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Cybersecurity · head to head

Authy vs Very Good Security

Authy logo

Authy

Cybersecurity

Twilio's free authenticator app with encrypted cloud backup, mobile only since the desktop clients were withdrawn in 2024.

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Very Good Security logo

Very Good Security

Cybersecurity

Tokenisation proxy that keeps card and personal data out of your own systems and out of PCI scope

From
$1000/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Authy has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Authy there is no export function for stored TOTP secrets, so moving to a different authenticator means disabling and re-enrolling two-factor authentication on every account individually, which is the reason most users stay rather than a reason anyone should choose it.; Very Good Security vGS sits in the live path of every request carrying sensitive data, so its latency and availability become yours, and an outage in the proxy is a payment outage no matter how healthy your own systems are.
  • They diverge on capability: Authy covers Encrypted cloud backup, Very Good Security covers Aliasing proxy.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Authy and Very Good Security actually diverge.

Attributes where Authy and Very Good Security differ
AttributeAuthyVery Good Security
Starting priceFree$1000/month
Pricing modelfreePer month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, 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 Authy

  • Encrypted cloud backup
  • Multi-device sync
  • Standard TOTP
  • Offline code generation
  • App lock
  • Multi-device toggle
  • Token organisation
  • Free with no account tier

Only in Very Good Security

  • Aliasing proxy
  • PCI scope reduction
  • Network tokenisation
  • Processor optionality
  • Card issuing data
  • Vault and access controls
  • Data residency options
  • Compliance artefacts

What people use each for

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

Authy

  • An individual who wants two-factor authentication on personal accounts and needs it to survive losing or replacing a phonenot Very Good Security
  • A small team sharing access to a service account where the same tokens must be available on more than one handsetnot Very Good Security
  • Replacing SMS-based codes with TOTP for someone who would abandon two-factor entirely if recovery were difficultnot Very Good Security
  • Consolidating tokens scattered across several apps onto one device list with recognisable names and iconsnot Very Good Security

Very Good Security

  • A marketplace facing its first PCI DSS Level 1 assessment that wants to keep card data off its own estate rather than harden a dozen servicesnot Authy
  • A merchant negotiating with a second acquirer that needs card credentials portable so the negotiation is real rather than theoreticalnot Authy
  • A fintech collecting bank account and identity documents that wants sensitive fields absent from logs, backups and analytics warehouses by constructionnot Authy
  • A card issuer that must display a full PAN in its own mobile app without the app or its backend touching cardholder datanot Authy

Where each one falls short

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

Authy

  • There is no export function for stored TOTP secrets, so moving to a different authenticator means disabling and re-enrolling two-factor authentication on every account individually, which is the reason most users stay rather than a reason anyone should choose it.
  • The Windows, macOS and Linux desktop applications were discontinued in 2024 and stopped working, so any workflow that depended on copying codes on a computer now requires a phone in hand, and users who held tokens only on a desktop client had to restore from backup or re-enrol.
  • The account is keyed to a phone number, so an attacker who takes over that number through a SIM swap can begin the device registration flow, and the only remaining control is the backup password that most users set once and cannot recall.
  • In 2024 an unauthenticated Twilio endpoint allowed attackers to confirm which numbers from a supplied list were registered Authy accounts, exposing around 33 million phone numbers, which disclosed no codes but handed phishers a validated list of people known to use two-factor authentication.
  • It is a free consumer application inside a company that has already retired the paid Authy developer API it once supported, so it carries no revenue of its own, and users should treat its continued existence as a business decision rather than a roadmap commitment.

Very Good Security

  • VGS sits in the live path of every request carrying sensitive data, so its latency and availability become yours, and an outage in the proxy is a payment outage no matter how healthy your own systems are.
  • Token portability is the whole selling point yet leaving VGS means migrating tokens back out, a project the vendor has no incentive to streamline, so the lock-in you removed from your acquirer partly moves to VGS.
  • Entry pricing at around one thousand US dollars a month is real money for a pre-revenue fintech, and it buys volume-limited throughput, so cost scales with exactly the growth that made you buy it.
  • Scope reduction is not scope elimination: your QSA still assesses how you integrate, and teams regularly discover that a support tool or an internal admin screen pulled plaintext back in and dragged systems into scope again.
  • Proxy-based interception constrains how you design request flows, and non-standard payloads, streaming uploads or binary formats often need custom routing rules that make debugging production issues noticeably harder.

Pricing, plan by plan

Authy

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Authy review.

Very Good Security

$1000/month
  • Starter$1000/month
    • Aliasing proxy
    • Vault storage
    • PCI scope reduction
  • Growth$undefined/month
    • Network tokenisation
    • Multiple processors
    • Data residency options
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Custom vault architecture
    • Dedicated support and SLA
    • Contractual compliance coverage

Which should you pick?

Choose Authy if

  • You need encrypted cloud backup.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want multi-device sync.
Authy review

Choose Very Good Security if

  • You need aliasing proxy.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want pci scope reduction.
Very Good Security review

Questions people ask

Is Authy or Very Good Security better?
Neither clearly leads. Authy starts at Free and Very Good Security at $1000/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Authy or Very Good Security?
Authy has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Authy and $1000/month for Very Good Security.
Does Authy or Very Good Security run on more platforms?
Authy runs on Web. Very Good Security runs on Web, API.
Can I use Authy for free?
Yes. Authy has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Very Good Security starts at $1000/month.
What is Authy best used for?
Authy is most often used for an individual who wants two-factor authentication on personal accounts and needs it to survive losing or replacing a phone, a small team sharing access to a service account where the same tokens must be available on more than one handset, replacing sms-based codes with totp for someone who would abandon two-factor entirely if recovery were difficult, consolidating tokens scattered across several apps onto one device list with recognisable names and icons. Of those, an individual who wants two-factor authentication on personal accounts and needs it to survive losing or replacing a phone and a small team sharing access to a service account where the same tokens must be available on more than one handset are not what Very Good Security is typically brought in for.
What can Authy do that Very Good Security cannot?
Authy covers Encrypted cloud backup, Multi-device sync, Standard TOTP, Offline code generation. Very Good Security covers Aliasing proxy, PCI scope reduction, Network tokenisation, Processor optionality.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Authy: Is Authy still supported?

The mobile apps for iOS and Android are still available and functional. The desktop applications were withdrawn in 2024 and the Authy developer API has been retired in favour of Twilio Verify, so the surrounding product has been shrinking.

Very Good Security: Does VGS make me PCI compliant?

No. It removes cardholder data from your systems so your assessment covers a far smaller boundary, but you still complete an assessment and your integration is part of it.

Authy: Can I export my tokens?

No. There is no export of the underlying secrets, by design. Migrating to another authenticator means going to each service, disabling two-factor authentication and setting it up again with the new app.

Very Good Security: Can I move to another processor without re-collecting cards?

Yes, that is a core reason people buy it. The vault reveals stored credentials to whichever processor you route to.

Authy: What happened to the desktop app?

Twilio announced its discontinuation in March 2024 and the applications stopped working later that year. There is no replacement desktop client; the mobile apps are the product now.

Very Good Security: What does it cost?

Published entry pricing is about one thousand US dollars per month; growth and enterprise tiers are quoted.

Authy: Is multi-device sync safe to leave on?

It is the feature most worth understanding. Leaving new device registration enabled means anyone who controls your phone number can attempt to add a device. The usual advice is to turn the multi-device setting off once your devices are registered and turn it on only when you need to add one.

Very Good Security: Is it only for card data?

No. The proxy handles any sensitive field, including bank details, national identifiers and documents, though payments is where the product is now focused.

Authy: What if I lose my phone and forget the backup password?

The secrets are encrypted with that password and Twilio does not hold it, so they cannot be recovered. You would fall back to each individual service's account recovery process, which is exactly the situation the backup was meant to avoid.

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