head to head · open source
Keycloak vs oauth2-proxy
Keycloak has 36,859 GitHub stars, 8,942 forks, 3,292 open issues and last shipped today. oauth2-proxy has 14,978 stars, 2,196 forks, 285 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Keycloak leads on adoption by 146% (36,859 vs 14,978 stars). Keycloak is written in Java under Apache-2.0; oauth2-proxy is written in Go under MIT. Keycloak has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, oauth2-proxy 15%. 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 | oauth2-proxy | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 15K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Written in | Java | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 8.9K | ⑂ 2.2K |
| 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 oauth2-proxy if
- You want the oauth2-proxy feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and oauth2-proxy 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 oauth2-proxy
OAuth2 Proxy is an open source, MIT licensed reverse proxy and middleware written in Go that puts OAuth2 and OpenID Connect authentication in front of web applications, aimed at operators and platform teams who need single sign on without adding auth code to every app.
read the full oauth2-proxy overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or oauth2-proxy more popular?
Keycloak has 36,859 GitHub stars and oauth2-proxy has 14,978. Keycloak has the larger community by that measure.
Are Keycloak and oauth2-proxy free?
Both are open source. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and oauth2-proxy under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Keycloak and oauth2-proxy?
Keycloak is written in Java and oauth2-proxy 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, Keycloak or oauth2-proxy?
Choose Keycloak if you want the larger community (36,859 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose oauth2-proxy if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.