Clerk vs Auth.js

Clerk vs Auth.js (NextAuth) comparison for authentication. Compare managed vs self-hosted auth solutions for your Next.js app.

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Quick Verdict

Winner: Depends

Clerk is a managed solution with beautiful UI components. Auth.js is free and self-hosted but requires more setup. Choose Clerk for speed and polish; choose Auth.js for cost savings and full control.

Choose Clerk if...

✓ You want to ship auth quickly
✓ You need pre-built UI components
✓ You're okay paying for a managed service
✓ You want user management dashboard
✓ Developer experience is a priority

Choose Auth.js if...

✓ You want completely free auth
✓ You need full control over your data
✓ You're comfortable with more setup
✓ You don't need pre-built UI
✓ You want to self-host everything

Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Category	Clerk	Auth.js	Winner
Pricing	Free: 10k MAU. Pro: $25/mo + $0.02/MAU.	Free and open source forever.	Auth.js
Free Tier	10,000 MAU, full features, pre-built components.	Unlimited. It's open source.	Auth.js
Developer Experience	Exceptional. Drop-in components, hooks, middleware helpers.	Good but requires more configuration and custom UI.	Clerk
Documentation	Excellent. Framework guides, examples, troubleshooting.	Good docs but can be overwhelming. Many configuration options.	Clerk
Scalability	Managed infrastructure. Scales automatically.	Depends on your database. Can scale as needed.	Tie
Features	Social login, MFA, organizations, user management, webhooks.	Social login, email, credentials, database adapters. No user management UI.	Clerk

Code Comparison

Protect a Route

typescript

// middleware.ts
import { clerkMiddleware } from '@clerk/nextjs/server';

export default clerkMiddleware();

export const config = {
  matcher: ['/((?!.*\\..*|_next).*)', '/', '/(api|trpc)(.*)'],
};

Clerk's middleware protects routes automatically.

Configure Auth.js

typescript

// auth.ts
import NextAuth from 'next-auth';
import GitHub from 'next-auth/providers/github';

export const { handlers, auth, signIn, signOut } = NextAuth({
  providers: [
    GitHub({
      clientId: process.env.GITHUB_ID!,
      clientSecret: process.env.GITHUB_SECRET!,
    }),
  ],
});

Auth.js requires more configuration but gives full control.

🔄 Migration Notes

Migration between these is significant. User data structures differ. Plan carefully - you may need to force users to re-authenticate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Auth.js the same as NextAuth? ▼

Yes! NextAuth.js was renamed to Auth.js to reflect its framework-agnostic direction. It now supports SvelteKit, SolidStart, and more.

Is Clerk worth the cost? ▼

For most startups, yes. The time saved on building auth UI, user management, and handling edge cases often exceeds the monthly cost.

Try Clerk

Authentication and user management that just works

Try Auth.js

Authentication for the Web. Free and open source.

⚖ Compare in Interactive Tool

Last updated: January 11, 2026