Permify vs Topaz
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted identity & sso options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Permify | Topaz |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 90 · Excellent | 84 · Excellent |
| Category | Identity & SSO | Identity & SSO |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, kubernetes, binary | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,956 | ★ 1,361 |
| First released | 2022 | 2022 |
| Replaces | Auth0 FGA, OpenFGA | Auth0 FGA |
What are Permify and Topaz?
Permify
Permify is an open-source authorization service inspired by Google Zanzibar for building and managing fine-grained, scalable access control. It is self-hosted to centralize permission checks.
- Zanzibar-style model
- Centralized permissions
- Real-time consistency
- gRPC and REST APIs
Topaz
Topaz is an open-source authorization service that combines OPA policy evaluation with a relationship-based data model for fine-grained access control. It runs self-hosted as a sidecar or service.
- Combines RBAC and ReBAC
- OPA-based policies
- Local decision engine
- Sidecar deployment
Permify vs Topaz: key differences
Both projects are written in Go. Topaz is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Permify. Permify has the considerably larger community, at 5,956 GitHub stars versus 1,361.
Why pick each one
Choose Permify if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 6k GitHub stars
Choose Topaz if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (1.4k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is Permify or Topaz better?
Neither is universally better. Permify has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Permify and Topaz free and open-source?
Yes. Permify is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Topaz under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Permify and Topaz with Docker?
Permify: yes. Topaz: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Permify or Topaz?
Topaz has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Permify. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.