What is an API Gateway and Do I Need One?

API Gateway can mean two things: it's a service (like AWS’s) that helps route requests, especially if you’re using AWS Lambdas. It can also refer to a design pattern for routing requests to various services. There are alternatives like Tyk.io if you don't want to stick with AWS. It's recommended for microservices setups, but if you just want a basic REST API in a single app, you can do that without needing one.

You don’t necessarily need an API gateway unless your project has specific requirements. They are really useful for managing multiple APIs, running pre-checks before sending data, or if you want a developer portal to publish your APIs. If you’re not dealing with any of that, you might be fine without one.

An API gateway is basically a fancy term for a reverse proxy. If you're just starting out, using something like Nginx should be enough for general uses.

If you have many microservices, it’s usually better not to expose them directly to the public internet. An API gateway provides a single entry point, which makes it easier to manage security, monitoring, and configurations.