Comparison

Descope vs Keycloak

On the evidence we track, Descope leads this comparison with a composite score of 85/100. 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.
★Descope85
Keycloak65
Score
vioscaleAI score
Descope85 / 100medium · 71%
Keycloak65 / 100low · 46%
Pricing
Free tier
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Model
Descopefreemium
Keycloakopen_source
Price level
Descopelow
Keycloakfree
Transparent
Descope✗
Keycloak✓
Integrations
Count
Descope50
Keycloak8
Security
Disclosure policy
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Fedramp
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Gdpr
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Hipaa
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Iso27001
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Pci
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Scorecard
Descope–
Keycloak9.3
Soc2
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Reliability
Sla pct
Descope99.99
Keycloak–
Status page
Descope✓
Keycloak–
Adoption
Dependent repos
Descope–
Keycloak678
Github stars
Descope–
Keycloak37,140
Package downloads weekly
Descope–
Keycloak998,112
Activity
Commits last 30d
Descope–
Keycloak100
Release
Cadence days
Descope–
Keycloak13
History
Descope–
Keycloak20 items
License
Spdx
Descope–
KeycloakApache-2.0
Language
Primary
Descope–
KeycloakJava
Content
Faq
Descope7 items
Keycloak6 items

Capabilities

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

Deployment
Hosting
DescopeCloud only
KeycloakCloud + self-hosted
Methods
Social login
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Passwordless
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Passkeys / WebAuthn
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Multi-factor auth
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Enterprise
SAML SSO
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
SCIM provisioning
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
B2B / multi-tenancy
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Standards
OpenID Connect provider
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Delivery
Hosted UI
DescopeBoth
KeycloakBoth
Access
RBAC
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Licensing
Self-hostable OSS core
Descope✗
Keycloak✓

What each one is

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

Descope

Leader

A managed identity and access management service that enables businesses to build and customize authentication journeys across applications. Supports passwordless authentication, multi-tenant configurations, role-based access control, and integration with external identity providers.

Independently observed

Keycloak

An open-source identity management solution that allows users to authenticate once and gain access to multiple applications, eliminating the need for individual login handling at the application level.

Independently observed

Pricing

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

Descope

Leader
HybridFree tier

Usage-based pricing with Monthly Active Consents (MAC), Monthly Active Tokens (MATK), and M2M Exchanges. Free tier available.

  • Free ForeverFree
  • Pro-
as of verify ↗

Keycloak

Open source
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

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

Platforms
Web
Descope✓
Keycloak✗
Windows
Descope✗
Keycloak✓
Linux
Descope✗
Keycloak✓
CLI
Descope✗
Keycloak✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
Descope✓
Keycloak✓
Self-hosted
Descope✗
Keycloak✓

Integrations

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

In common (2)
  • Facebook
  • OpenID Connect

Descope

Leader
23 total - 21 not shared
  • Vercel
  • OpenAI
  • Google Calendar
  • MCP servers
  • Email/SMS platforms
  • CRM platforms
  • CDP platforms
  • Audit solutions
  • Fraud detection systems
  • SAML
  • Fingerprint
  • Sardine
  • Forter
  • Incode
  • Amazon Rekognition
  • Cloudflare
  • reCAPTCHA
  • Turnstile
  • AbuseIPDB
  • Box
  • Vercel AI SDK
Independently observed

Keycloak

12 total - 10 not shared
  • GitHub
  • Google
  • Twitter
  • LDAP
  • Active Directory
  • Kerberos
  • Kubernetes
  • Apache APISIX
  • OpenTelemetry
  • SAML 2.0
Independently observed
Still deciding?

Descope or Keycloak: 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.