FusionAuth vs SAML Jackson
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
FusionAuth
Complete authentication and authorization platform
VS
SAML Jackson
SAML and OIDC SSO service bridging enterprise providers
| Feature | FusionAuth | SAML Jackson |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 70 · Good | 80 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Dockerfile | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 241 | ★ 2,266 |
| First released | 2018 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Auth0, Okta | Auth0, WorkOS |
What are FusionAuth and SAML Jackson?
FusionAuth
FusionAuth is a self-hostable customer identity and access management platform supporting OAuth, OIDC, SAML, MFA, and user management. The community edition runs free on your own infrastructure.
- OAuth, OIDC and SAML support
- Multi-factor authentication
- User and tenant management
- Themable login pages
SAML Jackson
BoxyHQ Jackson (SAML Jackson) is a self-hosted service that abstracts SAML and OIDC enterprise single sign-on behind a simple OAuth 2.0 API. It lets apps add enterprise SSO without per-provider code.
- SAML and OIDC abstraction
- OAuth 2.0 API
- Directory sync (SCIM)
- Self-hostable
FusionAuth vs SAML Jackson: key differences
FusionAuth is written in Dockerfile, while SAML Jackson is built with TypeScript. SAML Jackson is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for FusionAuth. FusionAuth is the more established project (first released 2018), while SAML Jackson arrived in 2022. SAML Jackson has the considerably larger community, at 2,266 GitHub stars versus 241.
Why pick each one
Choose FusionAuth if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Written in Dockerfile
Choose SAML Jackson if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in TypeScript
Frequently asked questions
Is FusionAuth or SAML Jackson better?
Neither is universally better. SAML Jackson has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are FusionAuth and SAML Jackson free and open-source?
Yes. FusionAuth is licensed under Apache-2.0 and SAML Jackson under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FusionAuth and SAML Jackson with Docker?
FusionAuth: yes. SAML Jackson: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, FusionAuth or SAML Jackson?
SAML Jackson has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for FusionAuth. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.