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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchThere is no single drop-in, free replacement for every Microsoft Entra ID workload. The practical shortlist is Keycloak for broadly capable, self-hosted SSO and federation; authentik for a self-hosted provider with a wide protocol set and proxy integration; ZITADEL for application identity and multi-tenant designs; and OpenIddict for teams implementing identity directly in ASP.NET Core. Each can reduce license fees, but none removes the work of running identity infrastructure or proving compatibility with your applications, directories, devices, policies and compliance controls.
Choose by workload and operating model—not by trying to reproduce every Entra feature. The comparison below separates what the projects publicly document from what you still need to validate in a proof of concept.
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What “free and open source” means in an Entra alternative
“Free” normally means that the software can be downloaded and run without a recurring license charge. It does not mean zero cost. A self-hosted identity service still needs compute, storage, backups, monitoring, upgrades, incident response, security reviews and people who can operate it. A paid enterprise tier or support contract may also be necessary for features your organization considers mandatory.
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“Alternative” is equally workload-dependent. Entra ID can be involved in workforce sign-in, application SSO, customer identity, directory synchronization, group and role provisioning, device access, conditional policies, audit and Microsoft cloud services. An open-source identity provider may replace one of those functions while leaving others in place. Microsoft’s overview of open-source identity projects is explicitly non-exhaustive and distinguishes self-hosted, container-based and cloud-managed deployments; it should not be read as a complete feature-parity matrix.
#1 Best Overall
- POWERFUL SECURITY KEY: The Security Key C NFC is the essential physical passkey for protecting your digital life from phishing attacks. It ensures only you can access your accounts.
- WORKS WITH 1000+ ACCOUNTS: Compatible with Google, Microsoft, and Apple. A single Security Key C NFC secures 100 of your favorite accounts, including email, password managers, and more.
- FAST & CONVENIENT LOGIN: Plug in your Security Key C NFC via USB-C and tap it, or tap it against your phone (NFC) to authenticate. No batteries, no internet connection, and no extra fees required.
- TRUSTED PASSKEY TECHNOLOGY: Uses the latest passkey standards (FIDO2/WebAuthn & FIDO U2F) but does not support One-Time Passwords. For complex needs, check out the YubiKey 5 Series.
- BUILT TO LAST: Made from tough, waterproof, and crush-resistant materials. Manufactured in Sweden and programmed in the USA with the highest security standards.
- Application SSO: users sign in once and applications trust a central provider through OIDC or SAML.
- Workforce directory: employee accounts, groups, lifecycle events, access reviews and policy enforcement.
- Customer identity: registration, login, recovery, social sign-in and tenant isolation for external users.
- Device and cloud dependencies: endpoint registration, device compliance and services that specifically expect Entra or Microsoft 365.
Before calling a platform a replacement, write down which of these you actually need. A project that is excellent for application login may not be a directory, device-management suite or substitute for every Microsoft cloud dependency.
Shortlist at a glance
| Platform | Documented capabilities | Best fit | Important cautions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keycloak | Self-hosted, container-based Apache 2.0 software. The project documents SSO, single sign-out, social login and brokering with existing OIDC or SAML 2.0 identity providers. | General-purpose application SSO and federation when your team can operate the service. | The cited material does not establish complete Entra parity, operating effort or every current feature boundary. |
| authentik | Its open-source tier is described as free and self-hosted, with OIDC, SAML, LDAP, SCIM, RADIUS, Kerberos, proxy integration and OpenID certification. Enterprise functionality and support are separate paid offerings. | Teams that value protocol breadth and using an identity layer in front of existing applications through a proxy. | The project says it does not currently provide a hosted version. Confirm whether a desired feature or support channel is free or paid. |
| ZITADEL | The maintained project README describes SSO, MFA, passkeys, OIDC, SAML, SCIM and multi-tenancy, with self-hosted and cloud options. | Application identity and B2B scenarios that need organizations, APIs and tenant separation. | The repository states AGPL-3.0 with licensing exceptions for some directories. Review the exact policy, deployment requirements and current cloud terms. |
| OpenIddict | Microsoft’s ASP.NET-focused overview lists it as a self-hosted Apache 2.0 open-source option. | Developers building identity capabilities into ASP.NET Core applications. | The available description is scoped to ASP.NET Core web apps; it does not establish a general enterprise directory or device-management replacement. |
This table is a starting point, not a ranking. The first-party descriptions support different deployment models and feature sets, so a universal winner would be misleading.
Keycloak: broad self-hosted SSO and federation
Keycloak is the strongest first candidate when your central requirement is to let many applications trust one self-hosted identity service. Its official site describes a model in which users authenticate with Keycloak rather than separately with each application. It also documents single sign-on, single sign-out, social login and identity-provider brokering with existing OpenID Connect (OIDC) or SAML 2.0 providers.
Where Keycloak fits
- Applications that already support OIDC or SAML and need a common login experience.
- Organizations that want to broker an existing upstream identity provider instead of rewriting every application.
- Teams comfortable deploying and maintaining a container-based service and its supporting data stores.
Questions to answer before choosing it
- Which applications need OIDC, which need SAML, and which require an adapter or proxy?
- Where will users and groups originate, and how will deprovisioning reach each application?
- What availability target, backup schedule, upgrade process and incident runbook will your team own?
- Do any applications depend on Entra-specific claims, Graph APIs, device signals or Microsoft cloud authorization that Keycloak alone cannot provide?
Keycloak’s Apache 2.0 license is permissive, but the license does not provide an operations team or a guarantee that a particular Entra integration will work unchanged. Test the exact protocols, claims, group mappings and recovery flows used by your applications.
authentik: protocol breadth and proxy integration
authentik’s pricing documentation describes a free, open-source, self-hosted tier. The listed capabilities include OIDC, SAML, LDAP, SCIM, RADIUS, Kerberos, proxy integration and OpenID certification. That combination makes it attractive when your estate contains a mixture of modern web applications, older directory-aware software and services that are easiest to protect with a reverse proxy.
Rank #2
- POWERFUL SECURITY KEY: The YubiKey 5C NFC is the most versatile physical passkey, protecting your digital life from phishing attacks. It ensures only you can access your accounts
- WORKS WITH 1000+ ACCOUNTS: Compatible with popular accounts like Google, Microsoft, and Apple. A single YubiKey 5C NFC secures 100+ of your favorite accounts, including email, password managers, and more
- FAST & CONVENIENT LOGIN: Plug in your YubiKey 5C NFC via USB and tap it, or tap it against your phone (NFC), to authenticate. No batteries, no internet connection, and no extra fees required
- MOST SECURE PASSKEY: Supports FIDO2/WebAuthn, FIDO U2F, Yubico OTP, OATH-TOTP/HOTP, Smart card (PIV), and OpenPGP. That means it’s versatile, working almost anywhere you need it
- PRIMARY & SPARE KEYS: Just like having a spare house key, we recommend buying two YubiKeys - one for daily use and one as a spare. That way you’ll never get locked out of your accounts
Where authentik fits
- Self-hosted environments that need several authentication protocols behind one control plane.
- Applications that cannot be modified easily but can be placed behind a proxy.
- Organizations that want to evaluate a free tier before deciding whether enterprise functionality or paid support is required.
Commercial and deployment boundaries
The project states that it does not currently provide a hosted version, so you should plan to run the service yourself or obtain operations help separately. Its pricing page separates enterprise functionality and support from the open-source tier. Check the current feature matrix for the exact capability you need; do not assume that every listed protocol, integration or support channel is included at no charge.
For a migration, pay particular attention to SCIM semantics, LDAP group behavior, Kerberos requirements, proxy header handling and recovery procedures. “Supports the protocol” is not the same as “matches the behavior of the Entra connector your application currently uses.”
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ZITADEL’s project README positions it as an open-source identity and access-management platform for teams that need more than basic authentication. It documents SSO, MFA, passkeys, OIDC, SAML, SCIM and multi-tenancy, and describes both self-hosted and cloud deployment options.
Where ZITADEL fits
- Software products that serve multiple customer organizations and need a defined organization or tenant model.
- Teams building application identity around modern APIs, OIDC and SAML while offering stronger authentication options such as passkeys.
- Architectures that may start self-hosted but want a documented cloud path to evaluate.
License and project-fit review
The repository states that ZITADEL is licensed under AGPL-3.0, with licensing exceptions for some directories. Those exceptions can matter to how you combine, modify or distribute components, so have counsel review the exact files and your intended use. Also confirm current cloud terms, data-location requirements, operational prerequisites and the behavior of multi-tenant administration before committing to a design.
Feature descriptions in a project README are maintained by the project and can change. Treat them as a reason to test, not as proof that every Entra workflow, connector or compliance control is covered.
Rank #3
- POWERFUL SECURITY KEY: The YubiKey 5 NFC is the most versatile physical passkey, protecting your digital life from phishing attacks. It ensures only you can access your accounts
- WORKS WITH 1000+ ACCOUNTS: Compatible with popular accounts like Google, Microsoft, and Apple. A single YubiKey 5 NFC secures 100+ of your favorite accounts, including email, password managers, and more
- FAST & CONVENIENT LOGIN: Plug in your YubiKey 5 NFC via USB and tap it, or tap it against your phone (NFC), to authenticate. No batteries, no internet connection, and no extra fees required
- MOST SECURE PASSKEY: Supports FIDO2/WebAuthn, FIDO U2F, Yubico OTP, OATH-TOTP/HOTP, Smart card (PIV), and OpenPGP. That means it’s versatile, working almost anywhere you need it
- PRIMARY & SPARE KEYS: Just like having a spare house key, we recommend buying two YubiKeys - one for daily use and one as a spare. That way you’ll never get locked out of your accounts
OpenIddict: a narrower ASP.NET building block
Microsoft’s overview lists OpenIddict as a self-hosted Apache 2.0 open-source option in the ASP.NET identity landscape. That makes it worth investigating when the problem is specifically adding OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect capabilities to an ASP.NET Core application or service that your team controls.
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Compare candidates against your real requirements
Use a requirements matrix before selecting software. Record the requirement, the evidence you have, the test you will run and the owner who will sign off. The following axes expose the differences that a feature checklist often misses.
1. Workload and identity population
- Are you authenticating employees, customers, partners, machines or all four?
- Will one organization use the service, or must unrelated customer organizations be isolated?
- Do you need registration and self-service recovery, or only administrator-created workforce accounts?
2. Protocols and application integration
- List every application’s required protocol: OIDC, SAML, LDAP, SCIM, RADIUS, Kerberos or a proxy.
- Capture required claims, audience values, signing algorithms, logout behavior, group formats and clock-skew tolerances.
- Identify applications that call Entra-specific APIs rather than relying only on standard tokens.
3. Directory, federation and lifecycle
- Decide where the authoritative user record lives.
- Define joiner, mover and leaver flows, including disabling accounts and removing group membership.
- Specify how an upstream provider will be brokered and how duplicate accounts will be linked.
4. Authentication policy
- Document MFA methods, passkey requirements, recovery controls and administrator separation.
- List conditional rules such as network, device, risk or group requirements, then verify whether the candidate exposes an equivalent control.
- Define break-glass access and the procedure for a lost authenticator.
5. Tenant model and isolation
A single workforce realm, a multi-organization SaaS product and multiple isolated installations have different security boundaries. Verify how each candidate models organizations, administrators, groups, roles, keys, branding, quotas and audit records.
6. Operations and resilience
- Choose a deployment topology, capacity target and availability design.
- Schedule database backups and test restoration, not just backup completion.
- Monitor authentication latency, error rates, token issuance, certificate expiry and unusual administrative activity.
- Write upgrade and rollback procedures and rehearse them in a non-production environment.
7. License, support and compliance
Record the license for every component, including exceptions and obligations triggered by modification or distribution. Decide whether community support is acceptable, whether paid support is required and how security advisories will be triaged. Map logs, retention, data residency and access reviews to your compliance obligations.
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- POWERFUL SECURITY KEY: The Security Key NFC is the essential physical passkey for protecting your digital life from phishing attacks. It ensures only you can access your accounts.
- WORKS WITH 1000+ ACCOUNTS: Compatible with Google, Microsoft, and Apple. A single Security Key NFC secures 100 of your favorite accounts, including email, password managers, and more.
- FAST & CONVENIENT LOGIN: Plug in your Security Key NFC via USB-A and tap it, or tap it against your phone (NFC) to authenticate. No batteries, no internet connection, and no extra fees required.
- TRUSTED PASSKEY TECHNOLOGY: Uses the latest passkey standards (FIDO2/WebAuthn & FIDO U2F) but does not support One-Time Passwords. For complex needs, check out the YubiKey 5 Series.
- BUILT TO LAST: Made from tough, waterproof, and crush-resistant materials. Manufactured in Sweden and programmed in the USA with the highest security standards.
How to run a safe replacement evaluation
- Inventory dependencies. Export a list of applications, sign-in protocols, claims, groups, provisioning jobs, MFA policies, device dependencies, Microsoft 365 relationships, automation scripts and audit requirements.
- Classify the target. Mark each dependency as workforce, customer, partner, machine, directory, device or Microsoft-cloud specific. This prevents an application SSO project from being mistaken for a complete directory migration.
- Select two or three candidates. Start with Keycloak for broad self-hosted federation, authentik for protocol and proxy breadth, ZITADEL for application multi-tenancy, or OpenIddict when the work is an ASP.NET implementation. Keep the shortlist tied to documented requirements.
- Build a representative proof of concept. Include at least one OIDC application, one SAML application, the hardest provisioning flow, an administrator account, MFA recovery and a failure scenario. Use production-like claims and group structures without exposing real secrets.
- Test lifecycle behavior. Create, change and disable users; move them between groups; remove access; rotate signing keys; expire sessions; and confirm that downstream applications converge on the intended state.
- Test resilience and recovery. Restore the identity database from backup, simulate an unavailable node or dependency, verify break-glass access and measure how long operators need to recover.
- Review legal and commercial boundaries. Confirm license obligations, paid features, support terms, hosting arrangements and data-location requirements with the relevant owners.
- Plan a staged migration. Migrate a small application cohort first, retain a tested rollback path and run old and new flows in parallel only where account linking and duplicate-login behavior are understood.
- Approve cutover criteria. Require passing results for authentication, authorization, provisioning, MFA, audit, recovery, performance and support readiness before changing the system of record.
Common migration traps and recovery actions
Assuming protocol compatibility means behavioral compatibility
Two providers can both issue OIDC tokens while differing in issuer URLs, claim names, group formats, logout behavior, consent screens or key rotation. Capture the exact token and SAML assertion each application expects, then update mappings deliberately.
Forgetting non-application dependencies
Device registration, endpoint compliance, Microsoft 365 access, automation identities and cloud authorization may depend on Entra-specific services. Inventory those dependencies before announcing a replacement. Keep Entra for workloads that still require it if a staged or hybrid design is safer than forced parity.
Treating self-hosting as “free”
Identity is on the critical path for every protected application. Budget for redundant infrastructure, secrets management, backups, monitoring, patching, on-call coverage and security testing. A zero-license deployment can still be more expensive than a managed service once operational requirements are counted.
Underestimating account and group migration
Passwords, immutable identifiers, group nesting, role mappings and consent records do not automatically transfer between providers. Define how accounts are linked, how users reset credentials, how service accounts rotate secrets and how orphaned access is detected.
Leaving recovery for the end
Test lost-device recovery, administrator lockout, expired certificates, unavailable upstream identity providers and database restoration before production. A provider that works in the happy path is not ready to become your control plane until operators can recover it.
Best Value
- POWERFUL SECURITY KEY: The YubiKey 5 is a versatile physical passkey that protects your digital life from phishing attacks. It ensures only you can access your accounts.
- WORKS WITH 1000+ ACCOUNTS: Compatible with popular accounts like Google, Microsoft, and Apple. A single YubiKey 5 secures 100+ of your favorite accounts, including email, password managers, and more.
- FAST & CONVENIENT LOGIN: Plug in your YubiKey 5 via USB and tap it to authenticate. No batteries, no internet connection, and no extra fees required.
- MOST SECURE PASSKEY: Supports FIDO2/WebAuthn, FIDO U2F, Yubico OTP, OATH-TOTP/HOTP, Smart card (PIV), and OpenPGP. That means it’s versatile, working almost anywhere you need it.
- BUILT TO LAST: Made from tough, waterproof, and crush-resistant materials. Manufactured in Sweden and programmed in the USA with the highest security standards.
MFA, passkeys and hardware authenticators
ZITADEL documents passkeys, and authentik documents authentication capabilities; whether a FIDO2/WebAuthn security key works depends on the selected provider’s configuration and on each consuming application. If both support the required flow, a hardware key can be one authentication option. Validate enrollment, attestation policy, recovery and administrator use during the proof of concept rather than assuming universal compatibility.
Decision guide
Choose Keycloak first when
Your primary goal is broad, self-hosted application SSO and federation through OIDC or SAML, and you have the staff to operate a container-based identity service.
Evaluate authentik when
You need several protocols, proxy integration or access to older services, and you are willing to verify which capabilities and support options belong to its free tier versus paid enterprise offerings.
Evaluate ZITADEL when
Your product needs application-centric identity, modern authentication and multi-tenancy, and your team is prepared to review AGPL-3.0 licensing, exceptions, deployment choices and current cloud terms.
Investigate OpenIddict when
You are implementing identity inside an ASP.NET Core solution rather than replacing an organization-wide directory, federation and device-management platform.
Bottom line
Start with requirements, not a product name. Keycloak, authentik and ZITADEL are credible open-source candidates for different self-hosted or application-identity scenarios, while OpenIddict is a more specialized ASP.NET option. None is proven by the available first-party descriptions to be a universal, feature-for-feature Entra substitute. A representative proof of concept, lifecycle test, recovery exercise and license review should be mandatory before you migrate the system of record.
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