Authgear vs Authorizer
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Authgear
Open-source authentication and user management server
VS
Authorizer
Open-source auth solution with a ready-made UI
| Feature | Authgear | Authorizer |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 86 · Excellent | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,061 | ★ 2,005 |
| First released | 2021 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Auth0, Firebase Auth | Auth0, Firebase Authentication |
What are Authgear and Authorizer?
Authgear
Authgear is an open-source authentication-as-a-service platform supporting passwordless login, social login, and multi-factor authentication. It is self-hosted to provide identity for web and mobile apps.
- Passwordless and social login
- Built-in MFA
- User management dashboard
- OIDC compliant
Authorizer
Authorizer is a self-hosted authentication and authorization service that provides social login, email and OTP login, and roles through a GraphQL API. It ships with prebuilt login pages and SDKs.
- Social and email login
- GraphQL auth API
- Prebuilt login UI
- Role-based access control
Authgear vs Authorizer: key differences
Both projects are written in Go. Authorizer is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Authgear.
Why pick each one
Choose Authgear if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Active community (2.1k GitHub stars)
Choose Authorizer if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2k GitHub stars)
Frequently asked questions
Is Authgear or Authorizer better?
Neither is universally better. Authgear has the larger community, while Authorizer is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Authgear and Authorizer free and open-source?
Yes. Authgear is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Authorizer under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Authgear and Authorizer with Docker?
Authgear: yes. Authorizer: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Authgear or Authorizer?
Authorizer has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Authgear. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.