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Cybersecurity · head to head

Descope vs Restate

Descope logo

Descope

Cybersecurity

No-code drag-and-drop authentication platform.

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Restate logo

Restate

Developer Tools

Durable execution engine in Rust with a free tier and low-latency workflows

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Descope free tier capped at 7,500 MAU; Pro tier at 10,000 MAU, Growth tier at 25,000 MAU, forcing migration to Enterprise for larger organisations; Restate the runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Descope and Restate actually diverge.

Attributes where Descope and Restate differ
AttributeDescopeRestate
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by durable action count
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, APILinux, macOS, Web
CategoryCybersecurityDeveloper Tools

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 Descope

Nothing recorded that Restate does not also cover.

Only in Restate

  • Durable execution
  • Virtual objects
  • Single binary runtime
  • Multi-language SDKs
  • Workflows and sagas
  • Restate Cloud

What people use each for

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

Descope

  • Organisations seeking rapid identity implementation without custom developmentnot Restate
  • Companies supporting multiple user types (consumers, partners, AI agents) in single platformnot Restate
  • Multi-tenant B2B2C SaaS applications requiring per-organisation identity policiesnot Restate
  • Teams building passwordless-first authentication experiencesnot Restate
  • Healthcare and regulated industries requiring HIPAA-compliant identity managementnot Restate

Restate

  • Payment or order flows where a crash between two external API calls must not double-charge or lose the ordernot Descope
  • AI agent loops that call tools over minutes or hours and must survive a deployment mid-runnot Descope
  • Replacing hand-rolled retry, idempotency key and outbox code across a set of microservicesnot Descope
  • A small team that wants durable workflows without operating a Temporal cluster and its databasenot Descope

Where each one falls short

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

Descope

  • Free tier capped at 7,500 MAU; Pro tier at 10,000 MAU, Growth tier at 25,000 MAU, forcing migration to Enterprise for larger organisations
  • HIPAA compliance only available in Growth tier ($799/mo) and above; not included in lower-priced plans
  • No-code UI builder provides pre-built flows but still requires custom frontend development for fully-branded authentication experiences
  • All paid tiers billed annually; no monthly billing option for commitment-free flexibility
  • Bot protection features available only in Growth tier and above

Restate

  • The runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • Restate Cloud jumps from a free fifty thousand actions straight to 300 US dollars a month for twenty million, so a workload sitting at a few hundred thousand actions pays enterprise-shaped money for hobby-shaped volume.
  • It is a young project against Temporal’s established base, so hiring engineers who already know it is unrealistic and the answer to most questions is in the docs rather than on Stack Overflow.
  • The programming model requires structuring code around durable handlers and virtual objects, which is a genuine rewrite for existing services rather than a library you add.
  • The single-binary simplicity that makes small deployments cheap also means fewer operational knobs at very large scale than a system designed as separable components.

Pricing, plan by plan

Descope

Free
  • Free ForeverFree
    • 7,500 monthly active users
    • Basic authentication
    • Community support
  • Pro$249/month
    • 10,000 monthly active users
    • Custom domains
    • CI/CD integration
  • Growth$799/month
    • 25,000 monthly active users
    • Bot protection
    • Fine-grained authorisation
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Unlimited monthly active users
    • Tiered discounts
    • Premium support with dedicated CS engineer

Restate

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Fifty thousand durable actions per month
    • No credit card required
    • Community support
  • Starter$300/month
    • Twenty million actions per month
    • Two hundred actions per second, bursting to one thousand
    • Twenty GB storage
  • Pro$1000/month
    • Fifty million actions per month
    • Five hundred actions per second, bursting to two thousand
    • Fifty GB storage
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Negotiated volume
    • Twenty-four seven P0 support
    • 99.99 per cent SLA

Which should you pick?

Choose Descope if

  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, API.
Descope review

Choose Restate if

  • You need durable execution.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Web.
  • You also want virtual objects.
Restate review

Questions people ask

Is Descope or Restate better?
Neither clearly leads. Descope starts at Free and Restate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Descope or Restate?
Descope starts at Free and Restate at Free.
Does Descope or Restate run on more platforms?
Descope runs on Web, iOS, Android, API. Restate runs on Linux, macOS, Web.
Can I use Descope for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Descope best used for?
Descope is most often used for organisations seeking rapid identity implementation without custom development, companies supporting multiple user types (consumers, partners, ai agents) in single platform, multi-tenant b2b2c saas applications requiring per-organisation identity policies, teams building passwordless-first authentication experiences. Of those, organisations seeking rapid identity implementation without custom development and companies supporting multiple user types (consumers, partners, ai agents) in single platform are not what Restate is typically brought in for.
What can Descope do that Restate cannot?
Restate covers Durable execution, Virtual objects, Single binary runtime, Multi-language SDKs.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Descope: Can I build custom authentication flows without code?

Yes. Descope's drag-and-drop workflow interface allows you to construct and modify signup, login, MFA and SSO flows without code changes.

Source
Restate: Is Restate open source?

The SDKs are MIT. The runtime is under a Business Source Licence, which permits self-hosting but not offering it as a competing service.

Descope: Does Descope support AI agent authentication?

Yes. Descope supports building identity journeys for AI agents and MCP servers, including scoped OAuth tokens and delegation chains.

Source
Restate: How does it compare with Temporal?

Same problem, different shape: one Rust binary with embedded storage instead of a server plus database plus workers, and lower per-step latency.

Descope: Is Descope HIPAA compliant?

HIPAA compliance is available in Growth tier and above, starting at $799/month.

Source
Restate: Is there a free tier?

Yes, fifty thousand durable actions a month on Restate Cloud with no card required.

Restate: Which languages are supported?

TypeScript, Java, Kotlin, Go, Python and Rust.

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