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Developer Tools · head to head

Avo vs Ory Kratos

Avo logo

Avo

Developer Tools

Analytics governance: define a tracking plan, generate typed code from it, and catch drift before release

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Ory Kratos logo

Ory Kratos

Cybersecurity

Headless identity and user management API

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Avo editor seats are the metered unit and only five are included on the Team plan, so a company where many squads define their own events pays 50 dollars per additional editor and the real cost quickly exceeds the headline 250.; Ory Kratos headless means you build every screen, which is significant work compared with a hosted login page
  • They diverge on capability: Avo covers Tracking plan, Ory Kratos covers Headless API.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Avo and Ory Kratos actually diverge.

Attributes where Avo and Ory Kratos differ
AttributeAvoOry Kratos
Pricing modelPer editor seat per monthOpen-source self-hosted, with a paid managed network
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, Web SDK, APILinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity

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 Avo

  • Tracking plan
  • Code generation
  • Inspector
  • Branching and approvals
  • Schema sync
  • Stakeholder access
  • Audit trail
  • Data design standards

Only in Ory Kratos

  • Headless API
  • Self-service flows
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Pluggable identity schemas

What people use each for

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

Avo

  • A product team whose iOS and Android event names have drifted apart, making cross-platform funnels meaninglessnot Ory Kratos
  • An analytics lead who wants tracking changes to go through review rather than appearing in production unannouncednot Ory Kratos
  • A company migrating between analytics tools that needs a canonical event schema independent of any vendornot Ory Kratos
  • An engineering organisation that wants event tracking mistakes caught by the compiler rather than by an analyst three months laternot Ory Kratos

Ory Kratos

  • Products needing complete control over the look and flow of authenticationnot Avo
  • Applications that must not hand user identity data to a third partynot Avo
  • Teams building identity as infrastructure across several servicesnot Avo

Where each one falls short

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

Avo

  • Editor seats are the metered unit and only five are included on the Team plan, so a company where many squads define their own events pays 50 dollars per additional editor and the real cost quickly exceeds the headline 250.
  • Avo governs event definitions but does not fix historic data, so an organisation with years of inconsistent tracking still faces the backfill problem it cannot solve.
  • Code generation requires engineering teams to adopt generated modules in their build, and in practice some platform teams resist, leaving parts of the estate ungoverned and the plan only partly enforced.
  • Inspector event volume is capped by tier, at 100,000 on free and one million on enterprise, so a high-traffic consumer product samples rather than observes everything and drift can hide in the unobserved portion.
  • It is an additional tool in an analytics stack that already costs money, and justifying it requires the organisation to accept that its existing data is unreliable, which is a political argument as much as a budgetary one.

Ory Kratos

  • Headless means you build every screen, which is significant work compared with a hosted login page
  • More moving parts than a monolithic IAM: Kratos handles identity, and OAuth2 needs Ory Hydra alongside
  • Documentation assumes real familiarity with identity concepts and is not a gentle introduction
  • Self-hosting identity carries the security and availability burden that hosted providers absorb

Pricing, plan by plan

Avo

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 2 editor seats
    • Unlimited comment seats
    • 100,000 events observed in Inspector
  • Team$250/month
    • 5 editor seats included
    • Additional editors at $50 per month annually
    • Approval workflows and branch audits
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Custom seats and event volume
    • 1,000,000 events observed in Inspector
    • Enforceable approval and design standards

Ory Kratos

Free
  • Self-hostedFree
    • Full identity server
    • All flows
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Avo if

  • You need tracking plan.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Web SDK, API.
  • You also want code generation.
Avo review

Choose Ory Kratos if

  • You need headless api.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want self-service flows.
Ory Kratos review

Questions people ask

Is Avo or Ory Kratos better?
Neither clearly leads. Avo starts at Free and Ory Kratos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Avo or Ory Kratos?
Avo starts at Free and Ory Kratos at Free.
Does Avo or Ory Kratos run on more platforms?
Avo runs on Web, iOS, Android, Web SDK, API. Ory Kratos runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use Avo for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Avo best used for?
Avo is most often used for a product team whose ios and android event names have drifted apart, making cross-platform funnels meaningless, an analytics lead who wants tracking changes to go through review rather than appearing in production unannounced, a company migrating between analytics tools that needs a canonical event schema independent of any vendor, an engineering organisation that wants event tracking mistakes caught by the compiler rather than by an analyst three months later. Of those, a product team whose ios and android event names have drifted apart, making cross-platform funnels meaningless and an analytics lead who wants tracking changes to go through review rather than appearing in production unannounced are not what Ory Kratos is typically brought in for.
What can Avo do that Ory Kratos cannot?
Avo covers Tracking plan, Code generation, Inspector, Branching and approvals. Ory Kratos covers Headless API, Self-service flows, Multi-factor authentication, Pluggable identity schemas.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Avo: Is the free tier usable in production?

Yes. It includes two editors, code generation and 100,000 events observed in Inspector, which is enough for a small team.

Ory Kratos: Is Ory Kratos free?

Yes, open source and free to self-host. Ory Network is a paid managed service.

Avo: What exactly does code generation give me?

Type-safe tracking functions per platform, so a wrong event name or property type fails at compile time rather than in production data.

Ory Kratos: What does headless mean here?

Kratos provides identity flows as APIs and no user interface. You build the login, registration and recovery screens yourself.

Avo: Does Avo replace Amplitude or Mixpanel?

No. It governs the events those tools receive; you still need an analytics product.

Ory Kratos: Does Kratos do OAuth2?

No. Kratos handles user identity; OAuth2 and OpenID Connect provider functionality is Ory Hydra, a separate component.

Avo: How much is the Team plan?

250 US dollars a month billed annually for five editors, or 300 billed monthly, with extra editors at 50 dollars.

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