Authgear vs Casdoor
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
Casdoor
UI-first identity and access management with SSO support
| Feature | Authgear | Casdoor |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 86 · Excellent | 94 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,065 | ★ 14,465 |
| First released | 2021 | 2021 |
| Replaces | Auth0, Firebase Auth | Auth0, Okta |
What are Authgear and Casdoor?
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
Casdoor
Casdoor is an open-source identity and access management platform with a strong focus on a friendly user interface. It supports OAuth2, OIDC, SAML, CAS, LDAP and many social login providers.
- Supports OAuth, SAML, CAS and LDAP
- Dozens of built-in social login providers
- Multi-tenant organization support
- Web-based admin and login UI
Authgear vs Casdoor: key differences
Both projects are written in Go. Casdoor is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Authgear. Casdoor has the considerably larger community, at 14,465 GitHub stars versus 2,065.
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 Casdoor if…
- Polished out-of-the-box UI
- Broad protocol support
Watch out for
- Documentation can be uneven
Frequently asked questions
Is Authgear or Casdoor better?
Casdoor is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Authgear if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Authgear and Casdoor free and open-source?
Yes. Authgear is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Casdoor under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Authgear and Casdoor with Docker?
Authgear: yes. Casdoor: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Authgear or Casdoor?
Casdoor 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.