Alt Auth vs Clerk
A Clerk alternative with a hosted login and EU data hosting
Alt Auth is a Clerk alternative for teams that want their users’ data kept in the European Union and a login that works the same with any framework. Users sign in on your branded, hosted page; your app gets a signed token back — no UI components to wire into your frontend.
Updated · By the Alt Auth team · Clerk facts checked against Clerk’s own pages in October 2026
Is Alt Auth a good Clerk alternative?
Alt Auth is a hosted, white-label login service that keeps user data in the EU and works with any stack through a redirect and a signed token. Choose it over Clerk for EU data hosting; stay on Clerk for drop-in React components or a 50,000-user free tier.
Choose Alt Auth if
- You need user data hosted in the EU
- Your app is not (only) React or Next.js
- You prefer a hosted login page to UI components
- You want pricing by monthly active user
Why teams look for a Clerk alternative
User data stays in the EU
Alt Auth’s database runs in AWS Frankfurt and its API in AWS Stockholm. At the time of writing, Clerk’s security page says its data is hosted on US infrastructure.
Works with any stack
A redirect to your hosted login and a signed JWT back. It works with any stack that can redirect to a URL and verify a signed JWT, with tested examples for React, Node/Express, Python and Go.
Pricing by active user, not retained user
Alt Auth counts anyone who signs up or signs in in a month, once. Paid plans include 10,000 to 100,000 active users and are never cut off.
Alt Auth vs Clerk at a glance
Clerk details are taken from Clerk’s own pricing and documentation pages at the time of writing (October 2026); prices change, so check the sources below before deciding. “Not confirmed” means we could not verify it on an official page.
| Alt Auth | Clerk | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Monthly base fee with active users included, then a fixed price per extra active user | Per monthly retained user (MRU) — a user who comes back at least a day after signing up |
| Free tier | Hobby: free up to 1,000 monthly active users, 1 app, no card | Hobby: 50,000 MRU per app |
| First paid plan | Starter: $29/month with 10,000 active users, then $0.015 each | Pro: $25/month ($20 billed annually), 50,000 MRU per app, then $0.02 per MRU |
| Hosted or self-hosted | Fully hosted — nothing to run or patch | Hosted service |
| Branding and white-label | Hosted login with your logo and colours from Starter, full styling on Growth, no Alt Auth name on Enterprise | Clerk branding removed from Pro |
| Login on your own domain | From Growth ($99/month) | Every plan, Hobby included |
| Social sign-in | Google on every plan, Facebook from Growth; Apple and Microsoft coming soon | Up to 3 providers on Hobby, unlimited from Pro |
| Two-step verification (MFA) | From Starter | From Pro |
| Enterprise SSO (SAML) | Coming soon on Business (1 connection included) | 1 SAML connection on Pro and Business |
| EU data hosting | Yes — database in AWS Frankfurt, API in AWS Stockholm | No — hosted on US infrastructure, per Clerk’s security page |
| Moving users in | CSV user import from Starter; imported users set a new password by email | Import through the Backend API with password hashes; open-source migration tool |
When Clerk is the better choice
We would rather you pick the right tool than the wrong one. Stay with Clerk if:
- You want a large free tier: Clerk Hobby includes 50,000 retained users per app; Alt Auth Hobby covers 1,000 active users.
- You want your login on your own domain on the free plan.
- You build with React or Next.js and prefer drop-in UI components over a hosted page.
- You need SAML single sign-on or Apple and Microsoft sign-in today.
Migrating from Clerk to Alt Auth
- 1
Export your users from Clerk (email, name and sign-up date).
- 2
Create a free Alt Auth project, add your logo and colours, and turn on the sign-in methods you use today (Google on every plan, Facebook from Growth).
- 3
Point your app’s “Sign in” button at your Alt Auth login page and verify the signed token it returns — usually an afternoon of developer work.
- 4
Import your users from a CSV file (from Starter). Password hashes are not imported: people set a new password through a reset email, or simply continue with Google.
- 5
Run both side by side for a while, then switch the old provider off once everyone has signed in.
Is Alt Auth a good Clerk alternative?
Yes, if you want user data hosted in the EU and a hosted, branded login that works with any framework. If you want drop-in React components or a 50,000-user free tier, Clerk may suit you better.
Where does Alt Auth store user data?
In the European Union: the database in AWS Frankfurt, the API in AWS Stockholm and file storage in AWS Frankfurt. Alt Auth is made by WeNoCode OÜ in Estonia.
Can I move my users from Clerk to Alt Auth?
Yes. Export your users and import the CSV into Alt Auth (from Starter). Password hashes are not imported, so people set a new password through a reset email or continue with Google.
Sources
Clerk facts on this page come from these official pages, checked in October 2026.
Try Alt Auth as your Clerk alternative
Free up to 1,000 users a month. No card needed. Sign in with Google from day one.