Hanko vs Pocket ID
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?
Hanko
Passkey-first authentication for modern applications
VS
Pocket ID
Simple OIDC provider that uses only passkeys
| Feature | Hanko | Pocket ID |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 9,002 | ★ 8,737 |
| First released | 2022 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Auth0, Clerk | Auth0, Authelia |
Why pick each one
Choose Hanko if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 9k GitHub stars
- Written in Go
Choose Pocket ID if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 8.7k GitHub stars
Frequently asked questions
Is Hanko or Pocket ID better?
Neither is universally better. Hanko has the larger community, while Pocket ID is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Hanko and Pocket ID free and open-source?
Yes. Hanko is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Pocket ID under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hanko and Pocket ID with Docker?
Hanko: yes. Pocket ID: yes.