head to head · open source
Authentik vs Authgear
Authentik has 25,600 GitHub stars, 2,019 forks, 1,074 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Authgear has 2,054 stars, 124 forks, 368 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Authentik leads on adoption by 1,146% (25,600 vs 2,054 stars). Authentik is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; Authgear is written in Go under Apache-2.0. Authentik has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, Authgear 6%. Authentik was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 2 topic tags (authentication, oauth2), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| Authentik | Authgear | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 26K | ★ 2.1K |
| License | Custom / other | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.0K | ⑂ 124 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Authentik if
- You weight community size — 26K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Authgear if
- You want the Authgear feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and Authgear fits your workflow better
About Authentik
Authentik is an open source Identity Provider (IdP) built for modern single sign on (SSO) workflows. It operates in the identity and access management (IAM) ecosystem, offering a self hosted alternative to commercial solutions like Auth0, Okta, and Entra ID. The project is written in Python and distributed under a mixed MIT/CC BY SA/enterprise license model, with a core open source offering and an enterprise tier for advanced features and support.
read the full Authentik overview →
About Authgear
Authgear is open source identity and access management platform. It is managed identity platform for any app. It is open source Auth0, Clerk, Firebase Auth alternative. It is written in Go, licensed Apache 2.0, and lives in identity and access management ecosystem.
read the full Authgear overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Authentik or Authgear more popular?
Authentik has 25,600 GitHub stars and Authgear has 2,054. Authentik has the larger community by that measure.
Are Authentik and Authgear free?
Both are open source. Authentik has no licence declared in this registry, and Authgear is licensed under Apache-2.0. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Authentik and Authgear?
Authentik is written in Python and Authgear in Go. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Authentik or Authgear?
Choose Authentik if you want the larger community (25,600 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Authgear if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.