# dex

Source: https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/dex/
Last updated: 2026-07-03
License: content by Start with Identity. Cite the source URL.

---

## Overview
Dex is an open-source OpenID Connect identity provider, now a CNCF project and originally from CoreOS. It acts as a federation layer, authenticating users against upstream identity sources through connectors and issuing OIDC tokens to applications.

## What it is good at
Dex shines as a lightweight federation broker: connectors for LDAP, SAML, GitHub, Google, and more let it front many identity sources and present a single OIDC interface, which is why it is common in Kubernetes and internal platform authentication. It is simple, composable, and self-hostable.

## Where it falls short
Dex is deliberately narrow. It is not a full IAM: no user store, admin UI, or governance, so teams needing those pair it with other tools or choose a broader platform.

## Pricing
Free and open source (Apache 2.0, CNCF); self-hosted.

## Best for, and who should look elsewhere
Choose Dex as an OIDC federation layer, especially for Kubernetes. Look elsewhere for a full IAM with user management (see [Zitadel](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/zitadel/) or [Keycloak](https://startwithidentity.com/vendors/open-source/keycloak/)).

## Bottom line
A focused, dependable OIDC federation broker, a staple of cloud-native authentication.