head to head · open source
Authentik vs pocket-id
Authentik has 25,647 GitHub stars, 2,029 forks, 1,074 open issues and last shipped yesterday. pocket-id has 9,230 stars, 312 forks, 98 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Authentik leads on adoption by 178% (25,647 vs 9,230 stars). Authentik is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence; pocket-id is written in Go under BSD-2-Clause. Authentik has attracted 8% as many forks as stars, pocket-id 3%. pocket-id 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
| Authentik | pocket-id | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 26K | ★ 9.2K |
| License | Custom / other | BSD-2-Clause |
| Written in | Python | Go |
| Last push | 2026-09-19 | 2026-09-19 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.0K | ⑂ 312 |
| 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 pocket-id if
- You want the pocket-id feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the BSD-2-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches Go
- You evaluated both and pocket-id 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 pocket-id
Pocket ID is a self hosted, OpenID Connect Certified™ and OAuth 2.0 provider, written in Go, that authenticates users with passkeys and passwords never, aimed at anyone who wants single sign on for their own applications without standing up a heavyweight identity platform.
read the full pocket-id overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Authentik or pocket-id more popular?
Authentik has 25,647 GitHub stars and pocket-id has 9,230. Authentik has the larger community by that measure.
Are Authentik and pocket-id free?
Both are open source. Authentik has no licence declared in this registry, and pocket-id is licensed under BSD-2-Clause. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between Authentik and pocket-id?
Authentik is written in Python and pocket-id 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 pocket-id?
Choose Authentik if you want the larger community (25,647 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose pocket-id if its feature set, stack or BSD-2-Clause licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.