OpenLDAP vs Ory Hydra
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?
OpenLDAP
The classic open-source Lightweight Directory Access Protocol server
VS
Ory Hydra
Certified OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect server
| Feature | OpenLDAP | Ory Hydra |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | OLDAP-2.8 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | C | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, kubernetes, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 400 | ★ 17,462 |
| First released | 1998 | 2015 |
| Replaces | Active Directory | Okta, Auth0 |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is OpenLDAP or Ory Hydra better?
Neither is universally better. Ory Hydra has the larger community; both share a hard setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are OpenLDAP and Ory Hydra free and open-source?
Yes. OpenLDAP is licensed under OLDAP-2.8 and Ory Hydra under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run OpenLDAP and Ory Hydra with Docker?
OpenLDAP: yes. Ory Hydra: yes.