Ory Hydra vs privacyIDEA
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?
Ory Hydra
Certified OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect server
VS
privacyIDEA
Self-hosted two-factor authentication management
| Feature | Ory Hydra | privacyIDEA |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, binary | docker, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 17,462 | ★ 1,751 |
| First released | 2015 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Okta, Auth0 | Duo Security, RSA SecurID |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Ory Hydra or privacyIDEA better?
Neither is universally better. Ory Hydra has the larger community, while privacyIDEA is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Ory Hydra and privacyIDEA free and open-source?
Yes. Ory Hydra is licensed under Apache-2.0 and privacyIDEA under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ory Hydra and privacyIDEA with Docker?
Ory Hydra: yes. privacyIDEA: yes.