AWS offers a robust ecosystem for deploying, scaling, and securing APIs, but most enterprises operate far beyond an AWS-only landscape. APIs end up scattered across different gateways, teams, business units, and environments. Documentation falls out of sync, specs live in multiple locations, and developers often don’t know where to find what they need.

This blog walks you through how to consolidate all your AWS APIs into a single, organized catalog using DigitalAPI’s developer portal, and, if you choose, how to pull in APIs from other gateways as well. It’s the quickest path from “our APIs are everywhere” to a unified, searchable, always up-to-date API catalog.

Why cataloging AWS APIs gets hard in real life?

On architecture diagrams, AWS API Gateway looks clean. In reality, your landscape usually looks more like this:

• Multiple API Gateway instances across different AWS regions
• Separate stages for dev, test, QA, UAT, and production
• APIs are split across HTTP APIs, REST APIs, and Lambda-based endpoints
• Documentation scattered between Git repos, Postman collections, and Confluence pages
• Backend services on EC2, ECS, Lambda, EKS, or even non-AWS systems

AWS gives you great building blocks, but when your teams grow, the complexity grows even faster.

Why is AWS API Gateway alone not enough?

AWS API Gateway excels at:

• Deploying and scaling APIs
• Securing endpoints
• Integrating with Lambda and backend services
• Managing throttling and usage plans
• API Keys, IAM auth, Cognito auth

But here's why its not enough:

1. Your organization isn’t AWS-only

Most enterprises mix AWS APIs with:

• On-premise APIs
• Other gateways like Apigee, MuleSoft, Kong, Azure
• Event-driven APIs from Kafka / Solace
• Legacy SOAP services

AWS can’t unify this for you.

2. Developers hate bouncing between portals

If each business unit or team exposes a separate API Gateway stage or console:

• Developers don’t know where APIs live
• Documentation becomes inconsistent
• API reuse drops sharply

One missing API in a portal = another duplicate built.

3. Keeping specs, docs, and gateway configurations aligned is nearly impossible

Teams store specs in Git, collections in Postman, definitions in SwaggerHub, and code across multiple repos.

Without automation, you end up with:

• Outdated specs
• Orphan endpoints
• Incomplete metadata
• Drift between what’s deployed vs what’s documented

DigitalAPI eliminates all that.

The Better Pattern: AWS for Traffic, DigitalAPI for Catalog & Consumption

Here’s the modern architecture pattern:

AWS API Gateway = Your runtime

It continues to handle routing, scaling, integration, throttling, and security.

DigitalAPI = Your API catalog + developer portal

It unifies:

• All AWS APIs
• APIs from other gateways
• Specs from Git, SwaggerHub, Postman
• Metadata, ownership, documentation
• Governance and scorecards
• AI-powered intent search

With this setup, you:

• Auto-inventory all AWS APIs into DigitalAPI’s API Estate
• Combine gateway data with documentation and metadata
• Expose everything through a single, universal developer portal
• Keep AWS as-is, no migration required

Step-by-Step: How to catalog AWS APIs on DigitalAPI’s developer portal

Let's take a look at how you can catalog your APIs on AWS, other gateways, and API sources using DigitalAPI's developer portal.

1. Add an AWS API Gateway Instance

From API Environments, click Add New Instance and select AWS. This connects your AWS account or specific gateway instance to DigitalAPI. It enables automatic API discovery across regions and stages without manual exports or CLI scripts.

2. Configure authentication & Permissions

Provide your AWS access details such as access id, secret access key, region and name to connect the API Gateway. DigitalAPI uses these credentials to fetch your API configurations securely. Then hit test connection to validate access before saving the instance.

3. Import AWS APIs

Once connected, click Import APIs. DigitalAPI scans every region and stage associated with your AWS environment, discovers your REST/HTTP APIs, and syncs them into the unified API Estate. This builds your catalog automatically, no YAML, JSON, or console work needed.

4. Explore all AWS APIs in one unified API estate

All imported APIs now appear in the API Estate, organized, versioned, and centralized. From here, you can enrich each API with owners, domains, lifecycle states, tags, and descriptions. What used to be AWS config data becomes a clean, human-friendly catalog.

5. Add documentation & specs from other sources

Beyond AWS imports, you can integrate your GitHub repos, Postman collections, and SwaggerHub specs. This ensures every API, whether AWS-native or not, has complete, always-updated documentation inside DigitalAPI.

What you unlock by cataloging AWS APIs in DigitalAPI

• One catalog for ALL your APIs: Start with AWS, then include Apigee, Azure, Kong, MuleSoft, Git-based specs, events, and more. Your developers see one unified catalog regardless of where APIs are deployed.
• A single front door for developers: No more hunting across AWS regions, stages, consoles, or internal wikis. The DigitalAPI portal becomes your universal API entry point for internal teams, partners, and external developers.
• Better reuse & faster development: A discoverable catalog reduces duplicate API development and helps teams reuse existing services intelligently.
• Stronger governance across the entire estate: Detect shadow APIs, missing metadata, broken specs, and compliance gaps across AWS and non-AWS APIs.
• An AI-ready API ecosystem: AI agents, copilots, and automation tools rely on machine-readable, well-structured API catalogs. Cataloging AWS APIs in DigitalAPI future-proofs your org for agentic AI use cases.

FAQs

1. How is DigitalAPI different from AWS API Gateway documentation tools?

AWS Gateway provides excellent deployment and runtime capabilities, but it does not unify APIs across regions, stages, teams, or other gateways. DigitalAPI provides a single, multi-gateway catalog, and developer portal with governance, AI search, and product-style packaging.

2. Do we need to change anything in AWS?

No. You simply grant read permissions to DigitalAPI. AWS continues to handle traffic, routing, and security. DigitalAPI adds cataloging, documentation, governance, analytics, and self-serve access on top.

3. Can we mix AWS APIs with other gateways?

Yes, DigitalAPI is built for multi-gateway estates. You can blend AWS APIs with MuleSoft, Apigee, Kong, Azure, or even raw Git-based specs into one unified catalog.

4. How does this support AI-agent consumption?

AI agents require structured, consistent, machine-readable API catalogs. By cataloging your AWS APIs on DigitalAPI, you create an index that AI tools can reliably interpret for safe, governed automation.