Keycloak vs SimpleSAMLphp
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?
Keycloak
Open-source identity and access management for modern apps
VS
SimpleSAMLphp
PHP implementation of SAML and identity federation
| Feature | Keycloak | SimpleSAMLphp |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | LGPL-2.1 |
| Language | Java | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | bare-metal, source, docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 36,058 | ★ 1,139 |
| First released | 2014 | 2007 |
| Replaces | Okta, Auth0, Microsoft Entra ID | Okta, PingFederate |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or SimpleSAMLphp better?
Neither is universally better. Keycloak has the larger community, while SimpleSAMLphp is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Keycloak and SimpleSAMLphp free and open-source?
Yes. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and SimpleSAMLphp under LGPL-2.1. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Keycloak and SimpleSAMLphp with Docker?
Keycloak: yes. SimpleSAMLphp: yes.