Keycloak vs SuperTokens
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Keycloak
Open-source identity and access management for modern apps
VS
SuperTokens
Open-source user authentication you can self-host
| Feature | Keycloak | SuperTokens |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 99 · Excellent | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Java | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, bare-metal | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 36,967 | ★ 15,320 |
| First released | 2014 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Okta, Auth0, Microsoft Entra ID | Auth0, Firebase Auth |
What are Keycloak and SuperTokens?
Keycloak
Keycloak is an enterprise-grade identity and access management solution backed by Red Hat. It provides single sign-on, identity brokering, social login and fine-grained authorization for applications and services.
- SSO with OpenID Connect and SAML 2.0
- Identity brokering and social login
- User federation with LDAP and Active Directory
- Fine-grained authorization services
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
Keycloak vs SuperTokens: key differences
Both projects are written in Java. SuperTokens is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Keycloak. Keycloak is the more established project (first released 2014), while SuperTokens arrived in 2020. Keycloak has the considerably larger community, at 36,967 GitHub stars versus 15,320.
Why pick each one
Choose Keycloak if…
- Mature and battle-tested
- Strong enterprise feature set
Watch out for
- Steep learning curve
- Resource intensive
Choose SuperTokens if…
- Easy framework integration
- Good free self-hosted tier
Watch out for
- Some advanced features are paid
Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or SuperTokens better?
Neither is universally better. Keycloak has the larger community, while SuperTokens is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Keycloak and SuperTokens free and open-source?
Yes. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and SuperTokens under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Keycloak and SuperTokens with Docker?
Keycloak: yes. SuperTokens: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Keycloak or SuperTokens?
SuperTokens has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Keycloak. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.