SHSelfHostIndex

FusionAuth vs OpenUnison

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

Not the right match-up?
FusionAuth Complete authentication and authorization platform VS OP OpenUnison Identity management and SSO portal for Kubernetes
FeatureFusionAuthOpenUnison
Deploy effortUnder-an-hour setupRead-the-docs project
Health score70 · Good67 · Good
CategoryIdentity & SSOIdentity & SSO
LicenseApache-2.0Apache-2.0
LanguageDockerfileLess
Setup difficultyMediumHard
Min. RAM1,024 MB1,024 MB
Deploymentdocker, kubernetes, bare-metalkubernetes, helm
GitHub stars★ 241★ 136
First released20182018
ReplacesAuth0, OktaOkta

What are FusionAuth and OpenUnison?

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

OpenUnison

OpenUnison is an open-source identity manager and single sign-on portal that integrates Kubernetes and applications with enterprise identity providers. It is self-hosted in the cluster.

  • Kubernetes SSO portal
  • Identity provisioning
  • LDAP and SAML integration
  • Self-service workflows

FusionAuth vs OpenUnison: key differences

FusionAuth is written in Dockerfile, while OpenUnison is built with Less. FusionAuth lists first-class Docker deployment; OpenUnison does not.

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
FusionAuth details

Choose OpenUnison if…

  • Released under the Apache-2.0 license
  • Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
  • Written in Less
OpenUnison details

Frequently asked questions

Is FusionAuth or OpenUnison better?

FusionAuth is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider OpenUnison if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are FusionAuth and OpenUnison free and open-source?

Yes. FusionAuth is licensed under Apache-2.0 and OpenUnison under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run FusionAuth and OpenUnison with Docker?

FusionAuth: yes. OpenUnison: check the project docs for container support.

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