# Authentik vs Clerk

**Leader by vioscaleAI score:** Clerk

| Attribute | Authentik | Clerk |
|---|---|---|
| **vioscaleAI score** | 46.2 (69% (medium)) | 71.4 (71% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 100 | - |
| adoption.dependent_repos | 0 | - |
| adoption.github_stars | 25,816 | - |
| content.faq | `[{"answer":"authentik is an open-source Identity Provider that consolidates authentication and identity management into one self-hosted platform, supporting standard protocols like OAuth2/OIDC, SAML, LDAP, and RADIUS for modern SSO deployments. It is indexed under Auth & Identity Software.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","question":"What is Authentik?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Authentik offers a free tier, so you can start without paying. Paid plans are also available: Open Source, Enterprise and Enterprise Plus. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","question":"Is Authentik free?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Authentik supports the web, Windows, macOS, Linux and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","question":"What platforms does Authentik support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Yes. Authentik can be deployed on-premise and self-hosted, so it does not have to run on the vendor's infrastructure.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","question":"Can Authentik be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 13 integrations for Authentik, including OAuth2, OpenID Connect, SAML2, LDAP, RADIUS, SCIM, WS-Federation and Microsoft Entra ID, plus 5 more. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","question":"What does Authentik integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed HIPAA and GDPR for Authentik. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Authentik not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/blog/authors/security/","question":"What security certifications does Authentik have?","confidence":0.7},{"answer":"Authentik is available worldwide. The vendor is headquartered in the United States.","source":"https://goauthentik.io/blog/2025-02-04-open-source-rac-and-pricing-support-updates/","question":"Where is Authentik available?","confidence":0.75}]` | `[{"answer":"A unified platform providing authentication, user profile management, and billing integration through pre-built components and APIs, enabling developers to implement secure user systems without building them from scratch. It is indexed under Auth & Identity Software.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"What is Clerk?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Clerk is a paid product; published pricing starts at $12 per user per month. There is no free tier. Prices are published openly on the vendor's own pricing page. Pricing changes often, so verify at source before relying on it.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"How much does Clerk cost?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"Clerk supports the web, iOS, Android and a command-line interface. Platforms we have not confirmed are simply not listed here rather than ruled out.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"What platforms does Clerk support?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have only confirmed a cloud / SaaS deployment for Clerk, so it appears to be vendor-hosted. If a self-hosted option exists we have not found it documented publicly.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"Can Clerk be self-hosted?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have confirmed 5 integrations for Clerk, including Google OAuth, GitHub OAuth, Google Workspace, Convex and MCP. This is what we could verify from public sources, so the vendor may support others we have not indexed.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"What does Clerk integrate with?","confidence":0.6},{"answer":"We have independently confirmed SOC 2, HIPAA and GDPR for Clerk. Certifications we do not list are ones we have not been able to verify from public sources, which is not the same as Clerk not holding them. Always confirm compliance directly before you rely on it.","source":"https://clerk.com/components/pricing-table","question":"What security certifications does Clerk have?","confidence":0.6}]` |
| deployment.options | `{"self_hosted":true}` | `{"cloud":true}` |
| description.long | authentik is an open-source Identity Provider that consolidates authentication and identity management into one self-hosted platform, supporting standard protocols like OAuth2/OIDC, SAML, LDAP, and RADIUS for modern SSO deployments. | Provides embeddable components and APIs for adding authentication, profile management, organizations, and subscription billing to applications. Supports enterprise features like SAML, SCIM provisioning, and multi-tenancy. |
| features.capabilities | `{"mfa":true,"oidc":true,"rbac":true,"hosting":"both","saml_sso":true,"hosted_ui":"hosted","open_source":true,"passwordless":true,"social_login":true,"b2b_multi_tenant":true,"passkeys_webauthn":true,"scim_provisioning":true}` | `{"mfa":true,"oidc":true,"rbac":true,"hosting":"cloud","saml_sso":true,"hosted_ui":"both","open_source":true,"passwordless":true,"social_login":true,"b2b_multi_tenant":true,"passkeys_webauthn":true,"scim_provisioning":true}` |
| integrations.count | 10 | 7 |
| integrations.list | `[{"name":"OAuth2"},{"name":"OpenID Connect"},{"name":"SAML2"},{"name":"LDAP"},{"name":"RADIUS"},{"name":"SCIM"},{"name":"WS-Federation"},{"name":"Microsoft Entra ID"},{"name":"Google Workspace"},{"name":"Shared Signals Framework (SSF)"},{"name":"Chrome Enterprise Device Trust","native":true},{"name":"Fleet","native":true},{"name":"Kerberos","native":true},{"name":"SAML","native":true},{"name":"OAuth2/OIDC","native":true},{"name":"Apple Business Manager","native":true,"category":"device","direction":"outbound"},{"name":"Google Chrome","native":true,"category":"device","direction":"inbound"}]` | `[{"name":"Google OAuth"},{"name":"GitHub OAuth"},{"name":"Google Workspace"},{"name":"Convex"},{"name":"MCP"},{"name":"Stripe","native":true,"category":"payments","direction":"bidirectional"},{"name":"Okta Workforce","native":true,"category":"sso","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Microsoft Entra ID","native":true,"category":"sso","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Google","native":true,"category":"social_login","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"GitHub","native":true,"category":"social_login","direction":"inbound"},{"name":"Facebook","native":true,"category":"social_login","direction":"inbound"}]` |
| language.primary | Python | - |
| market.availability | `{"hqCountry":"US","primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"web":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` | `{"cli":true,"ios":true,"web":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"hybrid","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Open Source","features":["OIDC, SAML, LDAP, SCIM, RADIUS, Proxy support","OpenID Certified for OpenID Connect","Web-based RDP/SSH access","B2B and B2C use cases","Community Discord support"],"contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","features":["Google Workspace integration","Microsoft Entra ID integration","Embed external OAuth/SAML sources","Chrome Enterprise Device Trust connector","Shared Signals Framework support","Password history compliance checks","Enhanced audit logging","Client certificate authentication","OAuth2 authentication in SCIM","Radius EAP-TLS","Exportable CSV reports","Windows local device login","Advanced device compliance","Ticket-based support"],"contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise Plus","features":["Invoice-based billing","Dedicated, customized support and SLAs","Volume discounts","Support for multi-instance deployments","FIPS compliance for FedRAMP"],"contactSales":true}],"freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://goauthentik.io/pricing/","retrievedAt":"2026-09-07T08:33:10.430Z"}` | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Free","summary":"Free, up to 50K MRU","features":["Social authentication (Google, GitHub, Facebook)","Email/password authentication","Magic links","Organizations","Multifactor authentication","Basic billing features"],"description":"Up to 50,000 monthly retained users","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"mru":"50000/mo"}},{"free":false,"name":"Pro","summary":"$20/mo billed annually (includes 50K MRU + 1 enterprise connection)","features":["50K monthly retained users included","1 enterprise SSO connection included","Custom session lifetime","Clerk branding removal","Directory sync","Team dashboard","API keys","Events stream","Premium support SLA","99.99% Uptime SLA"],"components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":20,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For growing applications","contactSales":false,"includedLimits":{"mru":"50000/mo","enterprise_sso_connections":"1"}}],"addOns":[{"name":"Additional Monthly Retained Users","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"mru"},"kind":"metered","amount":0.02,"currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"Additional Enterprise SSO Connection","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":75,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"Directory Sync","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":75,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"MFA Connection","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":10,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"SMS Authentication","components":[{"per":{"qty":1,"unit":"sms"},"kind":"metered","amount":0.01,"currency":"USD"}]},{"name":"Clerk Billing with Stripe","components":[{"of":"transaction","kind":"percentage","plus":{"amount":0.3,"currency":"USD"},"rate":2.9},{"of":"billing_volume","kind":"percentage","rate":0.7}]}],"summary":"Free up to 50K MRU. Pro from $20/mo billed annually (includes 50K MRU + 1 enterprise connection). Add-ons available.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://clerk.com/pricing","retrievedAt":"2026-10-05T12:35:42.526Z","startingPrice":{"amount":20,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month","year"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | freemium | freemium |
| pricing.price_level | low | mid |
| pricing.starting_price | - | `{"amount":20,"currency":"USD"}` |
| pricing.transparent | no | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 6 | - |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.3","date":"2026-09-17T22:15:01Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.8.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.2","date":"2026-09-09T19:23:06Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.8.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.7","date":"2026-09-09T19:10:06Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.2.7","date":"2026-09-09T18:28:49Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.2.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.1","date":"2026-09-01T14:37:39Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.8.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0","date":"2026-08-18T22:04:25Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.8.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc7","date":"2026-08-10T22:16:59Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc7"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc6","date":"2026-08-03T22:43:11Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc6"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc5","date":"2026-08-03T20:14:23Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc5"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc4","date":"2026-08-03T18:59:58Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc4"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc3","date":"2026-08-03T17:49:08Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc3"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc2","date":"2026-08-03T16:34:28Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc2"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.8.0-rc1","date":"2026-08-03T15:04:52Z","type":"prerelease","version":"version/2026.8.0-rc1"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.6","date":"2026-07-22T14:52:57Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.5","date":"2026-07-15T17:15:23Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.2.6","date":"2026-07-15T17:14:01Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.2.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.4","date":"2026-07-08T01:29:03Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.2.5","date":"2026-07-07T16:56:46Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.2.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.3","date":"2026-06-10T18:33:55Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/goauthentik/authentik/releases/tag/version/2026.5.2","date":"2026-05-28T15:13:31Z","type":"stable","version":"version/2026.5.2"}]` | - |
| reliability.sla_pct | - | 99.99 |
| reliability.status_page | yes | yes |
| security.certifications | `[{"name":"OpenID Certified","status":"active"},{"name":"FIPS compliance","level":"Enterprise Plus","status":"active"}]` | `[{"name":"SOC 2 Type II","level":"Type II","status":"active"}]` |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | yes |
| security.fedramp | yes | - |
| security.gdpr | yes | yes |
| security.hipaa | yes | yes |
| security.soc2 | - | yes |
| security.trust_center | https://goauthentik.io/blog/authors/security/ | - |
| security.vulnerabilities | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=%40goauthentik%2Foxfmt-config&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` | - |

## Capabilities (Auth & Identity Software)

| Capability | Authentik | Clerk |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Hosting | Cloud + self-hosted | Cloud only |
| **Methods** |  |  |
| Social login | ✓ | ✓ |
| Passwordless | ✓ | ✓ |
| Passkeys / WebAuthn | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multi-factor auth | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Enterprise** |  |  |
| SAML SSO | ✓ | ✓ |
| SCIM provisioning | ✓ | ✓ |
| B2B / multi-tenancy | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Standards** |  |  |
| OpenID Connect provider | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Delivery** |  |  |
| Hosted UI | Hosted | Both |
| **Access** |  |  |
| RBAC | ✓ | ✓ |
| **Licensing** |  |  |
| Self-hostable OSS core | ✓ | ✓ |

*Source: vioscaleAI. Generated 2026-10-16T20:53:40.990Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*