Hello Identity Coop vs SuperTokens
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Hello Identity Coop | SuperTokens |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 69 · Good | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 7 | ★ 15,320 |
| First released | 2022 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Auth0, Firebase Auth | Auth0, Firebase Auth |
What are Hello Identity Coop and SuperTokens?
Hello Identity Coop
Hello is an open-source identity and login service that lets users authenticate with email, phone or social providers without passwords. The wallet and broker components can be self-hosted.
- Passwordless login flows
- Email, phone and social providers
- Standard OpenID Connect
- Developer SDKs and integrations
SuperTokens
SuperTokens is an open-source authentication solution that handles login, sessions, social login and more. It can be self-hosted and offers SDKs and prebuilt UI components for rapid integration.
- Email/password and passwordless login
- Social and enterprise SSO
- Secure session management
- Prebuilt frontend components
Hello Identity Coop vs SuperTokens: key differences
Hello Identity Coop is written in TypeScript, while SuperTokens is built with Java. Licensing differs — MIT for Hello Identity Coop versus Apache-2.0 for SuperTokens. Hello Identity Coop is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for SuperTokens. SuperTokens is the more established project (first released 2020), while Hello Identity Coop arrived in 2022. SuperTokens has the considerably larger community, at 15,320 GitHub stars versus 7.
Why pick each one
Choose Hello Identity Coop if…
- Simple passwordless onboarding
- Open standards
Watch out for
- Younger project
Choose SuperTokens if…
- Easy framework integration
- Good free self-hosted tier
Watch out for
- Some advanced features are paid
Frequently asked questions
Is Hello Identity Coop or SuperTokens better?
Neither is universally better. SuperTokens has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Hello Identity Coop and SuperTokens free and open-source?
Yes. Hello Identity Coop is licensed under MIT and SuperTokens under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hello Identity Coop and SuperTokens with Docker?
Hello Identity Coop: yes. SuperTokens: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Hello Identity Coop or SuperTokens?
Hello Identity Coop has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for SuperTokens. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.