# authentik-vs-authelia Source: https://startwithidentity.com/compare/authentik-vs-authelia/ Last updated: 2026-07-24 License: content by Start with Identity. Cite the source URL. --- ## The honest comparison These two get compared because both are open source, both are self-hosted, and both show up in the same homelab threads. They are not the same category of thing. [Authentik](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/authentik/) is an identity provider. [Its own site](https://goauthentik.io/) lists OAuth2 and OIDC, SAML2, SCIM, LDAP, RADIUS, an application proxy, and browser-based remote access to RDP, VNC, and SSH. [Authelia](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/authelia/) is an authentication and authorization gateway. [Its own site](https://www.authelia.com/) describes it as a companion for common reverse proxies and an OpenID Certified OpenID Connect provider, with access control rules by user, group, and URL. Authelia has no SAML. Our matrix ties them at 4.5 on SSO and federation, and that tie is fair on quality, but the shapes behind it differ: Authelia does OIDC and does it to a certification standard, while Authentik covers more protocols including the older ones a legacy application will ask for. The scores split in a way that rewards reading past the total. Authentik takes 3.9 to 3.7 overall and leads governance and audit 3.5 to 3.0 and support and ecosystem 3.0 to 2.5. Authelia leads three: authorization 4.0 to 3.5, on the strength of its rule-based access control; deployment flexibility 5.0 to 4.5, because it is small and self-hosted with nothing else to consider; and pricing transparency 5.0 to 4.5, because there is nothing to buy. Five dimensions tie. The commercial models diverge more than the products. [authentik's pricing page](https://goauthentik.io/pricing/) lists Enterprise at 5 dollars per user per month billed annually and Enterprise Plus from 20,000 dollars annually with service level agreements and FIPS compliance for FedRAMP, and commits that no open source features move behind the paywall. That page also states there is no hosted version of authentik. Authelia has no paid tier at all and funds security audits through OpenCollective sponsorship. Our assessment is that the honest question is not which is better but whether your problem is an identity provider or a gate. If you need one login in front of a dozen internal services behind Traefik, Authelia is the smaller, quieter answer. If applications need to federate to you, Authelia will not do it. ## When Authentik wins - An application needs SAML, or you need LDAP, SCIM, or RADIUS, none of which Authelia serves as a protocol endpoint - You want a paid support path, which exists at 5 dollars per user per month and a service level agreement above 20,000 dollars a year - Configurable multi-stage login flows and a friendlier admin interface matter because more than one person administers this - Browser-based remote access to RDP, VNC, and SSH is a capability you would otherwise buy separately ## When Authelia wins - Your setup is a reverse proxy and a handful of internal services, and an identity provider is more moving parts than you want - Rule-based access control by user, group, and URL is the requirement, where Authelia leads authorization 4.0 to 3.5 - Apache 2.0 with no commercial edition matters, so there is no paid tier for a feature to migrate into later - Passkeys and WebAuthn in front of a homelab or small-team service is the whole job, and OpenID certification is reassurance enough ## Pricing Neither charges you to start. Authelia has no license cost and no paid tier, which is why it takes 5.0 on pricing transparency, and the real cost is the hours you spend on it and the absence of anyone to call. authentik is free to self-host, with Enterprise at 5 dollars per user per month billed annually plus 2 cents per external user per month, and Enterprise Plus from 20,000 dollars annually for customized support, multi-instance deployment, and FIPS. If a support contract is a compliance requirement rather than a comfort, that is the entire pricing comparison. Model your own operating hours alongside license cost in the [TCO calculator](https://startwithidentity.com/tools/tco-calculator/), because for self-hosted identity the hours are the larger number. ## Verdict Choose [Authentik](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/authentik/) when you need an identity provider that speaks the protocols your applications expect, or when someone needs a support contract to sign off the project. Choose [Authelia](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/authelia/) when a lightweight gate in front of reverse-proxied services is genuinely all you need, and you are content with community support. Neither is the pick for a large enterprise ecosystem with many certified integrations: that is [Keycloak vs Zitadel](https://startwithidentity.com/compare/keycloak-vs-zitadel/) territory, and for deep fine-grained authorization see [Ory](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/ory/). Browse the [open-source IAM category](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/) for the rest of the field.