I’ve been working with MuleSoft recently and keep seeing both iPaaS and CloudHub mentioned in the documentation. From what I understand, CloudHub has been around for a while as MuleSoft’s cloud platform. But now I’m seeing more references to iPaaS in newer materials. Can someone explain the relationship between these two concepts? Are they the same thing with different names, or is there actually a technical difference? I’m trying to understand if this is just a rebranding effort or if there are actual functional changes I should be aware of when designing my integration solutions. Any insights from experienced MuleSoft developers would be really helpful.
Here’s how I see it - CloudHub is MuleSoft’s cloud runtime where your apps actually run. iPaaS is the whole integration-as-a-service approach and toolset. I made this switch from traditional ESB to MuleSoft about two years back, and using it daily made this difference crystal clear. CloudHub takes care of infrastructure stuff - scaling, monitoring, keeping things running in the cloud. iPaaS covers everything: design tools like Anypoint Studio, API management, data transformation, plus all deployment options (CloudHub, hybrid, on-prem). MuleSoft rebranded to position itself as more than just another cloud platform - they want to be your complete integration solution. Architecture-wise, your integration patterns and connectors stay pretty much the same. But getting this distinction helps when you’re picking deployment options or selling the platform to higher-ups.
Had this exact confusion when evaluating integration platforms for our enterprise setup.
Here’s what everyone’s dancing around - the whole iPaaS vs CloudHub thing is MuleSoft justifying their pricing. You’re paying for way more than you need.
We needed to integrate our CRM with multiple payment processors. Started with MuleSoft, got lost in their terminology and pricing tiers. CloudHub costs kept climbing, especially with all the iPaaS components you have to buy separately.
Turns out you can get the same results without getting locked into MuleSoft’s ecosystem. I built everything using automation workflows that handle API calls, data transformation, and error handling just fine.
The real difference? MuleSoft wants you thinking you need their entire platform when most integration problems are just moving data between systems reliably.
Saved us 70% on integration costs and got better visibility into our data flows. No need to learn their terminology or worry about CloudHub vs iPaaS naming games.
Check out what’s possible with proper automation tools: https://latenode.com
iPaaS is MuleSoft’s whole service - CloudHub is just one piece of infrastructure inside it.
I hit this same confusion evaluating deployment strategies last year. CloudHub is literally just the cloud runtime environment. It runs the servers, handles scaling, and keeps your Mule apps running in AWS.
iPaaS? That’s everything. The entire Anypoint Platform. Design Center for building flows, Exchange for sharing assets, API Manager, DataWeave transformations, monitoring dashboards - the works.
MuleSoft changed the naming because they didn’t want to be seen as just a cloud deployment platform. They’re pushing themselves as a complete integration service that works anywhere.
Practically speaking, nothing changes in how you build integrations. Your flows work the same on CloudHub, Runtime Fabric, or on premises.
The difference matters when you’re planning architecture. CloudHub gives you one deployment option. iPaaS gives you the full toolkit plus flexibility to deploy however your business needs.
iPaaS is like the big picture for integrating everything, whereas CloudHub is just a part of that. It’s kinda like they’re updating their branding to reflect the full scope of what MuleSoft does, not just cloud stuff.
CloudHub serves as MuleSoft’s dedicated cloud platform for the deployment of Mule applications, while iPaaS, or Integration Platform as a Service, encompasses a broader spectrum, including CloudHub along with various other deployment alternatives. Essentially, you can view iPaaS as an evolution of MuleSoft’s integration capabilities into a more comprehensive service framework. In my experience during a recent migration, I found that MuleSoft’s iPaaS provides a unified solution that supports CloudHub for cloud-based applications, Runtime Fabric for containerized deployments, and accommodates on-premises setups. Despite the advancements in the integration platform, the foundational operational and design patterns of Mule remain consistent, regardless of the deployment method.