Keywhiz vs OpenBao
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted apps from related categories — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Keywhiz
Secret management and distribution system
VS
OpenBao
Open-source secrets management forked from Vault
| Feature | Keywhiz | OpenBao |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Identity & SSO | Password Managers |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MPL-2.0 |
| Language | Java | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, source | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,625 | ★ 6,961 |
| First released | 2015 | 2024 |
| Replaces | HashiCorp Vault | AWS Secrets Manager, HashiCorp Vault |
Why pick each one
Choose Keywhiz if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2.6k GitHub stars)
- Written in Java
Frequently asked questions
Is Keywhiz or OpenBao better?
Neither is universally better. OpenBao has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Keywhiz and OpenBao free and open-source?
Yes. Keywhiz is licensed under Apache-2.0 and OpenBao under MPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Keywhiz and OpenBao with Docker?
Keywhiz: yes. OpenBao: yes.