--- source_url: "https://skycloak.io/blog/cognito-alternatives-developers/?utm_source=openai" title: "AWS Cognito Alternatives: Open Source and Managed Options" mirrored_at: 2026-08-19T01:00:58.637Z host: skycloak.io cited_in_42a: true mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/skycloak.io/blog/cognito-alternatives-developers/index__q__utm_source_openai" --- > **Original source:** https://skycloak.io/blog/cognito-alternatives-developers/?utm_source=openai _Last updated: March 2026_ AWS Cognito is the default choice for teams already on AWS. It integrates with API Gateway, ALB, and IAM out of the box. But Cognito has well-known limitations: user pool size caps, limited customization of authentication flows, vendor lock-in to AWS, and a pricing model that gets expensive at scale. If you are evaluating alternatives — either because you have hit Cognito’s limits or because you want to avoid single-cloud dependency — this guide compares the leading options across pricing, features, migration difficulty, and AWS integration capabilities. ## Why Teams Leave Cognito Before comparing alternatives, it helps to understand the common pain points: 1. **Customization limits.** Cognito’s hosted UI is difficult to customize beyond basic styling. Authentication flows are constrained to Lambda triggers at specific hook points, and some scenarios (like conditional MFA based on risk signals) require workarounds. 2. **User pool size.** While Cognito removed the hard 40-million user cap, large pools experience slower query performance. Complex queries against the user store require custom DynamoDB or Elasticsearch indexes. 3. **Standards compliance.** Cognito’s SAML and OIDC implementations have quirks. SAML IdP-initiated flows have limitations. Token customization requires Lambda triggers rather than server-side policy configuration. 4. **Vendor lock-in.** Cognito user pools cannot be exported with passwords. Migrating away means either resetting all passwords or implementing a lazy migration that authenticates users against Cognito and rehashes credentials in the new system. 5. **Pricing opacity.** Cognito’s per-MAU pricing includes a free tier, but advanced security features (adaptive authentication, compromised credential detection) add significant cost. ## The Alternatives ### 1\. Keycloak (Self-Hosted or Managed via Skycloak) [Keycloak](https://www.keycloak.org/) is the most feature-complete open-source identity and access management platform. It runs on the JVM (Quarkus), supports OIDC, SAML 2.0, and OAuth 2.0, and provides a full admin console, user federation, identity brokering, and fine-grained authorization. **Pricing:** - Self-hosted: Free (open source). Infrastructure costs depend on your deployment, typically $100-500/month for a two-node cluster on AWS. - Managed via [Skycloak](https://skycloak.io/pricing/): Starts with predictable monthly pricing that includes hosting, monitoring, backups, and support. No per-MAU charges. **AWS Integration:** - Deploy on ECS, EKS, or EC2 - Use RDS PostgreSQL as the database - ALB as a load balancer with health check integration - Secrets Manager for credential storage - CloudWatch for log aggregation - S3 for backup storage ``` # Quick start with Docker on AWS docker run -p 8080:8080 -e KC_DB=postgres -e KC_DB_URL=jdbc:postgresql://your-rds-endpoint:5432/keycloak -e KC_DB_USERNAME=keycloak -e KC_DB_PASSWORD=your-password -e KC_HOSTNAME=auth.example.com quay.io/keycloak/keycloak:26.1.0 start ``` **Feature highlights:** - Unlimited users with no per-MAU pricing - Full [SAML](https://skycloak.io/tools/saml-decoder/) and OIDC support with extensive customization - Built-in identity brokering (connect to any OIDC/SAML provider) - [SCIM 2.0](https://skycloak.io/features/scim/) for user provisioning - [Fine-grained authorization](https://skycloak.io/blog/fine-grained-authorization-in-keycloak-explained/) with UMA 2.0 - Custom authentication flows without writing code - [Multi-factor authentication](https://skycloak.io/features/multi-factor-authentication/) with TOTP, WebAuthn, and more - [Audit logging](https://skycloak.io/features/audit-logs/) with event listeners **Migration from Cognito:** Medium difficulty. Keycloak can import users via the Admin REST API. Passwords must be rehashed (Cognito does not export password hashes), so plan for a lazy migration: 1. Import user profiles (email, attributes) into Keycloak. 2. Configure a custom User Storage SPI or use Keycloak’s User Federation to authenticate against Cognito during a transition period. 3. On successful authentication, Keycloak stores the password locally. 4. After a migration window, disable the Cognito federation. **Best for:** Teams that need full control over authentication, want to avoid vendor lock-in, or need features Cognito does not support (SAML IdP, advanced authorization, custom protocols). ### 2\. Auth0 (Okta) Auth0 is a fully managed identity platform now owned by Okta. It is the most directly comparable SaaS alternative to Cognito. **Pricing:** - Free tier: 25,000 MAUs (recently expanded) - Essentials: Starting at $35/month for up to 500 external MAUs - Professional: Starting at $240/month - Enterprise: Custom pricing Auth0’s pricing scales per MAU with significant jumps at higher tiers. Features like Adaptive MFA, breached password detection, and Organizations (multi-tenancy) require Professional or Enterprise plans. **AWS Integration:** - Fully managed SaaS — no AWS infrastructure to manage - Integrates with AWS API Gateway via JWT authorizers - Auth0 Actions (serverless hooks) replace Cognito’s Lambda triggers - Private Cloud deployment available (Enterprise) for data residency requirements **Feature highlights:** - Extensive SDK ecosystem (React, Next.js, Angular, mobile) - Actions pipeline for custom logic during authentication flows - Organizations feature for B2B multi-tenancy - Universal Login with customizable hosted pages **Migration from Cognito:** Low to medium difficulty. Auth0 provides bulk import APIs and supports automatic migration connections that validate against Cognito on first login. **Best for:** Teams that want a fully managed SaaS solution with a mature developer experience and are comfortable with per-MAU pricing. For a detailed comparison, see [Keycloak vs Auth0 Comparison Guide](https://skycloak.io/blog/keycloak-vs-auth0-comparison-guide/). ### 3\. Firebase Authentication (Google) Firebase Auth is Google’s authentication service. Like Cognito, it is tightly coupled to a cloud provider’s ecosystem. **Pricing:** - Free: Up to 50,000 MAUs for standard providers - Identity Platform (upgraded): $0.0055/MAU after 50K for SAML/OIDC providers, $0.01/SMS sent Firebase Auth’s free tier is generous for startups. But if you need SAML federation, multi-tenancy, or blocking functions, you need Identity Platform pricing. **AWS Integration:** Firebase is a Google product. Using it on AWS means your authentication traffic goes through Google’s infrastructure while your application runs on AWS. This adds latency and creates a cross-cloud dependency. There is no native integration with AWS services like API Gateway or ALB. **Feature highlights:** - Simple API for email/password, social login, phone auth - Client SDKs for web, iOS, Android, Flutter - Anonymous authentication for progressive profiling - Integration with Firestore for user data **Migration from Cognito:** Low difficulty for simple setups. Firebase supports email/password import with password hash. Limited if you use Cognito’s advanced features (custom attributes, groups, app clients with different scopes). **Best for:** Small teams building mobile-first applications who want the simplest possible authentication API. Not suitable for enterprise use cases requiring SAML, advanced MFA, or fine-grained authorization. For an in-depth look, see [Firebase Auth Alternatives: Beyond Google Lock-In](https://skycloak.io/blog/firebase-auth-alternatives-developers/). ### 4\. SuperTokens SuperTokens is an open-source authentication platform built on Node.js. It offers a managed cloud option and self-hosting. **Pricing:** - Self-hosted: Free (open source core) - Cloud: Free up to 5,000 MAUs, then $0.02/MAU **AWS Integration:** - Self-hosted: Deploy on ECS or EKS with a PostgreSQL database - Cloud: SaaS with no AWS-specific integrations **Feature highlights:** - Pre-built login UI with React components - Session management with anti-CSRF tokens - Passwordless (magic link, OTP) - Multi-tenancy support **Migration from Cognito:** Medium difficulty. SuperTokens can import users via its API. Session management is handled differently (SuperTokens uses its own session tokens rather than JWTs by default). **Best for:** Node.js teams that want a lightweight, developer-friendly auth library with optional managed hosting. For a deeper comparison, see [Keycloak vs SuperTokens](https://skycloak.io/blog/keycloak-vs-supertokens-comparison/). ### 5\. Ory (Kratos, Hydra, Keto) Ory is a suite of open-source identity tools: Kratos (identity management), Hydra (OAuth 2.0/OIDC server), and Keto (authorization). They can be used individually or together. **Pricing:** - Self-hosted: Free (open source, Apache 2.0 license) - Ory Network (managed): Free developer tier, paid plans from $29/month **AWS Integration:** - Self-hosted: Deploy on ECS or EKS - Each component runs as a separate service, adding operational complexity - PostgreSQL or CockroachDB for storage **Feature highlights:** - API-first design (no admin UI — everything is API-driven) - Ory Hydra is a certified OAuth 2.0 and OIDC provider - Ory Keto implements Google Zanzibar-style authorization - Written in Go (low resource footprint) **Migration from Cognito:** High difficulty. Ory’s multi-component architecture means mapping Cognito concepts (user pools, app clients) to separate Ory services (Kratos for users, Hydra for OAuth). No built-in migration tooling. **Best for:** Teams that want maximum architectural flexibility, are comfortable operating multiple services, and prefer an API-first approach over admin UIs. ## Feature Comparison Table Feature Cognito Keycloak Auth0 Firebase Auth SuperTokens Ory Open source No Yes No No Partial Yes Self-hosting No Yes No (except Private Cloud) No Yes Yes OIDC provider Yes Yes Yes Partial No Yes (Hydra) SAML IdP No Yes Yes (paid) Yes (paid) No No SAML SP Yes Yes Yes Yes (paid) No No [SCIM provisioning](https://skycloak.io/features/scim/) No Yes Yes (paid) No No No Custom auth flows Lambda triggers Flow editor Actions Blocking functions Hooks Selfservice flows [MFA](https://skycloak.io/features/multi-factor-authentication/) SMS, TOTP, WebAuthn TOTP, WebAuthn, SMS, email SMS, TOTP, WebAuthn, push SMS, TOTP TOTP TOTP, WebAuthn [RBAC](https://skycloak.io/features/rbac/) Groups + IAM Yes (roles, groups, policies) Yes Custom claims Yes Yes (Keto) User federation (LDAP/AD) External provider sync Yes (built-in) Yes (paid) No No No Multi-tenancy User pools Realms + Organizations Organizations (paid) Tenants (paid) Yes Built-in Admin console AWS Console Built-in web UI Dashboard Firebase Console Dashboard API only Pricing model Per MAU Free / managed pricing Per MAU Per MAU + SMS Per MAU Per MAU ## Migration Strategies ### Lazy Migration (Recommended) The safest approach when moving from Cognito: 1. **Export user profiles** from Cognito (all attributes except passwords). 2. **Import profiles** into the new system as password-less accounts. 3. **Configure a migration authentication flow** that, on login failure, attempts to authenticate against Cognito. 4. **On success**, store the password in the new system and mark the user as migrated. 5. **After the migration window** (60-90 days), force remaining users to reset their passwords. Keycloak supports this pattern natively through [User Storage SPIs](https://www.keycloak.org/docs/latest/server_development/#_user-storage-spi). ### Big Bang Migration For smaller user bases (under 10,000 users): 1. Export all users from Cognito. 2. Import into the new system. 3. Trigger password reset for all users. 4. Switch DNS to the new authentication endpoint. 5. Decommission Cognito. This is simpler but requires coordinating a password reset campaign. ## AWS Integration Without Cognito One concern teams have about leaving Cognito is losing AWS-native integration. Here is how to maintain AWS integration with Keycloak: ### API Gateway JWT Authorizer ``` { "Type": "AWS::ApiGatewayV2::Authorizer", "Properties": { "ApiId": "your-api-id", "AuthorizerType": "JWT", "IdentitySource": "$request.header.Authorization", "JwtConfiguration": { "Audience": ["your-keycloak-client-id"], "Issuer": "https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm" }, "Name": "KeycloakAuthorizer" } } ``` ### ALB OIDC Authentication Configure your Application Load Balancer to authenticate users via Keycloak’s OIDC endpoints: ``` { "Type": "authenticate-oidc", "AuthenticateOidcConfig": { "Issuer": "https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm", "AuthorizationEndpoint": "https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm/protocol/openid-connect/auth", "TokenEndpoint": "https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm/protocol/openid-connect/token", "UserInfoEndpoint": "https://keycloak.example.com/realms/myrealm/protocol/openid-connect/userinfo", "ClientId": "aws-alb", "ClientSecret": "your-client-secret" } } ``` ### IAM Roles for Service Accounts (IRSA) Replacement If you use Cognito Identity Pools to exchange tokens for AWS credentials, you can achieve the same with Keycloak using AWS STS `AssumeRoleWithWebIdentity`: ``` aws sts assume-role-with-web-identity --role-arn arn:aws:iam::123456789:role/keycloak-role --role-session-name my-session --web-identity-token "keycloak-access-token-here" ``` This requires configuring Keycloak as an OIDC identity provider in IAM. ## Cost Comparison For a SaaS application with 50,000 MAUs: Provider Monthly Cost (Estimated) AWS Cognito (with advanced security) $275-500/month Auth0 Professional $800+/month Firebase Auth (Identity Platform) $200-300/month SuperTokens Cloud $900/month Keycloak self-hosted (AWS) $150-400/month (infra only) Keycloak managed (Skycloak) See [pricing page](https://skycloak.io/pricing/) These estimates are approximations. Actual costs depend on feature usage, region, and support tier. Use the [IAM ROI Calculator](https://skycloak.io/tools/roi-calculator/) to model costs for your specific scenario. ## Making the Decision **Choose Keycloak/Skycloak if** you need maximum flexibility, want to avoid vendor lock-in, need SAML IdP capabilities, or want predictable pricing that does not scale with MAUs. [Skycloak’s managed hosting](https://skycloak.io/hosting/) eliminates the operational burden while preserving all of Keycloak’s capabilities. **Choose Auth0 if** you want a fully managed SaaS experience, have budget for per-MAU pricing, and need the most extensive SDK ecosystem. **Choose Firebase Auth if** you are building a small-to-medium mobile application and want the simplest possible integration. **Choose SuperTokens if** you are a Node.js team building a B2C application and want lightweight session management. **Choose Ory if** you want API-first infrastructure, are building a custom authentication experience, and are comfortable operating multiple services. **Stay with Cognito if** you are deeply embedded in AWS, have simple authentication needs, and Cognito’s limitations do not affect your use case. * * * Want to migrate from Cognito to Keycloak without the operational complexity? [Skycloak](https://skycloak.io/hosting/) provides managed Keycloak with AWS-compatible deployment, built-in monitoring, and [SOC 2 compliance](https://skycloak.io/security/). See our [pricing](https://skycloak.io/pricing/) or explore our [documentation](https://skycloak.io/docs/) to get started.