head to head · open source
Sa-Token vs phpCAS
Sa-Token has 19,065 GitHub stars, 2,911 forks, 111 open issues and last shipped 11 days ago. phpCAS has 800 stars, 419 forks, 29 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. Sa-Token leads on adoption by 2,283% (19,065 vs 800 stars). Sa-Token is written in Java under Apache-2.0; phpCAS is written in PHP under Apache-2.0. Sa-Token has attracted 15% as many forks as stars, phpCAS 52%. Sa-Token was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (sso), 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
| Sa-Token | phpCAS | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 19K | ★ 800 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Written in | Java | PHP |
| Last push | 2026-09-27 | 2026-06-30 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.9K | ⑂ 419 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick Sa-Token if
- You weight community size — 19K 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 phpCAS if
- You want the phpCAS feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Apache-2.0 license terms
- Your stack matches PHP
- You evaluated both and phpCAS fits your workflow better
About Sa-Token
Sa Token is a free, open source, one stop Java authentication and authorization framework, licensed under Apache 2.0, that gives Java and Spring Boot developers login authentication, permission checks, distributed sessions, single sign on, OAuth2.0, gateway authentication, JWT integration, API key authorization and API parameter signing from a single dependency.
read the full Sa-Token overview →
About phpCAS
phpCAS is a PHP authentication library for application developers who need to sign users in through a Central Authentication Service (CAS) server as part of a single sign on setup.
read the full phpCAS overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is Sa-Token or phpCAS more popular?
Sa-Token has 19,065 GitHub stars and phpCAS has 800. Sa-Token has the larger community by that measure.
Are Sa-Token and phpCAS free?
Both are open source. Sa-Token is licensed under Apache-2.0 and phpCAS under Apache-2.0. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between Sa-Token and phpCAS?
Sa-Token is written in Java and phpCAS 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, Sa-Token or phpCAS?
Choose Sa-Token if you want the larger community (19,065 stars) or its Apache-2.0 licence terms. Choose phpCAS if its feature set, stack or Apache-2.0 licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.