# Top Embedded iPaaS platforms in 2025 to replace custom integrations (and when they don't do the job) For agentic SaaS companies, integrations are not just a checklist item. They are central to customer experience and often make the difference in winning or losing a deal. Embedded iPaaS platforms promise a shortcut: prebuilt connectors, white-labeled UIs, and integration marketplaces that can be dropped into your product to “ship integrations fast.” While [Ampersand](https://www.withampersand.com/?utmsource=blog) is not an embedded iPaaS to connect to your customer's data, this post is intended to provide a neutral breakdown of the leading embedded iPaaS providers, while introducing an alternative path: integration infrastructure built for real-time, deep, enterprise-grade integrations. ## What is Embedded iPaaS? An embedded integration platform as a service, or for short, iPaaS, help SaaS vendors deliver integrations directly inside their product. Instead of building your own connectors and management tools, you can embed a prebuilt catalog, white-label UI, and workflow engine. ### The general benefits - Faster time-to-market for integration catalogs. - White-label UIs for configuration and marketplaces. - Reduced engineering lift in the short term. ### The general limitations - Embedded iPaaS typically offer shallow integrations that only cover common fields. - Users often encounter polling-based syncs with delayed data freshness. - There is very limited per-tenant customization. ## Top Embedded iPaaS Providers ### Paragon *Pros* - Breadth of connectors: Offers a wide library of prebuilt SaaS integrations that cover many CRM, HR, and support tools, helping companies demonstrate coverage to prospects quickly. - UI included: Provides configurable, embeddable UIs for end users, reducing the design and front-end lift required to ship integrations inside your product. - Appealing to product teams: Markets directly to product managers and non-engineering stakeholders who want to “check the integrations box” without much developer investment. *Cons* - Shallow workflows: Covers only happy-path objects and fields, leaving out tenant-specific customizations that enterprise customers expect. - Polling-based updates: Relies on scheduled syncs rather than sub-second event delivery, creating noticeable latency for real-time use cases. - Limited differentiation: Integrations built with Paragon often look identical across companies, making it harder to stand out from competitors who use the same platform. ### Workato Embedded *Pros* - Prebuilt recipes: Provides thousands of automation recipes that can be embedded into a SaaS product, giving end users a wide catalog of ready-to-use workflows. - Enterprise integrations: Strong coverage across major SaaS, ERP, and on-premise systems, making it attractive for SaaS vendors whose customers are mid-market or enterprise organizations with diverse systems. - Scalable platform: Workato Embedded leverages the broader Workato engine, which is built to handle high volumes of workflows and can support complex multi-step automations at scale. *Cons* - Complex implementation: Embedding Workato requires significant configuration and developer effort, making it harder for SaaS teams to adopt quickly compared to lighter embedded iPaaS options. - High pricing model: Workato’s enterprise heritage shows in its cost structure, which can be prohibitive for startups or mid-market SaaS companies without large budgets. - Steep learning curve: Its wide feature set creates complexity for product teams and end users, often requiring training or support to make use of the embedded experience. ### Prismatic *Pros* - Developer-friendly design: Built with engineering teams in mind, Prismatic offers more flexibility for developers compared to purely UI-driven embedded iPaaS vendors. - Ops tooling: Includes logging, monitoring, and deployment tools that make it easier for engineers to manage integrations in production environments. - Documentation and APIs: Provides thorough technical documentation and API access, making it possible to fit into engineering-driven workflows. *Cons* - Polling limitations: Like other embedded iPaaS platforms, Prismatic relies on polling intervals, which limit freshness for real-time data scenarios. - Resource intensive: Requires ongoing developer investment to maintain integrations, especially when customers request unique field mappings or workflows. - Cost scales quickly: Enterprise features and larger usage tiers can create significant expenses as integration adoption grows across your customer base. ### Cyclr *Pros* - Marketplace focus: Cyclr is positioned around helping SaaS vendors launch branded integration marketplaces with minimal lift. - European presence: Headquartered in the UK, Cyclr has strong traction with European SaaS companies and compliance familiarity with EU standards. - Breadth of connectors: Offers a wide library of integrations across CRM, HR, support, and marketing applications. *Cons* - Template-driven depth: Integrations focus on common objects and workflows, often missing tenant-specific requirements. - Polling-based syncs: Data updates are delayed, limiting use in real-time or AI-powered product workflows. - Enterprise gaps: Larger customers often find compliance, security, or data residency features insufficient compared to more robust infra solutions. ### Pandium *Pros* - Ecosystem-first positioning: Markets itself as a way to power partner ecosystems and integration marketplaces, not just technical connectivity. - Partner management features: Includes tooling for partner teams to list, manage, and promote integrations. - Good for GTM: Appeals to SaaS companies who want integrations to support ecosystem growth and marketing efforts. *Cons* - Technical depth gaps: Pandium focuses more on marketplace and ecosystem features than the underlying technical infrastructure. - Niche positioning: Strong for companies with partner-heavy GTM strategies, but less relevant if you need product-embedded integrations as a core feature. - Limited developer control: Engineers have fewer options for customizing workflows beyond what the platform supports. ### Integry *Pros* - Embeddable marketplace: Integry provides tools for SaaS vendors to launch in-app integration marketplaces quickly, targeting product teams with minimal developer bandwidth. - Prebuilt connectors: Offers a catalog of common SaaS integrations to help companies satisfy basic integration requests from customers. - UI elements: Provides ready-to-use UI components that can be dropped into your product for configuration and management. *Cons* - Shallow workflows: Similar to Paragon, Integry integrations typically cover only surface-level data objects, missing deeper use cases. - Polling-driven: Relies on scheduled syncs, which are insufficient for products requiring sub-second updates. - Enterprise gaps: Hosted-only infrastructure with limited options for isolated deployments or advanced compliance. ### Tray Embedded *Pros* - Workflow flexibility: Offers more powerful workflow-building capabilities than template-only embedded vendors. - Scalability: Tray is designed for higher throughput use cases compared to lightweight embedded players. - Connector catalog: Provides a large set of integrations carried over from Tray.io’s broader platform. *Cons* - Complex implementation: Tray Embedded is harder to set up compared to simpler embedded iPaaS vendors. - High costs: Pricing at enterprise scale is significant, with usage-based models that can balloon as customers adopt more workflows. - Not purpose-built: Tray Embedded is adapted from their standard iPaaS platform, so it lacks some of the product-focused polish of Paragon or Prismatic. ## The Embedded iPaaS alternative: Integration infrastructure powered by Ampersand Embedded iPaaS solves the problem of launching an integration marketplace quickly, but it does not solve the deeper challenges of building reliable, tenant-specific, real-time integrations. Ampersand takes a different approach by providing an *integration infrastructure for SaaS teams that need integrations to be part of their core product*, not a surface-level marketplace. ### What makes Ampersand different? - Real-time sync: Subscribe Actions deliver sub-second updates across vital systems of record. - Per-tenant schema drift handling: Every customer’s unique data model is respected, avoiding lowest-common-denominator schemas. - Enterprise reliability: Token refreshes, retries, and resilient webhooks are included out of the box. - AI-native integrations: An SDK and MCP server let AI agents access help you build and launch your integration in minutes, not days. ### When to choose Ampersand over Embedded iPaaS - Your integrations are core to product value, not just a checklist. - Your customers demand real-time reliability rather than polling delays. - You need enterprise-grade security and control. - You want to differentiate and not ship the same shallow integrations as your competitors. ## Quick Comparison | **Provider** | **Best For** | **Limitations** | **Example Use Case** | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Paragon | Fastest to launch with white-label UIs | Shallow workflows, vendor lock-in | Early SaaS needing to demo integrations | | Workato Embedded | Enterprise credibility with prebuilt recipes | Complex implementation, high pricing | SaaS targeting enterprise buyers with broad system needs | | Prismatic | Developer-focused with more flexibility | Higher engineering lift, learning curve | SaaS teams with engineering bandwidth | | Cyclr | Marketplace-style integration catalogs | Limited depth, weaker U.S. presence | EU SaaS launching integration marketplace | | Pandium | Ecosystem and partner marketplaces | Lacks deep infra capabilities | SaaS growing partner ecosystem | | Integry | Embeddable UIs and quick catalogs | Shallow use cases, limited differentiation | Product teams with no dev bandwidth | | Tray Embedded | Workflow flexibility and scalability | Complex setup, high cost | Mid-market SaaS scaling integrations | | **Ampersand** | Real-time, deep, tenant-specific integrations | Not a template-based iPaaS | Enterprise SaaS or AI agents needing live sync across critical SaaS apps | ## Going beyond Embedded iPaaS Embedded iPaaS is a great starting point if your priority is to build surface-level workflows for integrations. But when your product needs depth, real-time reliability, and enterprise readiness, it’s worth looking beyond unified APIs. *Ampersand excels in providing foundational integration infrastructure built for highly complex, AI-native applications.* Schedule a demo [here](https://calendly.com/d/cmdf-fnw-bwv/speak-with-an-engineer-at-ampersand?utmsource=blog) or [sign up](https://dashboard.withampersand.com/sign-up?utmsource=blog) to begin discovering Ampersand for yourself.
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