Keycloak vs Zoho Directory

Keycloak9.1Visit Zoho Directory8.6Visit

Higher score Keycloak #3 in Single Sign-On Software 9.1/10 Open source ✓ 0 of 2 features Visit Keycloak

vs

Zoho Directory #8 in Single Sign-On Software 8.6/10 Free plan · 45-day trial Free planFree trial✓ 2 of 2 features Visit Zoho Directory

• Keycloak fits best

  Self-hosted enterprise identity teams

• Zoho Directory fits best

  Small teams wanting low-cost application SSO

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Side by side

Feature	Keycloak 9.1/10 Visit ↗	Zoho Directory 8.6/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.1	8.6
Ranking	#3 in Single Sign-On Software	#8 in Single Sign-On Software
Best for	Self-hosted enterprise identity teams	Small teams wanting low-cost application SSO
Pricing model	Free	Free plan + paid
Starting price	Open source	—
Free plan	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Free trial	—	45 days
Deployment	Cloud, Desktop, Self-hosted	Cloud, Mobile
Platforms	Web, Windows, Linux	Web, Android
Integrations	10 integrations	8 integrations
Features Keycloak 0/2 · Zoho Directory 2/2
Built-in MFA	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Adaptive access	Not checked yet	✓ (best)
Specs
SSO protocols	OpenID Connect, OAuth 2.0, SAML 2.0	SAML 2.0, OpenID Connect (OIDC), JWT
Directory integrations	Not checked yet	Microsoft Active Directory, Azure AD, LDAP
Lifecycle provisioning	Not checked yet	Scim
Prebuilt app count	Not checked yet	350
Our review
Pros	Supports OpenID Connect, OAuth 2.0, and SAML 2.0 Combines LDAP, Active Directory, social login, MFA, and passkeys Runs on virtual machines, containers, Kubernetes, and OpenShift	Free plan includes SSO, MFA, provisioning, and conditional access Supports 350 prebuilt apps plus custom SAML 2.0 and OIDC apps SCIM, API provisioning, directory sync, and adaptive access support
Cons	Requires organizations to deploy and manage the server themselves SCIM support is preview functionality and disabled by default May be more infrastructure than teams needing only a hosted SSO service	Free plan is limited to 10 users and 3 applications Custom provisioning and custom access policies start on Standard Cloud LDAP and Cloud RADIUS are unlimited only on Professional
Our verdict	Keycloak is an open-source identity and access management server for securing web applications, REST services, and other applications. It is designed for enterprise identity teams that want to deploy and manage their own authentication… Read the review →	Zoho Directory is a workforce identity and access management platform for organizations managing employee identities, application access, authentication, and security policies. It is suited to small teams that need application SSO without… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Keycloak — where it wins

  • Supports OpenID Connect, OAuth 2.0, and SAML 2.0
  • Combines LDAP, Active Directory, social login, MFA, and passkeys
  • Runs on virtual machines, containers, Kubernetes, and OpenShift

  Where it doesn't

  • Requires organizations to deploy and manage the server themselves
  • SCIM support is preview functionality and disabled by default
  • May be more infrastructure than teams needing only a hosted SSO service

• Zoho Directory — where it wins

  • Free plan includes SSO, MFA, provisioning, and conditional access
  • Supports 350 prebuilt apps plus custom SAML 2.0 and OIDC apps
  • SCIM, API provisioning, directory sync, and adaptive access support

  Where it doesn't

  • Free plan is limited to 10 users and 3 applications
  • Custom provisioning and custom access policies start on Standard
  • Cloud LDAP and Cloud RADIUS are unlimited only on Professional

• Keycloak9.1/10 · Open source

  A broad, open-source SSO server for teams that want to run identity infrastructure themselves.

  Visit KeycloakFull verdict →
• Zoho Directory8.6/10 · Free plan · 45-day trial

  A broad SSO and identity toolkit with a useful free tier for small teams.

  Visit Zoho DirectoryFull verdict →