Clerk offers a comprehensive authentication and user management platform with official SDKs for multiple frameworks, as well as a free tier for up to 10,000 MAUs. It provides enhanced authentication features such as SMS auth, device tracking, and SAML authentication, but these come at an additional cost. On the other hand, Lucia Auth is an open-source library that focuses on simplicity and flexibility, working with any JS runtime and supporting multiple databases. It is also fully typed. The choice between Clerk and Lucia Auth depends on whether you need a feature-rich, ready-to-use solution with extensive support (Clerk) or a lightweight, customizable library (Lucia Auth).

Lucia Auth is open source and therefore free to use, making it a highly cost-effective option for startups that have the resources to manage and customize their authentication systems. Clerk offers a free tier for up to 10,000 MAUs, but additional features and higher usage come with costs. Clerk's Pro tier starts at $25/month with $0.02/MAU, plus additional costs for enhanced authentication and admin features. If budget is a primary concern and you have technical expertise, Lucia Auth may be the more cost-effective choice. However, if you prefer a more managed solution with additional features, Clerk might be worth the investment.

Clerk offers a high level of developer experience with its official SDKs for a variety of frameworks, embeddable UIs, and APIs. It also provides an admin dashboard for user management, making it easier to integrate and manage authentication. Lucia Auth, being open source and fully typed, offers flexibility and works seamlessly with any JS runtime and multiple databases. It is ideal for developers who prefer a straightforward, customizable solution. If you are looking for a feature-rich and easy-to-integrate platform, Clerk may offer a better developer experience. However, if you value flexibility and control, Lucia Auth could be more suitable.

Lucia Auth is an open-source authentication library designed to simplify session management. It supports various JavaScript runtimes, including Node.js, Bun, Deno, and Cloudflare Workers, and is fully typed. The library integrates with databases such as MongoDB, PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQLite, as well as their respective ORMs and query builders.

Pros of using Lucia Auth include being open source, fully typed, and its compatibility with any JavaScript runtime. As of now, there are no user-generated cons listed for Lucia Auth.

Clerk is a comprehensive authentication and user management platform that provides embeddable UIs, APIs, and admin dashboards for user management. It supports multiple frameworks and languages through official and community SDKs.

Clerk offers embeddable UIs, APIs, and admin dashboards for user management. It provides official SDKs for Next.js, React, JavaScript, Node.js, Remix, Go, Gatsby, and Ruby/Rails, along with community SDKs for other frameworks and languages. Clerk also includes features such as SMS authentication, device tracking and revocation, simultaneous sessions, and SAML authentication.

Clerk has a free tier that supports up to 10,000 Monthly Active Users (MAUs). The Pro tier costs $25 per month with an additional charge of $0.02 per MAU. Enhanced authentication features and an admin add-on each cost an additional $100 per month.

Clerk supports a variety of frameworks and languages through official SDKs, including Next.js, React, JavaScript, Node.js, Remix, Go, Gatsby, and Ruby/Rails. There are also many community SDKs available for other frameworks and languages.

Enhanced authentication features in Clerk, which include SMS authentication, device tracking and revocation, simultaneous sessions, and SAML authentication, cost an additional $100 per month.

The admin add-on for Clerk includes features such as user impersonation and enhanced roles. This add-on costs an additional $100 per month.