We're currently scaling authentication for our multi-tenant SaaS product and needed to implement enterprise SSO, including options like SAML, OIDC, and SCIM. What was supposed to be a simple evaluation turned into a thorough comparison of over 15 providers, including popular names like Okta, Auth0, WorkOS, and FusionAuth. We ran into a few surprises along the way:
- Not all providers include SCIM support, and their pricing varies significantly.
- The user experience for admin dashboards and branding controls is inconsistent across providers.
- We found some developer SDKs to be fantastic, while others were frustratingly difficult.
- Surprisingly, features like session control and audit logs aren't as universally standard as we expected.
We've created a comprehensive side-by-side comparison matrix, and if anyone is interested, I'm happy to share it! I'm also curious to hear from others who have implemented SSO or CIAM recently. What dealbreakers did you encounter? Did you opt for self-hosting like Keycloak, or did you choose a fully managed solution?
3 Answers
I went with Auth0 for my project mainly because I need to comply with GDPR. Their free tier was perfect for starting out, plus I appreciate that I can host it in the EU. What were your main priorities when picking a provider?
Honestly, I’d just go with Okta and save yourself the headache. They’ve been pretty reliable for me. But hey, do what works for your specific needs!
If you're evaluating providers, I'd suggest sharing your experiences! You don’t want to leave us hanging on which ones did well or flopped. Have a few hot takes? Let’s hear them!
Great point! Compliance is super important, especially when dealing with user data. I’ll share more about what factors we considered in our matrix.