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Head-to-head · Identity and Access Management Software

Amazon Cognito vs Apache Syncope

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 4 checks side by side
Higher score Amazon Cognito #6 in Identity and Access Management Software 8.8/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 1 of 3 features Visit Amazon Cognito
Apache Syncope #8 in Identity and Access Management Software 8.6/10 Open source ✓ 2 of 3 features Visit Apache Syncope

Amazon Cognito leads on 0 checks, Apache Syncope on 0, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 4 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreAmazon Cognito · 8.8/10
  • Free planonly Amazon Cognito
  • Most featuresApache Syncope · 2 of 3

Amazon Cognito scores higher on our rubric for identity and access management software: 8.8 against 8.6 out of 10; our editors rank them #6 and #8.

Amazon Cognito is the better fit for low-cost application authentication on AWS. Apache Syncope is the better fit for open-source identity provisioning and federation.

  • Amazon Cognito fits best

    Low-cost application authentication on AWS

  • Apache Syncope fits best

    Open-source identity provisioning and federation

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Side by side

Feature Amazon Cognito 8.8/10 Visit ↗ Apache Syncope 8.6/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.8 8.6
Ranking #6 in Identity and Access Management Software #8 in Identity and Access Management Software
Best for Low-cost application authentication on AWS Open-source identity provisioning and federation
Pricing model Free plan + paid Free
Starting price $0.0055/user/mo Open source
Free plan ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud, Mobile Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms Web, iOS, Android Web
Integrations 13 integrations 10 integrations
Features Amazon Cognito 1/3 · Apache Syncope 2/3
Directory sync Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Lifecycle provisioning Not checked yet ✓ (best)
Adaptive access policies ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Specs
SSO protocols SAML 2.0, OpenID Connect (OIDC), OAuth 2.0 OpenID Connect, SAML 2.0, CAS
MFA methods Email, SMS, TOTP authenticator apps, WebAuthn passkeys with user verification TOTP, Duo Security, Google Authenticator, FIDO2 WebAuthn (Passkey)
Included users 10000 users Not checked yet
Our review
Pros
  • Free plan with 10,000 MAUs for eligible Lite and Essentials accounts
  • OAuth, OIDC, SAML, social login, MFA, and passwordless access
  • Identity pools issue temporary credentials for AWS resource access
  • Inbound, outbound, pull, push, and live-sync provisioning
  • SAML 2.0, OpenID Connect, and CAS support
  • Delegated administration, workflows, multitenancy, and MFA
Cons
  • Usage-based pricing can vary with monthly active users
  • Plus has no free tier and adds cost for threat protection
  • Developer-oriented customer IAM rather than a workforce directory
  • The broad scope may exceed the needs of smaller deployments
  • Self-hosted operation requires infrastructure managed by the organization
  • Connector-based integrations can add planning and administration effort
Our verdict

Amazon Cognito is a managed identity and access service for web, iOS, Android, and API applications. It provides user directories, authentication, authorization, identity federation, and temporary AWS credentials. The service is aimed…

Read the review →

Apache Syncope is an open-source identity and access management platform for enterprise environments. It manages users, groups, and custom identity objects while supporting authentication, authorization, provisioning, synchronization,…

Read the review →
  1. Amazon CognitoIdentity and Access Management Software 8.8Free plan
  2. Apache SyncopeIdentity and Access Management Software 8.6Open source

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Amazon Cognito — where it wins

    • Free plan with 10,000 MAUs for eligible Lite and Essentials accounts
    • OAuth, OIDC, SAML, social login, MFA, and passwordless access
    • Identity pools issue temporary credentials for AWS resource access

    Where it doesn't

    • Usage-based pricing can vary with monthly active users
    • Plus has no free tier and adds cost for threat protection
    • Developer-oriented customer IAM rather than a workforce directory

  • Apache Syncope — where it wins

    • Inbound, outbound, pull, push, and live-sync provisioning
    • SAML 2.0, OpenID Connect, and CAS support
    • Delegated administration, workflows, multitenancy, and MFA

    Where it doesn't

    • The broad scope may exceed the needs of smaller deployments
    • Self-hosted operation requires infrastructure managed by the organization
    • Connector-based integrations can add planning and administration effort

More comparisons

All identity and access management software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update