head to head · open source
Keycloak vs Permify
Keycloak has 36,832 GitHub stars, 8,941 forks, 3,292 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Permify has 5,952 stars, 323 forks, 75 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Keycloak leads on adoption by 519% (36,832 vs 5,952 stars). Keycloak is written in Java under Apache-2.0; Permify is written in Go under AGPL-3.0. Keycloak has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, Permify 5%. Keycloak was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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 | Permify | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 37K | ★ 6.0K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Java | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-17 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 8.9K | ⑂ 323 |
| 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 Permify if
- You want the Permify feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and Permify 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 Permify
Permify is an open source authorization service for building and managing fine grained, scalable, and extensible access controls for applications and services. It is inspired by Google's consistent, global authorization system, Zanzibar, and it lives in the Go ecosystem, distributed under the AGPL 3.0 license. The project is categorized under Security & Privacy, specifically Identity & Access Management, and it has been acquired by FusionAuth.
read the full Permify overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or Permify more popular?
Keycloak has 36,832 GitHub stars and Permify has 5,952. Keycloak has the larger community by that measure.
Are Keycloak and Permify free?
Both are open source. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Permify under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Keycloak and Permify?
Keycloak is written in Java and Permify 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 Permify?
Choose Keycloak if you want the larger community (36,832 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose Permify if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.