authentik vs Keycloak: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)

authentik: Open-source identity provider with SSO, MFA, and application proxy capabilities. built by authentik. Core capabilities include Multi-factor authentication, Single sign-on with OAuth2/OIDC and SAML2 support, Application proxy..

Keycloak: Open-source IAM solution for SSO, MFA, and identity federation. built by keycloak. Core capabilities include Single sign-on (SSO), Multi-factor authentication with passkeys and recovery codes, Identity federation with external providers..

Both serve the Access Management market but differ in approach, feature depth, and target audience.

authentik differentiates with Multi-factor authentication, Single sign-on with OAuth2/OIDC and SAML2 support, Application proxy. Keycloak differentiates with Single sign-on (SSO), Multi-factor authentication with passkeys and recovery codes, Identity federation with external providers.

authentik is developed by authentik. Keycloak is developed by keycloak. Vendor maturity, funding stage, and team size can be important factors when evaluating long-term viability and support quality.

authentik and Keycloak serve similar Access Management use cases: both are Access Management tools, both cover Single Sign On, MFA, Authentication. Review the feature comparison above to determine which fits your requirements.