Dex vs Ipsilon
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Dex | Ipsilon |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, binary | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 11,120 | ★ 80 |
| First released | 2016 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Okta, Auth0 | Okta, PingFederate |
What are Dex and Ipsilon?
Dex
Dex is an identity service that uses OpenID Connect to drive authentication for other applications. It acts as a portal to other identity providers through connectors such as LDAP, SAML and GitHub.
- OIDC federation broker
- Connectors for LDAP, SAML and GitHub
- Popular in Kubernetes environments
- Lightweight and stateless
Ipsilon
Ipsilon is an identity provider service that supports SAML and OpenID for federated single sign-on. It plugs into existing authentication backends like FreeIPA to centralize login for web applications.
- SAML identity provider
- OpenID support
- FreeIPA integration
- Pluggable backends
Dex vs Ipsilon: key differences
Dex is written in Go, while Ipsilon is built with Python. Licensing differs — Apache-2.0 for Dex versus GPL-3.0 for Ipsilon. Dex is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Ipsilon. Ipsilon is the more established project (first released 2014), while Dex arrived in 2016. Dex has the considerably larger community, at 11,120 GitHub stars versus 80. Dex lists first-class Docker deployment; Ipsilon does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Dex if…
- Great Kubernetes integration
- Simple and reliable
Watch out for
- No user management of its own
Choose Ipsilon if…
- Good FreeIPA companion
- Federation focused
Watch out for
- Small community
- Limited recent activity
Frequently asked questions
Is Dex or Ipsilon better?
Dex is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Ipsilon if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Dex and Ipsilon free and open-source?
Yes. Dex is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Ipsilon under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Dex and Ipsilon with Docker?
Dex: yes. Ipsilon: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Dex or Ipsilon?
Dex has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Ipsilon. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.