Stytch vs Clerk
SEPT 2026 auditA comparison of Stytch and Clerk built from values read directly from each provider's own documentation, with the source recorded against every figure.
The short answer
Choose Stytch if…
B2B products selling to several SSO-using customers early — five connections free is the difference between paying per logo and not paying at all.
Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved
Choose Clerk if…
Getting a complete, styled sign-in flow running quickly, with 50,000 users free before any bill starts.
Editorial · Palash Bagchi · approved
Consider something else if…
- Stytch: There is no flat plan to budget against: everything above the free allowances is metered, so the bill tracks usage rather than a number you agreed to.
- Clerk: Enterprise connections are $75/month each after the first, so a B2B product selling to several SSO-using customers pays per logo.
Neither quite fits? Every other option, ranked by iScore: Stytch alternatives · Clerk alternatives
14 sourced criteria separate them — see where, with sources, below.
Pick the criteria you care about. The chart counts how many of them lean toward each provider — the same read as scanning the bars below, just totalled for the ones you chose.
Stytch 0
Clerk 0
At a glance.
| Criterion | Stytch | Clerk |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | ||
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Kind of free offer | Always free | Free tier |
| What the free plan includes | 10,000 monthly active users, 5 SSO or SCIM connections, 1,000 machine-to-machine tokens and 10,000 fingerprints; usage beyond that is billed at list rates. | 50,000 monthly retained users per application with one day of application-log retention, and no credit card to start. |
| Entry paid plan | No priced paid plan: Pay as you go starts at $0/month and meters usage above the free allowances; the only other tier, Enterprise, is quoted "Custom". | $25/month for Pro, or $20/month billed annually. Business is $300/month. |
| Pricing model | Pay as you go with no platform fee: usage above the always-free allowances is metered, and the estimator on the page prices monthly active users, SSO connections, SCIM connections and M2M tokens as separate lines. | A monthly base price plus per-user billing above the included 50,000, with enterprise connections, extra dashboard seats and satellite domains each priced as separate add-ons at $75, $20 and $10 a month. |
| Infrastructure | ||
| Uptime SLA | 99.99% on Enterprise, which is custom-priced. The self-serve plans publish no uptime commitment. | 99.99% on Enterprise, which is custom-priced and annual only. Hobby, Pro and Business publish none. |
| Auth | ||
| Users included | 10,000 monthly active users free, permanently, alongside unlimited organizations and 1,000 M2M tokens. | 50,000 monthly retained users per app, on the free Hobby plan and on Pro alike. Beyond that, $0.02 each falling to $0.012 above 10 million. |
| Price per SSO connection | Five SSO or SCIM connections included free. Clerk includes one and charges $75 for each additional; WorkOS charges $125 each from the first. | One enterprise connection included on Pro, then $75/month each. |
| SAML single sign-on | Supported | Supported |
| SCIM provisioning | Supported | Supported |
| Multi-factor authentication | Supported | Supported |
| Audit logs | Event logs cover API requests and dashboard admin actions, are visible in the Dashboard and retained 30 days; longer retention means streaming to Datadog Logs or Grafana Loki, the only supported destinations. | Application logs with 1-day retention on the free Hobby plan; longer retention is a paid-plan feature Clerk lists without publishing the window. |
| Support | ||
| Support on entry paid plan | Enterprise bundles an enterprise support SLA, a private support Slack channel and migration support. Below it the page offers a dev success team to contact, and names no tier. | No support tier is named until Business: Hobby and Pro, the entry paid plan at $20/month, list none. Business adds priority support and Enterprise a premium support SLA with a dedicated Slack channel. |
| Compliance | ||
| SOC 2 | SOC 2 Type 2, covering all Services, which the document defines as including the cloud-based identity platform branded Stytch. Stytch's own docs point to the Twilio Trust Center for the Stytch-named SOC 2 report. | SOC 2 Type 2 certified since May 6, 2022. Report available on Business plan and above via support request. |
| ISO 27001 | ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017 and ISO/IEC 27018 certified for the Twilio Services, defined to include the identity platform branded Stytch. Stytch's docs list an ISO 27001 certification among Stytch's own compliance documents. | Not ISO 27001 certified. Underlying infrastructure providers (Google Cloud, Cloudflare) hold it. |
| HIPAA | HIPAA/BAA is listed only under Enterprise, which is custom-priced; the Pay as you go tier does not list it. | HIPAA certified since May 6, 2022; BAA available on the Enterprise plan. |
| GDPR / data residency | GDPR compliance via a DPA with Standard Contractual Clauses and EU/UK/Swiss Data Privacy Framework self-certification; data sits on U.S. servers only. | Self-certified under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, its UK Extension, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF, effective February 22, 2024. |
| PCI DSS | PCI SAQ-A covers the Stytch identity platform; PCI DSS Level 1 applies only to services named in Twilio's PCI DSS Responsibility Matrix. | Makes no PCI DSS claim — Clerk states it never stores cardholder data. |
Where they differ.
Kind of free offer
- Stytch
- Always free
- Clerk
- Free tier
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Pay as you go Starting at: $0 / Month Always free: 10,000 monthly active users and AI agents Unlimited Organizations 5 SSO or SCIM Connections 1,000 M2M Tokens”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“Hobby Free No credit card required [...] 50,000 MRU limit per app [...] Application Logs 1 day retention”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
What the free plan includes
10,000 monthly active users, 5 SSO or SCIM connections, 1,000 machine-to-machine tokens and 10,000 fingerprints; usage beyond that is billed at list rates.
50,000 monthly retained users per application with one day of application-log retention, and no credit card to start.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Stytch Pricing ↗
“If you surpass the 10,000 MAUs, 5 SSO or SCIM connections, 1000 M2M tokens, or 10,000 fingerprints included in our free tier, you'll pay for only what you use at the rates outlined above.”
Read 2026-09-13 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“Hobby Free No credit card required [...] 50,000 MRU limit per app [...] Application Logs 1 day retention”
Read 2026-09-13 · official pricing · Report a correction
Entry paid plan
- Stytch
- No priced paid plan: Pay as you go starts at $0/month and meters usage above the free allowances; the only other tier, Enterprise, is quoted "Custom".
- Clerk
- $25/month for Pro, or $20/month billed annually. Business is $300/month.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Pay as you go Starting at: $0 / Month [...] Enterprise Starting at: Custom Discounted Rates [...] Base Price Base Price $0 Contact us”
Read 2026-09-13 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“Base price $0 $25/mo, $20/mo billed annually $300/mo, $250/mo billed annually”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
Pricing model
- Stytch
- Pay as you go with no platform fee: usage above the always-free allowances is metered, and the estimator on the page prices monthly active users, SSO connections, SCIM connections and M2M tokens as separate lines.
- Clerk
- A monthly base price plus per-user billing above the included 50,000, with enterprise connections, extra dashboard seats and satellite domains each priced as separate add-ons at $75, $20 and $10 a month.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Pay as you go Starting at: $0 / Month [...] Monthly active users : SSO Connections SSO SCIM Connections SCIM M2M Tokens M2M Optional add ons”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“Base price $0 $25/mo [...] Additional $0.02/mo each [...] Additional $75/mo each [...] Additional $20/mo each [...] Additional $10/mo each”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
Uptime SLA
- Stytch
- 99.99% on Enterprise, which is custom-priced. The self-serve plans publish no uptime commitment.
- Clerk
- 99.99% on Enterprise, which is custom-priced and annual only. Hobby, Pro and Business publish none.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Stytch Pricing ↗
“enterprise starting at: custom discounted rates enterprise support sla private support slack channel migration support 99.99% uptime sla hipaa/baa advanced fraud protection”
Read 2026-09-14 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Clerk Pricing ↗
“annual committed use discounts 99.99% uptime SLA enterprise SSO for workspace premium support SLA + dedicated Slack channel”
Read 2026-09-14 · official pricing · Report a correction
Users included
10,000 monthly active users free, permanently, alongside unlimited organizations and 1,000 M2M tokens.
50,000 monthly retained users per app, on the free Hobby plan and on Pro alike. Beyond that, $0.02 each falling to $0.012 above 10 million.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Always free: 10,000 monthly active users and AI agents Unlimited Organizations 5 SSO or SCIM Connections 1,000 M2M Tokens”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“50,000 MRU limit per app [...] 50,000 MRUs included per app 50,001 - 100,000 $0.02/mo each 100,001 - 1,000,000 $0.018/mo each 1,000,001 - 10,000,000 $0.015/mo each 10,000,001+ $0.012/mo each”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
Price per SSO connection
- Stytch
- Five SSO or SCIM connections included free. Clerk includes one and charges $75 for each additional; WorkOS charges $125 each from the first.
- Clerk
- One enterprise connection included on Pro, then $75/month each.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Always free: [...] 5 SSO or SCIM Connections”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“1 Enterprise connection included Additional $75/mo each”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
Audit logs
- Stytch
- Event logs cover API requests and dashboard admin actions, are visible in the Dashboard and retained 30 days; longer retention means streaming to Datadog Logs or Grafana Loki, the only supported destinations.
- Clerk
- Application logs with 1-day retention on the free Hobby plan; longer retention is a paid-plan feature Clerk lists without publishing the window.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Event Logs — Stytch Docs ↗
“Event logs should be available within a minute upon request completion and are currently retained for 30 days. For longer retention or external analysis, we recommend enabling event log streaming. [...] Currently Datadog Logs and Grafana Loki are the only supported destinations.”
Read 2026-09-13 · official docs · Report a correction
- Pricing — Clerk ↗
“Application Logs 1 day retention [...] Custom session lifetime Application Logs”
Read 2026-09-06 · official pricing · Report a correction
Support on entry paid plan
- Stytch
- Enterprise bundles an enterprise support SLA, a private support Slack channel and migration support. Below it the page offers a dev success team to contact, and names no tier.
- Clerk
- No support tier is named until Business: Hobby and Pro, the entry paid plan at $20/month, list none. Business adds priority support and Enterprise a premium support SLA with a dedicated Slack channel.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Stytch Pricing ↗
“need help estimating usage? contact our dev success team enterprise starting at: custom discounted rates enterprise support sla private support slack channel migration support”
Read 2026-09-14 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Clerk Pricing ↗
“SOC2 report enhanced dashboard roles priority support application and admin logs 30 day retention [...] premium support SLA + dedicated Slack channel”
Read 2026-09-14 · official pricing · Report a correction
SOC 2
- Stytch
- SOC 2 Type 2, covering all Services, which the document defines as including the cloud-based identity platform branded Stytch. Stytch's own docs point to the Twilio Trust Center for the Stytch-named SOC 2 report.
- Clerk
- SOC 2 Type 2 certified since May 6, 2022. Report available on Business plan and above via support request.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Twilio Security Overview ↗
“Certification or Attestation Covered Services ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018 Twilio Services, Segment Services SOC 2 Type 2 All Services [...] means any (a) services or application programming interfaces branded as “Twilio” and (b) cloud-based identity, authentication, and security platform, and related services, branded as “Stytch”.”
Read 2026-09-13 · official site · Report a correction
- Clerk Security ↗
“Clerk has been SOC 2 Type 2 certified since May 6, 2022.”
Read 2026-09-11 · official site · Report a correction
ISO 27001
- Stytch
- ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017 and ISO/IEC 27018 certified for the Twilio Services, defined to include the identity platform branded Stytch. Stytch's docs list an ISO 27001 certification among Stytch's own compliance documents.
- Clerk
- Not ISO 27001 certified. Underlying infrastructure providers (Google Cloud, Cloudflare) hold it.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Twilio Security Overview ↗
“ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018 Twilio Services, Segment Services [...] means any (a) services or application programming interfaces branded as “Twilio” and (b) cloud-based identity, authentication, and security platform, and related services, branded as “Stytch”.”
Read 2026-09-13 · official site · Report a correction
- Clerk Security ↗
“Clerk is not ISO 27001 certified, though infrastructure providers Google Cloud and Cloudflare hold it.”
Read 2026-09-11 · official site · Report a correction
HIPAA
- Stytch
- HIPAA/BAA is listed only under Enterprise, which is custom-priced; the Pay as you go tier does not list it.
- Clerk
- HIPAA certified since May 6, 2022; BAA available on the Enterprise plan.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Pricing — Stytch ↗
“Enterprise Starting at: Custom Discounted Rates Enterprise Support SLA Private support Slack channel Migration support 99.99% uptime SLA HIPAA/BAA Advanced fraud protection”
Read 2026-09-13 · official pricing · Report a correction
- Clerk Security ↗
“Clerk has been HIPAA certified since May 6, 2022, and the BAA is available on the Enterprise plan.”
Read 2026-09-11 · official site · Report a correction
GDPR / data residency
- Stytch
- GDPR compliance via a DPA with Standard Contractual Clauses and EU/UK/Swiss Data Privacy Framework self-certification; data sits on U.S. servers only.
- Clerk
- Self-certified under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, its UK Extension, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF, effective February 22, 2024.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Data compliance — Stytch Docs ↗
“Data Processing Agreement (DPA) : We offer a DPA that incorporates Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) for lawful cross-border data transfers. [...] Stytch self-certifies compliance with the Data Privacy Framework requirements for data transfers from the EU, United Kingdom, and Switzerland to the United States. [...] Because Stytch operates exclusively out of U.S. servers, achieving this level of rigid localization with their service is not possible.”
Read 2026-09-13 · official docs · Report a correction
- Clerk Security ↗
“Self-certified under the EU-U.S. DPF, its UK Extension, and the Swiss-U.S. DPF, effective Feb 22, 2024.”
Read 2026-09-11 · official site · Report a correction
PCI DSS
- Stytch
- PCI SAQ-A covers the Stytch identity platform; PCI DSS Level 1 applies only to services named in Twilio's PCI DSS Responsibility Matrix.
- Clerk
- Makes no PCI DSS claim — Clerk states it never stores cardholder data.
Sources (2) →Sources ↓
- Twilio Security Overview ↗
“PCI DSS Level 1 All Services that are expressly identified in the PCI DSS Responsibility Matrix PCI (SAQ-A) The portion of the Twilio Services that are the cloud-based identity, authentication, and security platform, and related services, branded as “Stytch””
Read 2026-09-13 · official site · Report a correction
- Clerk Security ↗
“Clerk never stores cardholder data, so it makes no PCI DSS claim.”
Read 2026-09-11 · official site · Report a correction
When these numbers change, hear about it. Sources are re-checked monthly; a repricing goes out as a short note.
Documented by only one.
These criteria are published by one provider and not the other. An absence here means we have not found a source, not that the feature is missing — except where we say we read the other provider's own page on a given date and it does not state it. Those rows lean, and the provider can correct them with a link.
Questions this comparison answers.
Entry paid plan: Stytch or Clerk?
Stytch: No priced paid plan: Pay as you go starts at $0/month and meters usage above the free allowances; the only other tier, Enterprise, is quoted "Custom".
Clerk: $25/month for Pro, or $20/month billed annually. Business is $300/month.
Should I choose Stytch or Clerk?
Pick Stytch if B2B products selling to several SSO-using customers early — five connections free is the difference between paying per logo and not paying at all.
Pick Clerk if Getting a complete, styled sign-in flow running quickly, with 50,000 users free before any bill starts.
Comments are hosted by EchoThread, which sets cookies and offers social sign-in. Like the analytics on this site, it does not load until you accept — see the privacy page.