Best Self-Hosted WorkOS Alternatives in 2026
WorkOS is an identity platform for enterprise SSO, directory sync, and user management that integrates with any auth provider. Free tier available; paid plans start at $125/mo.
13 Self-Hosted Alternatives to WorkOS
KeyCloak
33KOpen source identity and access management. Add authentication to applications and secure services with minimum effort.
Better Auth
27KTypeScript-first authentication framework with 50+ plugins covering passkeys, multi-tenancy, SSO, and MFA — configured in a single auth.ts file.
Authentik
21KAuthentik is a self-hosted authentication & SSO tool with support for Authentication, Identity Management, security.
ORY
17KOry is a certified and battle-tested identity solution backed by a large open source community and trusted by Fortune 500 companies
Supertokens
15KOpen Source User Authentication. Build fast, maintain control, with reasonable pricing
Zitadel
13KZitadel handles provides a comprehensive identity management solution as a self-hosted solution.
Hanko
8.9KHanko lets you run streamline user authentication entirely on your own server.
Stack Auth
6.7KStack Auth gives you provides secure authentication, authorization, and user management for developers in just 5 minutes on your own infrastructure.
Permify
5.8KPermify is a self-hosted cybersecurity tools tool that provides authorization service for implementing fine-grained access controls. Centralized.
Cerbos
4.3KCerbos is a self-hosted authentication & SSO replacement for AWS Cognito, Auth0, and more.
BoxyHQ
2.2KBoxyHQ lets you run SSO service supporting SAML and OpenID Connect entirely on your own server.
Authgear
1.5KAuthgear gives you managed authentication platform on your own infrastructure.
Tesseral
1.1KReleased under MIT, Tesseral provides complete B2B authentication solution on self-hosted infrastructure.
Why Look for WorkOS Alternatives?
WorkOS is an identity platform for enterprise SSO, directory sync, and user management that integrates with any auth provider. Free tier available; paid plans start at $125/mo.
Pricing
Here’s what WorkOS charges for its plans:
Estimate your costs --- Free
- Up to 1 million usersFree
- Per additional 1M users$2,500 / mo
- 1-15$125 / ea
- 16-3020% off$100 / ea
- 31-5036% off$80 / ea
- 51-10048% off$65 / ea
Pricing --- Free
- Up to 1 million usersFree
- Per additional 1M users$2,500 / mo
Self-hosted alternatives eliminate these recurring costs entirely. You pay only for your own infrastructure.
13 Best Open-Source Alternatives to WorkOS
Hanko
Secure, scalable, and customizable authentication solution for developers. — 8,868 GitHub stars. Licensed under Open Source.
Better Auth
A comprehensive authentication framework offering email/password, social sign-on, two-factor auth, and multi-tenant support with full TypeScript integration. — 27,214 GitHub stars. Licensed under MIT.
KeyCloak
Secure applications with minimal effort. — 33,366 GitHub stars. Licensed under Apache-2.0.
Authentik
Open-source Identity Provider with flexibility. — 20,524 GitHub stars. Licensed under Custom.
Supertokens
Build fast. Maintain control. Save budget. — 14,966 GitHub stars. Licensed under Open Source.
Zitadel
Streamline app development with our identity suite. — 13,266 GitHub stars. Licensed under AGPL-3.0.
ORY
Ory: Modular IAM with unmatched UX. — 16,997 GitHub stars. Licensed under Apache-2.0.
Stack Auth
Stack Auth provides secure authentication, authorization, and user management for developers in just 5 minutes. — 6,737 GitHub stars. Licensed under Open Source.
Permify
Open-source authorization service for implementing fine-grained access controls. Centralized, scalable solution supporting RBAC, ABAC and ReBAC with Google Zanzibar-inspired architecture. — 5,830 GitHub stars. Licensed under AGPL-3.0.
Cerbos
Externalized, policy-based, runtime authorization for your applications. — 4,263 GitHub stars. Licensed under Apache-2.0.
Authgear
Turnkey solution for consumer authentication needs — 1,518 GitHub stars. Licensed under Apache-2.0.
Tesseral
Complete B2B authentication solution with SSO, role management, API security, and pre-built UI components. Ship enterprise-grade auth in just a few lines of code. — 1,116 GitHub stars. Licensed under MIT.
BoxyHQ
SSO service supporting SAML and OpenID Connect. — 2,216 GitHub stars. Licensed under Apache-2.0.
Why Self-Host Instead of WorkOS?
- Data ownership. Your data stays on your server, not on WorkOS’s infrastructure.
- Predictable costs. Pay a fixed VPS cost instead of growing per-user or per-usage fees.
- No vendor lock-in. Export and migrate your data anytime. You control the database.
- GDPR and compliance. Hosting your own tools simplifies data residency and compliance requirements.
How much can you save?
WorkOS (SSO)
$125/mo
Billed monthly
$1,500/year
KeyCloak (self-hosted)
$10/mo
VPS hosting only. $0 per-user fees.
$320 year 1 (incl. $200 setup)
Your annual savings
$1,180
Year 1 (after setup cost). Year 2+: $1,380/year (92% less).
That's $115 saved every month.
KeyCloak runs on a $10/mo VPS with unlimited users. Setup by upready.dev starts at $200 (one-time). WorkOS pricing as of March 2026.
Why teams switch from WorkOS
- → Data ownership. Your data stays on your server -- not on WorkOS's infrastructure.
- → Predictable costs. Pay a fixed VPS cost instead of growing per-user or per-usage fees.
- → No vendor lock-in. Export and migrate your data anytime. You control the database.
- → GDPR and compliance. Hosting your own tools simplifies data residency and compliance requirements.
Head-to-Head Comparisons
Both are developer tools tools. Appwrite has 2 unique features, BoxyHQ has 6.
Both are security tools. Authelia has 4 unique features, Ory has 2.
Both are security tools. Authelia has 3 unique features, Authentik has 1.
Both are security tools. Authelia has 4 unique features, ORY has 2.
Both are security tools. Authentik has 2 unique features, Casdoor has 2.
Keycloak for enterprise environments that need Java ecosystem compatibility and battle-tested production reliability. Authentik for modern self-hosters who want an easier setup with a beautiful UI and proxy-based authentication.
Both are security tools. Authentik has 4 unique features, Vaultwarden has 4.
Both are security tools. Casdoor has 2 unique features, ORY has 2.
Both are security tools. Hanko has 3 unique features, Vaultwarden has 3.
Both are security tools. Infisical Community Edition has 7 unique features, Ory has 1.
Both are security tools. Infisical Community Edition has 7 unique features, ORY has 1.
Both are security tools. Logto has 3 unique features, Supertokens has 0.
Both are security tools. Ory has 0 unique features, Teleport has 2.
Both are security tools. ORY has 0 unique features, Teleport has 2.
Both are security tools. ORY has 4 unique features, Vaultwarden has 4.
Both are security tools. Supertokens has 5 unique features, Vaultwarden has 3.
Both are security tools. Vaultwarden has 2 unique features, Zitadel has 12.
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