Linx

What Linx is

Linx is a low-code iPaaS for building backends: APIs, integrations and automations. Its own page puts it plainly: "Linx is a general-purpose low-code platform for building backends like APIs, automations, and integrations. It is an abstraction of programming, not domain, process or tooling specific." The reader it fits is an IT or integration team, or a developer, that wants to build custom integration and automation solutions that are "100% configurable and extensible", in the cloud or on-premises.

The company's About page says Linx "originated as an internal tool designed for system migration and post-merger integration for Africa's largest Asset Managers." Today it says the platform powers deep integrations for hundreds of businesses worldwide, and it cites 20 years of experience engineering backend systems. The copyright line on the site names Twenty57, and a customer quote credits "the skilled expertise from Twenty57."

What you build and how

The editor. Linx has two components. The Linx Application Designer is a desktop IDE "to create and debug processes." It uses "a low-code approach based on a programming paradigm": you build solutions by chaining the inputs and outputs of prebuilt functions and services, and by adjusting properties to implement logic and call complex technologies and APIs. The Why Linx page describes it as "code-like visualisations and patterns" and says the platform is database, file and system agnostic, with reuse of what you build. The company's argument is that everything is prebuilt yet flexible, which means fast to build, less to manage and easier to change.

Hosting. The second component, Linx Server, hosts, executes and manages production applications. You deploy "on-premise or in the cloud with 1-click", directly from the IDE to your own server or your custom-designed cloud environment. A single dashboard covers real-time management of your services, with logging, metrics and version history. The overview page also lists built-in observability and performance metrics, and says cloud hosting is backed by Azure with 99.99% uptime.

Starting points. The Why Linx page says teams can "use OpenAPI and BPMN designs to jumpstart solutions."

Integration. The use-case menu lists application integration, process automation, data migration, data automation and ETL. The platform's home message is "Integrate systems. Automate work. Anywhere. Fast." The company says extending the life of existing systems through APIs and automations, then moving to new systems on the same platform, is part of the idea. The platform page promises "industry-standard connectors," and the pricing FAQ explains that Linx ships Plugins, "packages of pre-built functionality for use in Linx solutions." One customer, Cosmo Group, says it uses Linx to "build custom API's to integrate with any 3rd party platform from our Sage X3 ERP with very little effort."

Workflow automation. Process automation is one of the listed use cases, and the platform's pitch is a single environment for "all their integration and automation requirements." In Linx, a process is a flow of prebuilt functions and logic executed on the Linx Server.

APIs. The low-code API development page says "Linx makes building and hosting APIs a breeze through a rich low-code environment that can do anything from CRUD on a database to complex business process logic." The page frames the use case as microservice or API layer creation, with common solutions such as a backend for a frontend, an API for vendors or customers, endpoints for webhooks, a layer on top of a database, and microservices. You can create APIs through a drag-and-drop API wizard for a code-first start, or work design-first by importing an OpenAPI 3.0 specification to "automatically create your REST API structure." Documentation is auto-generated with Swagger or Redocly, there is built-in API management with metrics and monitoring, and you "deploy directly from the Linx IDE for instantaneous hosting." The page stresses that "a single API can serve data from multiple different sources and implement complex logic." The blog's guide topics include building and hosting a low-code REST API, creating an API for a single page application, calling SOAP services using REST, and microservices as a way to modernize a monolithic legacy.

Front ends. For web interfaces, the same domain hosts a sibling product, Stadium, which the company presents as a low-code builder for data-driven web apps, dashboards and forms, with Linx handling the backend.

Services around the platform. The Expertise page offers platform implementation, training and enablement, and health check and troubleshooting. It also says "Your first solution is on us", with the company helping each customer validate an idea. The Why Linx page lists support from integration experts and in-person training and collaboration.

The evidence from the pages

Cloud pricing. The pricing page prices plans "per number of solutions deployed in production," with cloud billed monthly and cancellation at any time. It lists $599 per month for 3 solutions, $1,399 per month for 9 solutions, $2,599 per month for 20 solutions and $4,999 per month for 40 solutions. A solution is defined as "a container for the logic that solves one or more connected business problems that can be collectively developed, deployed, and maintained", and the page says there are no logical limits to the number of business processes, logic or data access inside one. Hosted databases and ad-hoc upgrades such as custom URLs or private VPNs are excluded from those prices and available on request.

Hosted databases. Hosted solutions can include a MySQL or Postgres server. Sizes start from $19 a month and include a weekly full backup, a daily log backup and 7-day backup retention.

On-premises. On-premises deployments are charged annually in advance. The page adds "No charge for QA or Development servers."

Trial and support. The FAQ says there is a free trial: "Talk to us or book a demo to get started." It also says every client gets access to support engineers for onboarding, adoption plans and solution reviews, and that the company offers professional services: "We can build and manage your solution for you."

Stadium. The pricing page also covers Stadium at $249 per application deployed in production, cloud or on-premises, with "unlimited applications and seats," all data connectors and free support; custom domains, premier support and infrastructure beyond the fair-use policy may cost extra.

Customer results. The platform page cites a system integration case that moved a business from 60 different payment formats to real-time payments and centralized financial reporting, and a process automation case covering "45 franchises, 327 business consultants, 700k+ policies and 62k generated statements." Quotes come from a lead consultant at Mike Allen Consulting ("a handy tool for systems integration and data wrangling"), Cosmo Group's financial manager and the CEO of AOLC.

Who it suits and who it does not

Linx suits a developer-minded integration team that wants one platform for APIs, ETL, data migration and process automation, and that wants the choice of cloud or its own servers. The programming-style designer favors people comfortable with functions, inputs and outputs, and the per-solution cloud pricing is easy to read when a team has a known number of production solutions. Companies that want outside help also get implementation support and training from the vendor.

It is a weaker match for a non-technical founder who wants drag-and-drop screens, since the designer is a desktop tool built around programming concepts and the front-end side is a separate product. Teams with many small automations should work out how many solutions they would need before comparing prices, because plans are priced by solutions rather than runs. The cloud plans start at $599 per month for 3 solutions, which is a lot for a single small workflow.