head to head · open source
Keycloak vs Better Auth
Keycloak has 36,832 GitHub stars, 8,941 forks, 3,292 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Better Auth has 29,988 stars, 2,894 forks, 723 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Keycloak leads on adoption by 23% (36,832 vs 29,988 stars). Keycloak is written in Java under Apache-2.0; Better Auth is written in TypeScript under MIT. Keycloak has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, Better Auth 10%. Keycloak was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (oidc), 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
| Keycloak | Better Auth | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 30K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Java | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 8.9K | ⑂ 2.9K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Keycloak if
- You weight community size — 37K stars and counting
- You want the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Java
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Better Auth if
- You want the Better Auth feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and Better Auth fits your workflow better
About Keycloak
Keycloak is an open source identity and access management server, written in Java and licensed under Apache 2.0, that adds authentication and access control to applications and services, and it is intended for teams and organisations that want to own their user store rather than rent one.
read the full Keycloak overview →
About Better Auth
Better Auth is a framework agnostic authentication and authorization framework written in TypeScript. It targets the broader JavaScript/TypeScript ecosystem and is designed to integrate with any backend or frontend framework, including Next.js, Express, SvelteKit, and others. It provides a unified API surface for core identity workflows such as sign up, sign in, session management, and passwordless flows.
read the full Better Auth overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or Better Auth more popular?
Keycloak has 36,832 GitHub stars and Better Auth has 29,988. Keycloak has the larger community by that measure.
Are Keycloak and Better Auth free?
Both are open source. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Better Auth under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Keycloak and Better Auth?
Keycloak is written in Java and Better Auth in TypeScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, Keycloak or Better Auth?
Choose Keycloak if you want the larger community (36,832 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Better Auth if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.