# Fern Canonical: https://inetgeek.com/docs-platforms/fern/ Platform that generates documentation sites and client SDKs from an API definition and Markdown files kept in a Git repository; Fern is a Postman company. ## Who it suits A team that wants one API definition to produce both a docs site and client SDKs, with llms.txt, an MCP server and an AI assistant on the free plan, which covers 10 team members and 1,000 pages. Consider something else if You need a paid plan between free and custom. Fern Docs lists a free plan and an Enterprise plan quoted by sales and nothing priced in between, and SSO and self-hosting are Enterprise-only. ## iScore 84 / 100 (80% interval 76–93), rank 1 of 10 in docs-platforms — interval overlaps the next rank, so this is an ordering, not a finding. inetGeek's own reading, computed from sourced facts against category peers by disclosed rules. Not a provider claim. Intervals are 80%; a provider with few documented facts is pulled toward the category middle rather than scored on what little is known. Read this score with care: - Documented but not scored, because the page states it as text with no comparable number or a yes/limited/no (a one-time, usage-based or other-vendor price, or a per-site choice): minimum_paid_price. Read them on the provider page; the score neither rewards nor penalises what it could not compare. Method: https://inetgeek.com/iscore/. Full output with every criterion's basis: https://inetgeek.com/scores.json. Every docs-platforms peer ranked: https://inetgeek.com/docs-platforms/fern/alternatives/ - Price: 79 (57–100), weight 38%, 2 of 3 criteria scored; scored for peers, not here — undocumented or stated without a number or a yes/limited/no: minimum_paid_price - Capabilities: 88 (82–94), weight 40%, 9 of 9 criteria scored - Trust and compliance: 62 (56–69), weight 8%, 1 of 1 criteria scored - Evidence: 100 (100–100), weight 14%, 4 of 4 criteria scored ## What the documentation says ### Pricing - Free tier: Yes ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) - Kind of free offer: Free tier ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) - What the free plan includes: The Free docs plan: 10 team members, 1,000 pages, 250 AI credits and 2,000 page generations a month, a custom domain and subpath, API explorer and web editor, Ask Fern, Fern Agent, MCP server, and version and product switching. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) - Entry paid plan: No priced paid plan is listed for Fern Docs: Enterprise is quoted by sales (Custom, 'Tailored pricing terms'). The only priced plan is Free at $0. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) - Pricing model: Docs come in two plans: Free at $0 with caps (10 team members, 1,000 pages, 250 AI credits and 2,000 page generations a month) and a custom-priced Enterprise plan that lifts them. No self-serve paid tier is listed. AI features draw on a monthly credit allowance. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) ### Limits - Sites or apps included: One docs site on the Free plan; Enterprise is custom and adds multiple repos and docs instances. The pricing page lists no plan between the two. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/pricing), read 2026-10-25) ### Observability - Self-hostable: Limited — Enterprise plan only ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/self-hosted/overview), read 2026-10-25) ### Auth - SAML single sign-on: Limited — Enterprise plan only; SAML 2.0 or OIDC sign-in to gated docs ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/authentication/setup/sso), read 2026-10-25) ### Documentation - Docs as code in a git repository: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/), read 2026-10-25) - API reference from an OpenAPI spec: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/api-references/generate-api-ref), read 2026-10-25) - Interactive API playground: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/api-references/api-explorer), read 2026-10-25) - Client SDK generation: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/sdks), read 2026-10-25) - llms.txt and markdown for AI tools: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/ai-features/llms-txt), read 2026-10-25) - MCP server for the docs or API: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/ai-features/mcp-server), read 2026-10-25) - Built-in AI assistant over the docs: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/ai-features/ask-fern/overview), read 2026-10-25) - Multiple documentation versions: Supported ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/learn/docs/configuration/versions), read 2026-10-25) ### Compliance - SOC 2: Trust center lists SOC 2 Type II, GDPR and CCPA, with a SOC 2 Type II Report among the documents available through a request-access form. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/trust), read 2026-10-25) - GDPR / data residency: Fern's privacy policy says personal information is stored and/or processed in the United States, or where Fern or its partners, affiliates and third-party providers maintain facilities. ([source](https://buildwithfern.com/privacy-policy), read 2026-10-25) ## Compared with - [Fern vs Mintlify](https://inetgeek.com/compare/mintlify-vs-fern/) - [Fern vs ReadMe](https://inetgeek.com/compare/fern-vs-readme/)