Identity & Access Management · head to head
Clerk vs Flagsmith
Clerk
Identity & Access Management
Drop-in user authentication and management for developers
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Flagsmith
Software Development
Open-source feature flag and remote config platform
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Clerk pricing scales with monthly retained users, which can grow expensive quickly for consumer apps with large user bases.; Flagsmith the Free plan supports only a single team member, limiting collaboration for small teams.
- They diverge on capability: Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components, Flagsmith covers Feature flags.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Clerk and Flagsmith actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), 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 Clerk
- Prebuilt UI components
- Organization management
- Multi-factor authentication
- Social sign-on
- Billing
- Enterprise connections
Only in Flagsmith
- Feature flags
- Segments
- A/B testing
- Scheduled flags
- SDKs
- SAML/SSO
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 Flagsmith
- B2B SaaS apps needing organizations and role-based accessnot Flagsmith
- Startups wanting prebuilt UI instead of building auth in-housenot Flagsmith
- Apps needing MFA and fraud detection out of the boxnot Flagsmith
Flagsmith
- Gradual feature rollouts across environmentsnot Clerk
- Remote configuration without redeploying codenot Clerk
- Running A/B tests tied to feature flagsnot Clerk
- Self-hosting feature flags for data residency requirementsnot 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.
Flagsmith
- The Free plan supports only a single team member, limiting collaboration for small teams.
- Exceeding request limits triggers overage charges after a one-time 30-day grace period.
- Enterprise-grade SSO and governance are locked behind the Scale-Up and Enterprise tiers.
- Self-hosting requires operating and updating the platform yourself, unlike a fully managed SaaS competitor.
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
Flagsmith
Free- FreeFree
- Up to 50,000 requests/month
- 1 team member
- Unlimited feature flags, environments, identities and segments
- Start-Up$45/month
- Up to 1,000,000 requests/month
- 3 team members
- Scheduled flags, 2FA, A/B testing, integrations, email support
- Scale-Up$300/month
- 5,000,000+ requests/month
- 5-20 team members
- SAML/SSO, governance features, priority support
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.
Choose Flagsmith if
- You need feature flags.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on web, api.
- You also want segments.
Questions people ask
- Is Clerk or Flagsmith better?
- Neither clearly leads. Clerk starts at Free and Flagsmith at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Clerk or Flagsmith?
- Clerk starts at Free and Flagsmith at Free.
- Does Clerk or Flagsmith run on more platforms?
- Clerk runs on web, ios, android, api. Flagsmith runs on web, api.
- Can I use Clerk for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- 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 Flagsmith is typically brought in for.
- What can Clerk do that Flagsmith cannot?
- Clerk covers Prebuilt UI components, Organization management, Multi-factor authentication, Social sign-on. Flagsmith covers Feature flags, Segments, A/B testing, Scheduled flags.
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.
SourceFlagsmith: What does Flagsmith cost?
Flagsmith has a Free plan, a Start-Up plan from $40-45/month, a Scale-Up plan from $250-300/month, and custom Enterprise pricing.
SourceClerk: 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.
SourceFlagsmith: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?
The Free plan supports up to 50,000 requests per month and 1 team member, with unlimited feature flags, environments, identities and segments.
SourceClerk: 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.
SourceFlagsmith: How is usage metered?
Usage is metered by monthly API requests; exceeding a plan's limit triggers overage charges starting around $50 per million requests, with a 30-day grace period the first time a paid plan exceeds its limit.
SourceRelated pages
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