Is authentik or Refact better?

Neither clearly leads. authentik starts at Free and Refact at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, authentik or Refact?

authentik starts at Free and Refact at Free.

Does authentik or Refact run on more platforms?

authentik runs on Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted. Refact runs on VS Code, Web.

Can I use authentik for free?

Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.

What is authentik best used for?

authentik is most often used for self-hosted sso across internal services without commercial identity pricing, putting authentication in front of applications that have none, via the proxy, teams who tried keycloak and wanted something less heavy. Of those, self-hosted sso across internal services without commercial identity pricing and putting authentication in front of applications that have none, via the proxy are not what Refact is typically brought in for.

What can authentik do that Refact cannot?

authentik covers Configurable flows, Protocol support, Application proxy, Modern admin interface. Refact covers Autonomous agent workflows, IDE chat, Real-time code completions, GitHub integration.

Cybersecurity · head to head

authentik vs Refact

authentik

Cybersecurity

Open-source identity provider with flexible authentication flows

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Refact

Developer Tools

Autonomous AI coding agent for development tasks

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Each has a real cost: authentik smaller project than Keycloak, with a correspondingly smaller community and fewer integration guides; Refact requires configuration for optimal performance
They diverge on capability: authentik covers Configurable flows, Refact covers Autonomous agent workflows.
Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which authentik and Refact actually diverge.

Attributes where authentik and Refact differ
Attribute	authentik	Refact
Pricing model	Open-source core with a paid enterprise tier	Freemium with paid tiers
Platforms	Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted	VS Code, Web
Category	Cybersecurity	Developer Tools
Founded	Unknown	2023

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 authentik

Configurable flows
Protocol support
Application proxy
Modern admin interface

Only in Refact

Autonomous agent workflows
IDE chat
Real-time code completions
GitHub integration
Database integration
On-premise deployment
Multi-LLM support
25+ language support

What people use each for

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

authentik

Self-hosted SSO across internal services without commercial identity pricingnot Refact
Putting authentication in front of applications that have none, via the proxynot Refact
Teams who tried Keycloak and wanted something less heavynot Refact

Refact

Autonomous code generation for development tasksnot authentik
End-to-end bug fixes and refactoringnot authentik
Multi-language software development accelerationnot authentik
Enterprise development with data privacy requirementsnot authentik

Where each one falls short

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

authentik

Smaller project than Keycloak, with a correspondingly smaller community and fewer integration guides
The flow model is flexible but conceptually unfamiliar, and simple setups can feel over-abstracted
Enterprise support and some governance features sit behind the paid tier
Self-hosted identity is still yours to secure, patch and keep available

Refact

Requires configuration for optimal performance
On-premise deployment adds operational complexity
Free tier limited by daily agent request quota
Coin system adds complexity to cost calculation

Pricing, plan by plan

authentik

Free

Open sourceFree
- Full identity provider
- All protocols
- Community support

Refact

Free

FreeFree
- Limited daily agent usage
- Unlimited completions
- 2,000 coins for agent and chat
Pro$10/month
- 40 daily agent requests
- 64k context window
- 10,000 coins monthly
Enterprise$undefined/custom
- On-premise deployment
- Custom coin allocation
- Fine-tuning support

Which should you pick?

Choose authentik if

You need configurable flows.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted.
You also want protocol support.

authentik review

Choose Refact if

You need autonomous agent workflows.
You want to start without paying.
You work on VS Code, Web.
You also want ide chat.

Refact review

Questions people ask

Is authentik or Refact better?: Neither clearly leads. authentik starts at Free and Refact at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, authentik or Refact?: authentik starts at Free and Refact at Free.
Does authentik or Refact run on more platforms?: authentik runs on Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, Self-hosted. Refact runs on VS Code, Web.
Can I use authentik for free?: Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is authentik best used for?: authentik is most often used for self-hosted sso across internal services without commercial identity pricing, putting authentication in front of applications that have none, via the proxy, teams who tried keycloak and wanted something less heavy. Of those, self-hosted sso across internal services without commercial identity pricing and putting authentication in front of applications that have none, via the proxy are not what Refact is typically brought in for.
What can authentik do that Refact cannot?: authentik covers Configurable flows, Protocol support, Application proxy, Modern admin interface. Refact covers Autonomous agent workflows, IDE chat, Real-time code completions, GitHub integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

authentik: Is authentik free?

The open-source edition is free and complete for most use. An enterprise tier adds support and additional features.

Refact: How many programming languages does Refact support?

Refact supports 25+ programming languages including Python, JavaScript, Go, Rust, Java, C++, and many others.

Source

authentik: authentik or Keycloak?

authentik is generally reported as easier to run and administer; Keycloak is more established with a larger community and Red Hat behind it.

Refact: Can I deploy Refact on-premises?

Yes. Refact offers on-premise deployment options for organizations requiring complete data control and privacy.

Source

authentik: Can authentik protect apps with no login of their own?

Yes. Its application proxy places authentication in front of services that have no built-in authentication.

Refact: What LLMs does Refact support?

Refact works with multiple LLMs including Claude, GPT-4, and open-source models, giving you flexibility in model selection.

Source

authentik vs Refact

authentik

Refact

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in authentik

Only in Refact

What people use each for

authentik

Refact

Where each one falls short

authentik

Refact

Pricing, plan by plan

authentik

Refact

Which should you pick?

Choose authentik if

Choose Refact if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on authentik

More on Refact

Keep looking

Other head to heads