AkamaivsCloudflare
Score Comparison
Signals Comparison
Akamai
- Enterprise pricing prohibitive for smaller organizations(9/10)
- April 2026 price increases up to 10%(9/10)
- Opaque custom pricing - no transparent rates(6/10)
Cloudflare
- Charges continue after cancellation(8/10)
- Workers/KV pricing can lead to surprise bills(7/10)
- Business plan required for real support - $200/month(7/10)
Akamai
- Complex UI requires specialized training(7/10)
- Not developer-friendly - integration is complex(7/10)
- Requires specialized operational discipline(5/10)
Cloudflare
- CAPTCHA verification loops block legitimate users(8/10)
- Steep learning curve for advanced features(6/10)
- Domain registration and transfer constantly blocked(7/10)
Akamai
- Initial tech support can be challenging to obtain(7/10)
Cloudflare
- Customer support virtually nonexistent for free/Pro users(9/10)
- Email verification system broken - blocks account access(8/10)
Akamai
- IP address limits require time-consuming requests(5/10)
Cloudflare
- Limited customization for advanced users(5/10)
Akamai
- Multiple incidents in early 2026(6/10)
- CDN business in decline - 17 quarters of falling revenue(6/10)
Cloudflare
- Account suspensions without notice or explanation(10/10)
- Major outages take down large portions of internet(9/10)
- Website slowdown during Cloudflare analysis(6/10)
- DNS and caching issues require manual fixes(6/10)
Akamai
No signals
Cloudflare
- IP and DNS blocking causes access issues(7/10)
Pricing Comparison
Akamai
Users: N/A
Storage: N/A
Limits: Enterprise minimums, annual contracts typical, complex negotiation required
Users: N/A
Storage: 5-20 TB/month
Limits: Estimated range $8,000-25,000/mo based on industry reports
Users: N/A
Storage: N/A
Limits: Multi-year commitments often required
Users: N/A
Storage: 25GB
Limits: Cloud compute separate from CDN/security products
Cloudflare
Users: 1 site
Storage: N/A
Limits: No phone/email support, 3 page rules only, Basic WAF, No Argo Smart Routing, No image resizing, Limited analytics
Users: Per domain
Storage: N/A
Limits: Support still limited (slow), No phone support, No custom certificates, No advanced bot management, Argo costs extra
Users: Per domain
Storage: N/A
Limits: No SSO/SAML, No dedicated account manager, No custom contracts, No advanced DDoS analytics, Still limited vs Enterprise
Users: Unlimited
Storage: N/A
Limits: Requires sales negotiation, Minimum commitment expected, Complex pricing structure
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Akamai | Cloudflare |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | ||
| Global CDN (1000+ POPs) Largest network | ||
| Global CDN 300+ cities worldwide | ||
| Image Optimization Pro plan and above | ||
| Argo Smart Routing Additional cost on all plans | ||
| Load Balancing Additional cost | ||
| Security | ||
| Web Application Firewall Industry-leading | ||
| DDoS Protection Included on all plans | ||
| SSL/TLS Free Universal SSL | ||
| Bot Manager | ||
| API Security | ||
| Bot Management Advanced requires Enterprise | ||
| SSO/SAML Enterprise only | ||
| Custom SSL Certificates Business and above | ||
| Infrastructure | ||
| Cloud Computing (Linode) Via acquisition | ||
| Edge Computing | ||
| Features | ||
| Page Rules 3 free, more on paid plans | ||
| Domain Registration At-cost pricing | ||
| DNS Management Fast propagation | ||
| Pricing | ||
| Transparent Pricing Custom/negotiated only | ||
| Accessibility | ||
| SMB-Friendly Enterprise only | ||
| Onboarding | ||
| Easy Setup Requires training | ||
| Developer | ||
| Workers (Edge Computing) 100K free requests/day | ||
| Pages (Static Hosting) Free tier available | ||
| R2 Storage No egress fees | ||
| API Access Available on all plans | ||
| Insights | ||
| Analytics Basic free, enhanced on paid | ||
| Support | ||
| 24/7 Support Business plan ($200/mo) and above only | ||
| Phone Support Enterprise only | ||