svelte Client, Vue Client
RESTPortkey API (OpenAI-compat)Deploy / Dashboard API, HTTP Actions
MCPPortkey MCP
OTHERPortkey DashboardWebSocket Subscriptions
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