The best identity providers, according to hackers
12 identity providers were recommended on Hacker News between November 2025 and November 2026. We rank them by how many separate people recommend each one, and 3 earn the Hacker Approved badge.
Top picks
The three most recommended identity providers with the badge. Each figure is 5 people. RecommendsCriticizes One comment
Self-hosted full product, not SaaS
Free, open-source identity server for self-hosted logins and SSO, valued as mature and extensible. Common caveat: complex to configure and run.
Easy to self-host with Docker
Open-source single sign-on server that people self-host with Docker and use for their apps. One critic says Pangolin is a better fit.
Alternative to Active Directory-style management
Free, open source identity management that can manage Linux and Windows clients, with a Red Hat version available. Critics find it complex to configure and maintain.
All 12 identity providers, ranked
Select a column heading to sort. Approval share is recommenders out of everyone who gave an opinion; the tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs. Months counts the months, out of 13, in which someone recommended it.
| Rank | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keycloak | 44 | 20 | 69% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Tied 2 | Authentik | 14 | 0 | 100% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Tied 2 | FreeIPA | 14 | 7 | 67% | 4 | — | Approved |
| 4 | Okta | 11 | 47 | 19% | 7 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Microsoft Entra | 8 | 18 | 31% | 6 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Ory | 8 | 6 | 57% | 6 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Authelia | 8 | 1 | 89% | 6 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Microsoft Entra ID | 8 | 26 | 24% | 5 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Zitadel | 8 | 2 | 80% | 5 | — | — |
| Tied 5 | Ory Kratos | 8 | 9 | 47% | 4 | — | — |
| Tied 11 | oauth2-proxy | 7 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | — |
| Tied 11 | Pocket ID | 7 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | — |
How we rank
Rank is the number of separate people who recommend a product in a Hacker News comment over the past year. Someone who praises the same identity provider in five threads counts once.
The badge goes to identity providers that at least 10 people recommend, with recommenders outnumbering critics at least 2 to 1, recommended in at least 4 of the 13 months.
Rankings are never for sale. We may earn a commission when you buy through our links. It never changes the order.