Authentication & User Management
Best Clerk Alternatives & Open-Source Competitors in 1970
Clerk is priced as mau-based freemium, starting at $25/mo. Here are 4 alternatives, with their pricing, self-hosting effort and trade-offs.
Why teams move away from Clerk
- Closed source; tightly coupled to modern React/frontend stacks
- Self-hosting is not available
- Pricing is tied to MAU, so products with many dormant sign-ins keep paying for users who never return
Clerk alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Licence | Starting price | Self-hosting | Stars |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clerk | Proprietary | $25/mo | Not available | N/A |
| Keycloak | Open SourceSelf-Hostable | $0 (Free Self-Hosted) | High (Java/Quarkus container, DB setup) | 24k |
| SuperTokens | Open SourceSelf-Hostable | $0 (self-hosted) or free Cloud up to 5,000 MAU | Medium (Docker with Postgres) | 15.3k |
| Okta Auth0 | Proprietary | $35/mo (B2C) / Custom (B2B) | Not available | N/A |
| Kinde | Proprietary | $25/mo (Pro) | Not available | N/A |
The alternatives in detail
Keycloak
100% Free Open-Source (Red Hat Community)
- Starting price
- $0 (Free Self-Hosted)
- Free tier
- Unlimited users, unlimited realms, 100% free
- Self-hosting
- High (Java/Quarkus container, DB setup)
Pros
- Complete enterprise SSO, LDAP/Active Directory sync, Kerberos, OpenID Connect
- Multi-tenancy realms out of the box with zero user license fees
- No vendor lock-in; ideal for on-premise and sensitive regulated data
Cons
- High DevOps maintenance burden and Java memory footprint
- Default login UI is dated and requires custom theme development
- Major-version upgrades regularly need migration work on custom themes and providers
SuperTokens
Open source (Apache-2.0) / Cloud usage-based
- Starting price
- $0 (self-hosted) or free Cloud up to 5,000 MAU
- Free tier
- Free self-hosted; Cloud free up to 5,000 MAU
- Self-hosting
- Medium (Docker with Postgres)
Pros
- Open-source auth with email/password, social, passwordless and MFA
- Session handling you can run next to your own user database
- Drop-in frontend SDKs for React, Vue and mobile
Cons
- Security updates and uptime are yours when self-hosting
- Fewer enterprise B2B features (SCIM, deep organisation management) than Auth0
- Smaller documentation and community than Auth0 or Clerk
Okta Auth0
Per Monthly Active User (MAU)
- Starting price
- $35/mo (B2C) / Custom (B2B)
- Free tier
- Free for up to 7,500 active users
- Self-hosting
- Not available
Pros
- Most comprehensive enterprise identity and SAML/SSO federation
- Battle-tested compliance: SOC2, HIPAA, ISO27001
- Extensive rule and action scripting engine
Cons
- Enterprise B2B add-ons (Enterprise SSO, custom domain) are extremely costly
- Complex legacy UI and slow dashboard navigation
- Pricing scales aggressively as user base expands
Kinde
Per MAU tier plus enterprise features
- Starting price
- $25/mo (Pro)
- Free tier
- Free up to 10,500 MAU
- Self-hosting
- Not available
Pros
- Fast setup with prebuilt sign-in, sign-up and billing flows
- B2B organisations, roles and permissions on standard plans
- Generous free MAU allowance for early products
Cons
- Closed source with no self-hosting option
- Advanced enterprise SSO and audit features cost extra
- Newer ecosystem with fewer integrations than Auth0
Clerk alternatives: FAQ
Why do teams look for Clerk alternatives?
The most common reasons are: closed source; tightly coupled to modern React/frontend stacks; self-hosting is not available; pricing is tied to MAU, so products with many dormant sign-ins keep paying for users who never return.
What is the best open-source alternative to Clerk?
Keycloak is the most-starred open-source option in this directory (24k GitHub stars). Complete enterprise SSO, LDAP/Active Directory sync, Kerberos, OpenID Connect.
Can I self-host a Clerk alternative?
Keycloak: High (Java/Quarkus container, DB setup). SuperTokens: Medium (Docker with Postgres).
Is there a free alternative to Clerk?
Keycloak: Unlimited users, unlimited realms, 100% free. SuperTokens: Free self-hosted; Cloud free up to 5,000 MAU. Okta Auth0: Free for up to 7,500 active users. Kinde: Free up to 10,500 MAU.