Apicurio Registry vs Buf Schema Registry
Apicurio Registry
apicur.io
Buf Schema Registry
buf.buildSide by side
| Figure | Apicurio Registry | Buf Schema Registry |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | $0.50/mo |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 4 |
| Spec score · Schema Registry Software | 8.0 (#11) | 8.3 (#4) |
| Deployment | The getting-started guide runs the server and UI as separate Docker images and also names Podman as a prerequisite option. | Enterprise offers self-hosted, on-prem deployments, while Pro provides a managed private BSR instance. |
| Integrations | The documentation describes Kafka client serializers and deserializers for Avro, Protobuf, and JSON Schema, and integration with Kafka Connect. | Buf provides a GitHub Action for build, lint, format, breaking-change checks, and publishing, and the Buf CLI can integrate with other CI/CD systems. |
| Purpose | Apicurio Registry is a runtime server that stores artifacts and lets users add, update, and remove them through a remote REST API. | The BSR is a Protobuf-aware registry for tracking and evolving APIs, managing dependencies, and helping clients consume APIs. |
| Support | The documentation directs users to the GitHub projects and issue tracker for help, suggestions, and problem reports. | The pricing page lists Community Slack support and email support with a 48-business-hour response SLA for Teams, Pro, and Enterprise. |
Plans
Buf Schema Registry
- CommunityFree
- Teams$0.50 a month
- Pro$5 a month
- EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
Apicurio Registry
Apicurio Registry is an open-source runtime server for storing API designs and schemas as artifacts. Users can add, update, and remove artifacts through a remote REST API. For API discovery, teams can register designs such as OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, and GraphQL so consumers can search and browse APIs, see details, and read generated documentation. For messaging and event streaming, it provides a central place to track schemas and manage data-format evolution. Supported artifact types include OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, GraphQL, Apache Avro, Protocol Buffers, JSON Schema, Kafka Connect schema, WSDL, XML Schema, and ODCS v3.1. Configurable rules can check validity, compatibility, and integrity as artifacts change. Listed storage backends include Apache Kafka, PostgreSQL, and Microsoft SQL Server. Management options include a web console, REST API, command line, Maven plug-in, and Java client. Kafka serializers and deserializers can enforce schemas in producer and consumer applications. The documentation covers self-hosted deployment, including Kubernetes. The quick-start in-memory server is non-persistent and is not intended for production.
Buf Schema Registry
Buf Schema Registry (BSR) is a Protobuf-aware registry for managing API schemas, dependencies, and client access as APIs change. Teams publish Protobuf files as versioned modules and resolve dependencies declared in buf.yaml. BSR generates hosted SDKs for supported languages and browsable documentation from schema versions and comments. Server-side lint and breaking-change policies can reject updates or hold them for review. The registry also shows which modules depend on another, helping teams identify affected consumers before deprecation. A GitHub Action handles build, lint, formatting, breaking-change checks, and publishing; the Buf CLI can connect to other CI/CD systems. RPC APIs are available through Connect, gRPC, and gRPC-Web. Community costs nothing and includes one private repository limited to 100 types plus unlimited public repositories. Teams costs $0.50 a month per type and includes a 30-day trial. Pro costs $5 a month per type with a $3000/month minimum spend. Enterprise pricing is custom.