here are 10 differences between API gateway and load balancer in point-by-point format:

1. Purpose

The primary purpose of an API gateway is to provide a unified API for microservices, while the primary purpose of a load balancer is to distribute traffic evenly across multiple servers.

2. Functionality

An API gateway can perform several functions, such as routing, security, load balancing, and API management, while a load balancer only handles traffic distribution.

3. Routing

An API gateway routes requests based on a predefined set of rules, while a load balancer routes requests based on predefined algorithms, such as round-robin or least connections.

4. Protocol Support

An API gateway typically supports multiple protocols, such as HTTP, WebSocket, and MQTT, while a load balancer only supports protocols at the transport layer, such as TCP and UDP.

5. Security

An API gateway provides features such as authentication, authorization, and SSL termination, while a load balancer only provides basic security features such as SSL offloading.

6. Caching

An API gateway can cache responses from microservices to improve performance, while a load balancer does not offer caching capabilities.

7. Transformation

An API gateway can transform data between different formats, such as JSON to XML, while a load balancer does not provide data transformation capabilities.

8. Service Discovery

An API gateway can integrate with service discovery mechanisms to dynamically discover microservices, while a load balancer relies on static configuration.

9. Granularity

An API gateway can provide fine-grained control over API endpoints, while a load balancer only controls traffic at the server level.

10. Scalability

An API gateway can handle a high number of API requests and manage the scaling of microservices, while a load balancer only provides horizontal scaling capabilities.