head to head · open source
Keycloak vs slink
Keycloak has 37,872 GitHub stars, 9,196 forks, 3,292 open issues and last shipped today. slink has 1,622 stars, 48 forks, 18 open issues and last shipped 9 days ago. Keycloak leads on adoption by 2,235% (37,872 vs 1,622 stars). Keycloak is written in Java under Apache-2.0; slink is written in PHP under AGPL-3.0. Keycloak has attracted 24% as many forks as stars, slink 3%. 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.
← all 20902 open source comparisons
Side by side
| Keycloak | slink | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 38K | ★ 1.6K |
| License | Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Written in | Java | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-11-15 | 2026-11-06 |
| Forks | ⑂ 9.2K | ⑂ 48 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Keycloak if
- You weight community size — 38K 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 slink if
- You want the slink feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the AGPL-3.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and slink fits your workflow better
About Keycloak
Open Source Identity and Access Management Add authentication to applications and secure services with minimum effort. No need to deal with storing users or authenticating users. Keycloak provides user federation, strong authentication, user management, fine grained authorization, and more. Help and Documentation Documentation User Mailing List Mailing list for help and general questions about Keycloak Join keycloak for general questions, or keycloak dev on Slack for design and development discussions, by creating an account at Reporting Security Vulnerabilities If you have found a security vulnerability, please…
read the full Keycloak overview →
About slink
Slink: Image Sharing Platform Welcome to Slink , a powerful self hosted image sharing platform designed to give users complete control over their media sharing experience. Built with Symfony and SvelteKit, Slink enables seamless and secure image sharing without relying on third party services. Live Demo Documentation Why Slink? Slink solves the problem of sharing images with friends, family, and colleagues in a private, self hosted environment. It's also ideal for: Artists : Showcase artwork in a community focused platform. Developers : Host and share screenshots for GitHub, portfolios, blogs, and more. Anyone…
read the full slink overview →
More in Security & Privacy
Related comparisons
More Identity & Access Management (IAM) projects
Compare either of these against the rest of the Identity & Access Management (IAM) field.
Frequently asked questions
Is Keycloak or slink more popular?
Keycloak has 37,872 GitHub stars and slink has 1,622. Keycloak has the larger community by that measure.
Are Keycloak and slink free?
Both are open source. Keycloak is licensed under Apache-2.0 and slink under AGPL-3.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Keycloak and slink?
Keycloak is written in Java and slink in PHP. 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 slink?
Choose Keycloak if you want the larger community (37,872 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose slink if its feature set, stack or AGPL-3.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.