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Cybersecurity · head to head

Authelia vs Speakeasy

Authelia logo

Authelia

Cybersecurity

Open-source authentication and two-factor portal for reverse proxies

From
Free
Rated
-
Speakeasy logo

Speakeasy

Cybersecurity

AI control plane for governing enterprise agents, MCP servers, and skills

From
On request
Rated
-

The short version

  • Only Authelia has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Authelia depends on a reverse proxy: it is not a standalone identity provider; Speakeasy no self-serve pricing is published; every plan requires a sales conversation.
  • They diverge on capability: Authelia covers Reverse proxy integration, Speakeasy covers AI tool catalog.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Authelia and Speakeasy actually diverge.

Attributes where Authelia and Speakeasy differ
AttributeAutheliaSpeakeasy
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feequote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsDocker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hostedweb, api

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Authelia

  • Reverse proxy integration
  • Two-factor authentication
  • Access control rules
  • Lightweight backends

Only in Speakeasy

  • AI tool catalog
  • Per-agent identity
  • Role-based access control
  • Real-time policy enforcement
  • Audit logging
  • MDM and SSO integration

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Authelia

  • Putting a login and 2FA in front of self-hosted services that have nonenot Speakeasy
  • Adding SSO across a small set of internal tools without a full identity platformnot Speakeasy
  • Home and small-team infrastructure behind a single reverse proxynot Speakeasy

Speakeasy

  • Governing AI agents at enterprise scalenot Authelia
  • Preventing shadow AI tool sprawlnot Authelia
  • Enforcing least-privilege access for agentsnot Authelia
  • Auditing AI tool call activity for compliancenot Authelia

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Authelia

  • Depends on a reverse proxy: it is not a standalone identity provider
  • Configuration is YAML-first with no administrative interface, so changes mean editing files
  • Not a full IAM: user management, provisioning and federation are limited compared with Keycloak
  • Scales poorly as an organisation-wide identity solution, which is not its target

Speakeasy

  • No self-serve pricing is published; every plan requires a sales conversation.
  • The product pivoted away from its original SDK-generation offering, so past documentation and customers built on that use case are no longer the focus.
  • Requires integration with an existing identity provider such as Okta or Entra ID to be useful, so it is not a standalone solution.
  • No published free tier or trial pricing was found.

Pricing, plan by plan

Authelia

Free
  • AutheliaFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Speakeasy

On request
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Custom pricing
    • AI tool catalog and visibility
    • Per-agent identity and access control

Which should you pick?

Choose Authelia if

  • You need reverse proxy integration.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted.
  • You also want two-factor authentication.

Choose Speakeasy if

  • You need ai tool catalog.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want per-agent identity.

Questions people ask

Is Authelia or Speakeasy better?
Neither clearly leads. Authelia starts at Free and Speakeasy at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Authelia or Speakeasy?
Authelia has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Authelia and On request for Speakeasy.
Does Authelia or Speakeasy run on more platforms?
Authelia runs on Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted. Speakeasy runs on web, api.
Can I use Authelia for free?
Yes. Authelia has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Speakeasy starts at On request.
What is Authelia best used for?
Authelia is most often used for putting a login and 2fa in front of self-hosted services that have none, adding sso across a small set of internal tools without a full identity platform, home and small-team infrastructure behind a single reverse proxy. Of those, putting a login and 2fa in front of self-hosted services that have none and adding sso across a small set of internal tools without a full identity platform are not what Speakeasy is typically brought in for.
What can Authelia do that Speakeasy cannot?
Authelia covers Reverse proxy integration, Two-factor authentication, Access control rules, Lightweight backends. Speakeasy covers AI tool catalog, Per-agent identity, Role-based access control, Real-time policy enforcement.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Authelia: Is Authelia free?

Yes, open source with no licence fee.

Speakeasy: How much does Speakeasy cost?

Speakeasy offers an Enterprise tier with features including SaaS catalog integrations, custom server creation, code mode efficiency, and serverless hosting. No specific pricing is published; interested parties contact the company to discuss pricing.

Source
Authelia: Does Authelia need a reverse proxy?

Yes. It integrates through forward authentication with Nginx, Traefik, Caddy or HAProxy rather than sitting in front of traffic itself.

Speakeasy: What is included in Speakeasy's Enterprise plan?

The Enterprise plan includes SaaS catalog integrations, custom server creation, code mode efficiency, and serverless hosting. Customers contact Speakeasy to discuss their specific pricing for these features.

Source
Authelia: Authelia or Keycloak?

Authelia is far lighter and aimed at protecting self-hosted services behind a proxy. Keycloak is a full identity and access management platform, and much more to run.

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