We’ve seen a lot of news lately about Authentication as a Service platforms like Auth0 and FusionAuth and hope that trend will continue. Auth0 and FusionAuth both provide advanced customer identity and access management (CIAM) and it is exciting to see a company that we respect recognized by the wider community. Strangely, when I say this at the CIAM events we attend I get a few curious looks. Why would we want them to be recognized? Shouldn’t we want FusionAuth to get the attention?
Why the Attention is Good for Auth0 and FusionAuth
Of course FusionAuth wants attention, but what’s more important is that the developer community is recognizing the need for secure registration, login, and user management that protects customer data. According to FusionAuth CEO, Brian Pontarelli, “We know that user data security is vital for every company. Hacks and security breaches are escalating at a rate never seen before, so secure user identity should be a core app component like a database or web server. There shouldn’t be cost or technology barriers to protecting customers’ personal data. At the end of the day, the more attention security issues get, the safer our information will be.”
The fact is, Auth0 and FusionAuth are similar in a lot of ways. We both have the basic features that modern customer identity solutions offer:
- Authentication for web and mobile applications
- Unlimited users and groups
- OAuth Token & API Key Management
We also share more advanced features that make a difference in the usability and security of an identity platform. Any large or soon-to-be-large applications need to manage their users, not just provide sign-in like social media solutions. Auth0 and FusionAuth provide:
- Multi-Factor Authentication
- On-Premise and Private Cloud Deployments
- Full support for Authentication as a Service (AaaS)
- User Search and User Management Interfaces
And then we both go farther to provide the extras that keep customer accounts secure such as:
- Brute-Force Hack Detection
- Password Strength Settings
- Secure Single Sign-On
Auth0 and FusionAuth share many essential elements of a customer identity management platform, but we do have differences though.
How Auth0 and FusionAuth Are Different
Free for Unlimited Users
One of the biggest differences between Auth0 and FusionAuth is cost. FusionAuth is free for unlimited users. No strings, gimmicks, or tricks. No cost increases when you hit a certain Monthly Active User threshold. Much like a database or a web server, secure authentication is so essential that developers should be able to implement it quickly and easily without cost concerns. And unlike the free options from other vendors, we don’t user-limit FusionAuth. You get a full unrestricted platform.
FusionAuth does offer advanced features and support for a price, but we have many users running their business self hosting the community edition.
Single-Tenant Security
We mentioned above that Auth0 and FusionAuth both have on-premise and cloud options. Our difference is both our local and cloud options deliver true data isolation as single-tenant solutions. This eliminates the possibility of data leakage between unrelated companies, whether accidentally or through hacker activity. For additional security, customers can implement a firewall at any layer, further protecting their data from unauthorized access. With the substantial increase in the number and sophistication of hacking, phishing and spoofing attacks, we felt it was the best choice.
Additionally, FusionAuth’s single-tenant architecture also allows for easier compliance with complex regulatory restrictions in many industries and countries. Germany’s Bundesdatenschutzgesetz, Australia’s Privacy Principles, Canada’s PIPEDA, and the European Union’s GDPR all place different restrictions on how a user’s personal data can be used and transmitted. FusionAuth provides the expanded control that companies require to comply with laws and regulations in their specific region. For more details on the benefits and pitfalls of single- and multi-tenant solutions read this recent whitepaper.
Localization
Every company doing business through the internet today has a storefront open to customers from around the globe. While having a vast pool of potential customers is a benefit, many companies struggle to deliver their products and services to the wide range of languages they encounter. FusionAuth was designed to allow you to easily communicate with your customers in the language they prefer. You can create customized HTML and text email templates for the languages you support, and easily add additional options as your community grows.
Configurable Password Encryption
Every application has different security requirements. Some need to be HIPAA compliant, while others can be less stringent. FusionAuth lets you pick the level of security you need, and adjust it as quickly as your needs or threats evolve. We also allow you to use different password schemas for different groups of users, making it possible to consolidate multiple identity management systems into one efficient platform. This can be a completely transparent process without any downtime or customer friction.
Reporting and Analytics
User reports have been in every slide presentation and corporate board meeting since the first bit of software hit the internet. From day one we give you the most viewed reports like daily and monthly active users, logins and registrations without any additional configuration or setup.
Custom Feature Development
Another difference between Auth0 and FusionAuth is our size and flexibility. Auth0 is a huge corporation with hundreds of employees and tens-of-millions in investor funding. They are beholden to an extensive range of investors and board influencers who are all chasing “the best product-market fit.” Smaller companies with unique or specific needs are often overlooked or ignored.
FusionAuth is a bootstrapped company dedicated to our customers. We have successfully provided our core solutions with unique customizations and one-on-one support for our clients. We have eliminated the overhead, complex approval pipelines, and corporate red-tape that cripples large firms so we can deliver exceptional solutions for clients like DataStax, StrategyCorp, Deutsche Bank and IBM.
To see more details on how Auth0 and FusionAuth stack up, download this feature comparison and please contact us if you have any questions.
You can also view technical documentation about how you can migrate from Auth0 to FusionAuth.
Learn More About FusionAuth
FusionAuth is designed to be the most flexible and secure Customer Identity and Access Management solution available at the best price. We provide registration, login, SSO, MFA, data search, user management and more, 100% free for unlimited users. Find out more about FusionAuth and download it today.
Additional Comparisons
Interested in how FusionAuth compares to other solutions?
