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Cybersecurity · head to head

Clerk vs Fenergo

Clerk logo

Clerk

Cybersecurity

Drop-in user authentication and management for developers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Fenergo logo

Fenergo

Cybersecurity

Client lifecycle management and KYC onboarding for regulated financial institutions

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Clerk has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Clerk pricing scales with monthly retained users, which can grow expensive quickly for consumer apps with large user bases.; Fenergo implementations commonly run twelve to twenty-four months and depend on a systems integrator, so the services cost frequently exceeds the software subscription in year one.
  • They diverge on capability: Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components, Fenergo covers Regulatory rules library.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Clerk and Fenergo actually diverge.

Attributes where Clerk and Fenergo differ
AttributeClerkFenergo
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, ios, android, apiWeb

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 Clerk

  • Prebuilt UI components
  • Organization management
  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Social sign-on
  • Billing
  • Enterprise connections

Only in Fenergo

  • Regulatory rules library
  • Digital onboarding
  • Perpetual KYC
  • Entity data model
  • Screening orchestration
  • Case management

What people use each for

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

Clerk

  • Adding sign-in and user profiles to a web or mobile app quicklynot Fenergo
  • B2B SaaS apps needing organizations and role-based accessnot Fenergo
  • Startups wanting prebuilt UI instead of building auth in-housenot Fenergo
  • Apps needing MFA and fraud detection out of the boxnot Fenergo

Fenergo

  • A bank operating in twenty jurisdictions that cannot keep local KYC requirements current across separate regional teamsnot Clerk
  • A custodian moving from calendar-based periodic review to event-driven perpetual KYC to cut analyst headcountnot Clerk
  • An asset manager onboarding funds and trusts where the ownership hierarchy defeats generic identity verification toolsnot Clerk
  • A payments institution facing a regulatory remediation order and needing a defensible audit trail of every client reviewnot Clerk

Where each one falls short

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

Clerk

  • Pricing scales with monthly retained users, which can grow expensive quickly for consumer apps with large user bases.
  • Enterprise SSO connections beyond the first are billed as add-ons, adding cost for larger organizations.
  • The Business tier's extra dashboard seats cost $20/month each, which adds up for larger teams.
  • Enterprise-tier features like the 99.99% uptime SLA require annual contracts rather than flexible monthly billing.

Fenergo

  • Implementations commonly run twelve to twenty-four months and depend on a systems integrator, so the services cost frequently exceeds the software subscription in year one.
  • It orchestrates screening but does not supply the sanctions, PEP or adverse media data, so you still buy Dow Jones, LexisNexis or World-Check separately and those fees are per screened entity.
  • The entry price is set for institutions with large onboarding volumes, which puts it out of reach of smaller banks and fintechs that would otherwise benefit from the rules library.
  • Configuration is deep and specific, which makes upgrades between major versions a project rather than a patch, and some customers stay on old releases for years.
  • The rules library covers regulatory requirements, not your internal risk appetite, so the policy tuning that determines whether onboarding actually gets faster remains your work.

Pricing, plan by plan

Clerk

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 50,000 MRU limit per app
    • Up to 3 dashboard seats
    • Unlimited applications
  • Pro$25/month
    • 50,000 MRUs included, $0.02/MRU overage
    • Up to 3 dashboard seats
    • 1 Enterprise Connection included
  • Business$300/month
    • 50,000 MRUs included with volume pricing
    • 10 dashboard seats included
    • SOC2 report and priority support
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom pricing, annual billing
    • 99.99% uptime SLA
    • HIPAA available, dedicated Slack channel

Fenergo

On request
  • Fenergo Client Lifecycle Management$undefined/year
    • Priced by institution size, jurisdictions in scope and modules licensed
    • Regulatory rules content subscription bundled into the annual fee
    • Implementation delivered by Fenergo or a systems integrator and quoted separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Clerk if

  • You need prebuilt ui components.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, ios, android, api.
  • You also want organization management.
Clerk review

Choose Fenergo if

  • You need regulatory rules library.
  • You also want digital onboarding.
Fenergo review

Questions people ask

Is Clerk or Fenergo better?
Neither clearly leads. Clerk starts at Free and Fenergo at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Clerk or Fenergo?
Clerk has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Clerk and On request for Fenergo.
Does Clerk or Fenergo run on more platforms?
Clerk runs on web, ios, android, api. Fenergo runs on Web.
Can I use Clerk for free?
Yes. Clerk has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fenergo starts at On request.
What is Clerk best used for?
Clerk is most often used for adding sign-in and user profiles to a web or mobile app quickly, b2b saas apps needing organizations and role-based access, startups wanting prebuilt ui instead of building auth in-house, apps needing mfa and fraud detection out of the box. Of those, adding sign-in and user profiles to a web or mobile app quickly and b2b saas apps needing organizations and role-based access are not what Fenergo is typically brought in for.
What can Clerk do that Fenergo cannot?
Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components, Organization management, Multi-factor authentication, Social sign-on. Fenergo covers Regulatory rules library, Digital onboarding, Perpetual KYC, Entity data model.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Clerk: What does Clerk cost?

Clerk's Hobby plan is free with a 50,000 MRU limit; Pro is $25/month ($20/month billed annually), Business is $300/month ($250 annually), and Enterprise uses custom annual pricing.

Source
Fenergo: Does Fenergo do the sanctions screening itself?

No. It orchestrates calls to third-party data providers such as Dow Jones and World-Check, and those subscriptions are additional and usually charged per screened entity.

Clerk: Is there a free plan and what are its limits?

Yes, the Hobby plan is free with a 50,000 monthly retained user (MRU) limit per app, up to 3 dashboard seats, and unlimited applications, with no credit card required.

Source
Fenergo: Is it SaaS or on-premises?

Both. The SaaS offering runs on Microsoft Azure with regional deployment options, which matters where data residency rules prohibit client data leaving the jurisdiction.

Clerk: How is usage metered?

Clerk meters by monthly retained users (MRUs) — users who return to the app at least a day after signing up — with overage billed at $0.02 per MRU beyond the included 50,000 on paid plans.

Source
Fenergo: How long does a deployment take?

Plan for a year at minimum for a multi-jurisdiction rollout. Single-jurisdiction deployments with a narrow product set can be shorter but rarely under six months.

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