iPaaS vs embedded iPaaS: how they differ and overlap

As you evaluate integration solutions, it can be easy to confuse platforms that classify themselves as an integration platform as a service (iPaaS) with those that classify themselves as an embedded iPaaS.

We’ll help clarify any potential confusion by defining each type of platform, reviewing how they can be used, and exploring the benefits they provide.

What is an iPaaS?

An iPaaS is a cloud-based integration solution that lets you develop API-based integrations between your cloud applications and on-prem systems and then build workflow automations that work across them.

It’s important to note that iPaaS solutions are meant for connecting internal systems; they don’t normally let you connect to clients’, partners’, or prospects’ applications. 

They also often offer pre-built application connectors to help accelerate integration builds and workflow designers to help you build automations between the connected systems. In the case of the latter, you can set up trigger events in certain applications and then create corresponding actions in other applications that can work off of conditional logic.

For example, say you want to build a workflow that allows you to keep contacts in your CRM (e.g. Salesforce) in sync with leads in your marketing automation platform (e.g., Marketo). Using an iPaaS, you can connect your CRM with your marketing automation platform and then build the following trigger and actions in the iPaaS solution:

As you can probably tell from our example, iPaaS solutions can offer specific business benefits, like nurturing leads more effectively. However, they also provide more high-level benefits, like saving employees time, delivering an improved employee experience, and preventing human errors.

Related: What are API connectors?

Examples of iPaaS solutions

The iPaaS space is incredibly crowded. Moreover, acquisitions—such as UiPath purchasing the iPaaS solution, Cloud Elements—contribute to the market’s significant size and steady growth.

That said, as you evaluate specific solutions, you’ll likely come across vendors like Mulesoft, Boomi, Workato, Tray.io, and Celigo.

What is an embedded iPaaS?

An embedded iPaaS is an iPaaS that can be incorporated into your product, allowing you and/or your clients to build integrations between your platform and their applications.

Embedded iPaaS solutions often offer flexibility in terms of how they can be taken to market. For instance, using an embedded iPaaS, you can allow clients to both build  integrations and implement workflow automations themselves within your platform. Alternatively, you can implement the integrations and automations on their behalf—allowing clients to simply decide whether or not to adopt them. 

A common use case for embedded iPaaS solutions is automated user provisioning.

The way it works is simple: A client integrates their HRIS solution with your product via the embedded iPaaS and builds a flow where any time an employee is added, modified, or removed in the HRIS solution, the associated changes take place in your product.

Related: How embedded integration platforms work

Examples of embedded iPaaS solutions

The embedded iPaaS space is significantly less crowded than that of iPaaS, largely because the latter has been established for a significantly longer amount of time. 

You’ll typically come across two types of embedded iPaaS solutions: larger companies that offer embedded iPaaS and iPaaS solutions; examples include Tray.io, Workato, and Boomi. And smaller companies that solely provide an embedded iPaaS, such as Cyclr, Prismatic, and Paragon.

In case you’re still unsure of the differences between the two types of integration solutions, we’ll compare them directly in the following section.

Embedded iPaaS vs iPaaS

They are both cloud-based integration solutions. However, an embedded iPaaS lets you build customer-facing integrations while an iPaaS helps you build internal integrations. As a result, they are leveraged by different teams and support fundamentally different use cases. 

‍Related: Embedded iPaaS vs unified API

Build more reliable product integrations at scale with Merge

If you’re looking to build customer-facing integrations, you’ll likely run into several obstacles with an embedded iPaaS.

The solution forces you to build one integration at a time and requires technical expertise to use, both of which inhibit your team from building product integrations at scale. In addition, these platforms generally lack the management tooling and maintenance support you need to troubleshoot integration issues quickly, easily, and successfully.

A unified API solution like Merge addresses all of these issues.

You can simply build to Merge’s Unified API to offer hundreds of customer-facing integrations across key software categories, such as HRIS, ATS, CRM, file storage, ticketing, etc. 

Merge also provides maintenance support (through its partner engineers) and observability tooling (for your customer-facing teams) to enable you to provide reliable and performant integrations.

‍You can learn more about Merge by scheduling a demo with one of our integration experts.