Keycloak is fully open-source IAM with SSO, MFA, and federation at zero licensing cost. Okta offers limited free developer accounts. Auth0 is free for up to 7,500 monthly active users (CIAM). Microsoft Entra ID has a free tier. For workforce IAM, Keycloak (self-hosted) is the only genuinely free production option. For CIAM, Auth0 Free is the most accessible.
10 tools with free access highlighted below, plus 5 more in this category.
Usage-based pricing · Cloud · Free trial
Auth0 (Okta-owned) is the developer-first identity platform — strongest for SaaS applications that need customer-facing authentication (CIAM) — but pricing spikes dramatically at scale.
Best for: SaaS and application development teams that need customer-facing authentication (login, signup, social login, MFA) with developer-friendly SDKs and APIs.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
Cisco Duo is the most popular MFA solution — simplest push-based authentication for users and administrators — but its MFA-first, and full SSO and lifecycle features require higher-tier plans.
Best for: Organizations that need to deploy MFA quickly across the workforce with minimal user friction and administrative overhead. The push notification experience is the benchmark.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
Google Workspace provides identity management (SSO, MFA, directory) as part of its productivity suite — strongest for Google-first organizations — but IAM depth is limited compared to dedicated identity platforms.
Best for: Google-first organizations that want SSO, MFA, and endpoint management included in their productivity suite licensing without adding a separate identity vendor.
Device-based · Cloud · Free trial
JumpCloud is positioned here as a endpoint management software option for teams comparing rollout fit, operating model, pricing structure, and how much administrative effort the product is likely to create after implementation.
Open source · Cloud / On-prem · Free trial
Keycloak is the dominant open-source IAM — full SSO, MFA, identity federation, and user management — but self-hosted operational burden is the primary cost that commercial alternatives eliminate.
Best for: Teams with Kubernetes/container expertise that want full-featured IAM without per-user licensing costs, especially in on-premises or regulated environments.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) is the most cost-effective enterprise IAM for Microsoft-centric environments — included in M365 — but capabilities outside the Microsoft ecosystem lag behind Okta.
Best for: Organizations heavily invested in Microsoft 365 and Azure that want enterprise-grade identity included in their existing licensing without additional per-user IAM costs.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
miniOrange is a budget IAM provider offering SSO, MFA, and directory integration at significantly lower pricing than Okta — but capabilities, UX, and support quality reflect the price point.
Best for: Budget-conscious SMBs that need basic SSO, MFA, and directory integration without the per-user costs of Okta, Duo, or Entra ID.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
Okta is the market leader in cloud identity — strongest SSO and lifecycle management for multi-cloud, multi-SaaS environments — but per-user pricing with add-on modules makes total cost hard to predict.
Best for: Mid-to-large enterprises with complex multi-cloud and multi-SaaS environments that need best-in-class SSO, lifecycle management, and adaptive MFA from an identity-first vendor.
Per-user · Cloud · Free trial
OneLogin (now One Identity by Quest) offers competitive SSO and MFA at lower per-user pricing than Okta — but the Quest acquisition has slowed product development and created roadmap uncertainty.
Best for: Mid-market organizations that need solid SSO, MFA, and directory integration at a lower per-user price point than Okta, without needing advanced governance or lifecycle automation.
Custom quote · Cloud · Free trial
PingOne (Ping Identity) is strongest for large enterprises with hybrid identity requirements — on-premises AD integration with cloud SSO — but complexity and pricing position it as an enterprise-only option.
Best for: Large enterprises with hybrid identity environments (on-premises Active Directory + cloud SSO) that need advanced federation, API security, and complex identity orchestration.
These tools are part of the identity & access management systems category but may not match the free tools filter above. Worth reviewing if the primary options don't fit.
Custom quote · Cloud
CyberArk Identity combines workforce IAM with the leading privileged access management (PAM) platform — the strongest choice when identity and privileged access need to converge.
Custom quote · Cloud / On-prem
One Identity (Quest Software) covers IAM, IGA, and PAM in a single vendor portfolio — strongest for organizations that want to consolidate identity vendors — but integration between products can feel fragmented.
Custom quote · Cloud
Rippling unifies HR, IT, and identity management — the only platform where hiring an employee automatically provisions their identity, apps, and devices — but its an HR platform with IAM, not an IAM platform.
Custom quote · Cloud
RSA ID Plus (formerly RSA SecurID) is a legacy MFA platform repositioning toward modern identity — strongest for existing RSA SecurID customers — but new buyers have better options.
Custom quote · Cloud
SailPoint is the leader in identity governance and administration (IGA) — access certification, role mining, and compliance — but its focused on governance, not operational IAM like Okta or Entra ID.
Keycloak is fully open source (Apache 2.0) with SSO, MFA, LDAP/AD federation, and fine-grained authorization at no cost. The tradeoff is self-hosted operational burden. Auth0 Free covers up to 7,500 MAU for customer-facing auth. Entra ID Free provides basic cloud identity.
Functionally yes — Keycloak provides SSO, MFA, social login, federation, and fine-grained authorization. The gap is in managed service convenience, pre-built integrations (Okta has 7,400+), enterprise support, and the operational burden of self-hosting.
When you need vendor-managed infrastructure (SLA, support), pre-built integrations with SaaS apps, advanced MFA options (biometric, FIDO2), lifecycle management (automated provisioning/deprovisioning), or compliance certifications that self-hosted Keycloak can't easily provide.
