Comparison

AWS Cognito vs Better Auth

On the evidence we track, AWS Cognito leads this comparison with a composite score of 81/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Machine formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.
★AWS Cognito81
Better Auth64
Score
vioscaleAI score
AWS Cognito81 / 100medium · 73%
Better Auth64 / 100low · 39%
Pricing
Free tier
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Model
AWS Cognitofreemium
Better Authfreemium
Price level
AWS Cognitolow
Better Authmid
Starting price
AWS Cognito$0.02
Better Auth$20
Transparent
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Integrations
Count
AWS Cognito8
Better Auth4
Security
Disclosure policy
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Fedramp
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Gdpr
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Hipaa
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Iso27001
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Pci
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Soc2
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Reliability
Status page
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth–
Adoption
Dependent repos
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth210
Github stars
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth30,292
Package downloads weekly
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth11,857,147
Activity
Commits last 30d
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth100
Release
Cadence days
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth2
History
AWS Cognito–
Better Auth20 items
License
Spdx
AWS Cognito–
Better AuthMIT
Language
Primary
AWS Cognito–
Better AuthTypeScript
Market
Content
Faq
AWS Cognito6 items
Better Auth7 items

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for auth & identity software. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Deployment
Hosting
AWS CognitoCloud only
Better AuthCloud + self-hosted
Methods
Social login
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Passwordless
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Passkeys / WebAuthn
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Multi-factor auth
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Enterprise
SAML SSO
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
SCIM provisioning
AWS Cognito-
Better Auth✓
B2B / multi-tenancy
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Standards
OpenID Connect provider
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Delivery
Hosted UI
AWS CognitoBoth
Better AuthHeadless
Access
RBAC
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Licensing
Self-hostable OSS core
AWS Cognito✗
Better Auth✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

AWS Cognito

Leader

Manages authentication and access control through identity federation, social provider integration, passwordless authentication methods, and multi-factor authentication capabilities. Supports both hosted login interfaces and API-driven custom implementations.

Independently observed

Better Auth

An open-source authentication framework that provides multiple authentication methods including social login, passkeys, passwordless auth, and enterprise features like SSO and directory sync, with optional managed cloud infrastructure for auditing and security monitoring.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

AWS Cognito

Leader
from $0.02/MAUUsage-basedFree tier

Free tier with 10,000 MAU/month. Usage-based pricing from $0.015–$0.020 per MAU

  • LiteFree
    • User registration
    • Password-based authentication
    • Social identity federation
    • SAML/OIDC provider support
  • EssentialsFree
    • All Lite features
    • Managed Login interface
    • Passwordless authentication
    • Passkeys support
    • Email/SMS OTP
  • Plus$0.020 per MAU
    • All Essentials features
    • Risk-based adaptive authentication
    • Compromised credentials detection
    • Authentication event export
as of verify ↗

Better Auth

from $20/moHybridFree tier

Free tier available. Pro from $20/month. Enterprise custom pricing.

  • StarterFree
    • User management
    • Audit log
    • Security detection
    • Abuse protection
    • Email templates
    • +1 more
  • Pro$20/month base, plus per-usage overages
    • Unlimited seats
    • User management
    • Audit log with overage
    • Security detection with overage
    • Transactional Email & SMS
    • +5 more
  • EnterpriseContact sales
    • Custom usage and retention
    • Custom domain for Dashboard
    • Log drain
    • Dashboard RBAC
    • Custom MSA and DPA
    • +2 more
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Web
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
iOS
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✗
Android
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✗
CLI
AWS Cognito✗
Better Auth✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
AWS Cognito✓
Better Auth✓
Self-hosted
AWS Cognito✗
Better Auth✓

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

In common (2)
  • Apple
  • Google

AWS Cognito

Leader
12 total - 10 not shared
  • Facebook
  • Amazon
  • SAML
  • OIDC
  • AWS Lambda
  • AWS Amplify
  • AWS AppSync
  • AWS Verified Permissions
  • AWS CloudTrail
  • AWS CloudWatch
Independently observed

Better Auth

24 total - 22 not shared
  • Next.js
  • Nuxt
  • SvelteKit
  • Astro
  • Hono
  • GitHub
  • Discord
  • Passkey Authentication
  • Magic Link Authentication
  • Email OTP Authentication
  • Two Factor Authentication
  • Username Authentication
  • One Tap Authentication
  • Phone Number Authentication
  • Anonymous Authentication
  • Bearer Authentication
  • Generic OAuth
  • One Time Token Authentication
  • SIWE Authentication
  • Cloudflare
  • Microsoft Entra ID
  • Yandex
Independently observed
Still deciding?

AWS Cognito or Better Auth: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.