FusionAuth vs PWM
FusionAuth
fusionauth.ioPWM
github.comSide by side
| Figure | FusionAuth | PWM |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $162/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 8 | 1 |
| Spec score · Self-Service Password Reset Software | 9.3 (#1) | 7.3 (#11) |
| Deployment | The product can run locally, on premises, in a customer cloud, on an air-gapped server or as FusionAuth Cloud. | PWM is distributed as a Java WAR, an executable Java JAR with embedded Tomcat, or a Docker image. |
| Integrations | Identity-provider integrations include Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter and arbitrary OIDC or SAML v2 providers, with connectors, plugins and monitoring integrations also available. | PWM supports Basic Authentication, HTTP-header username injection, CAS, and OAuth client single sign-on options. |
| Support | Community support is provided through forums, Slack, and GitHub; Essentials includes email support with a 24 to 48 hour business-hours response time, and Enterprise includes 24/7 email and phone support. | The project asks users to seek assistance through the PWM-General Google Group and says question-only GitHub issues will be deleted. |
Plans
FusionAuth
- CommunityFree
- CommunityFree
- Starter$162 a month
- Starter$162 a month
- Enterprise$2,970 a month
- Enterprise$2,970 a month
- Essentials$2,970 a month
- Essentials$2,970 a month
In their own words
FusionAuth
FusionAuth is a Customer Identity and Access Management server for authentication, authorization, and user management. It supports username and password login, passkeys, one-time passwords, and external identity providers, including Apple, Facebook, Google, and Twitter. It implements OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, and SAML v2. Authorization includes role-based access across users, roles, groups, applications, and entities, plus fine-grained authorization integration. Teams can customize pages and messages and use lambda functions and webhooks. It can run locally, on-premises, in private or air-gapped cloud environments, or as a managed FusionAuth Cloud instance. The free Community Edition is self-hosted and unlimited, with no trial clock. Starter costs $162 a month billed annually and includes one connector and 100 machine-to-machine entities; Essentials and Enterprise cost $2,970 a month billed annually. FusionAuth supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, web, and API deployments.
PWM
PWM is a free, open-source password self-service application for LDAP directories. Its web configuration manager exposes more than 500 settings and lets administrators import or export configuration as one file. During password changes, rules are enforced while users type and password-strength feedback is shown. Forgotten-password verification can use email or SMS tokens, TOTP, remote REST, OAuth, or LDAP attributes. Listed directory support includes Generic LDAP, 389 Directory Server, NetIQ eDirectory, Microsoft Active Directory, and OpenLDAP. Authentication options include Basic Authentication, HTTP-header username injection, CAS, and OAuth client single sign-on. REST APIs cover password setting, recovery, policy reading and verification, and user-attribute updates. PWM is distributed as a Java WAR, an executable Java JAR with embedded Tomcat, or a Docker image. The version table lists Java 17 for PWM 2.1 and Java 11–17 for PWM 2.0. Configurable policies include syntax and regex rules, dictionary enforcement, remote REST checks, and shared password history. The listed plan is free.