Firebase Authentication vs OpenID Connect

Overview

OpenID Connect

Stacks233

Followers133

Votes0

Firebase Authentication

Stacks533

Followers610

Votes55

Firebase Authentication vs OpenID Connect: What are the differences?

Introduction

Firebase Authentication and OpenID Connect are both authentication protocols used for user authentication in web applications. However, there are key differences between the two.

Token Validation: Firebase Authentication uses Firebase Authentication Tokens, which are generated by the Firebase Authentication server. These tokens are validated on the server-side using Firebase SDKs, ensuring that the user is authenticated and authorized to access certain resources. On the other hand, OpenID Connect relies on JSON Web Tokens (JWT) for token validation. These tokens are verified using public key cryptography, ensuring the security and validity of the user's identity.
User Management: Firebase Authentication provides a complete user management system, allowing developers to create and manage user accounts directly within the Firebase console or through the Firebase Authentication API. It also provides features like email verification, password reset, and account linking. OpenID Connect, on the other hand, relies on an Identity Provider (IdP) for user management. The IdP is responsible for handling user registration, password management, and other user-related tasks.
Provider Support: Firebase Authentication supports a wide range of authentication providers out of the box, including email/password, Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more. It also allows developers to add custom authentication providers using Firebase Authentication API. In contrast, OpenID Connect relies on Identity Providers that support the OpenID Connect protocol. While there are many popular IdPs that support OpenID Connect, the support for custom IdPs may vary.
Scopes and Claims: Firebase Authentication does not include support for scopes and claims, which are used to define the permissions and attributes associated with a user. OpenID Connect, on the other hand, provides support for scopes and claims through the process of Claims Gathering and Claims Verification. This allows developers to define fine-grained access control and retrieve additional user information.
Integration Complexity: Firebase Authentication provides an easy-to-use SDK that simplifies the integration process with web applications. It provides libraries for various platforms and frameworks, making it straightforward to authenticate users and manage their sessions. On the other hand, integrating OpenID Connect into a web application typically requires more development effort, as it involves implementing the necessary logic to handle authentication requests, token validation, and user management.
Pricing: Firebase Authentication offers a free tier that includes a certain number of monthly active users. Beyond the free tier, pricing is based on the number of monthly active users and additional features used. OpenID Connect does not have a specific pricing model, as it is a protocol rather than a service. The cost associated with using OpenID Connect depends on the Identity Provider chosen and any additional services required for user management.

In summary, Firebase Authentication and OpenID Connect differ in token validation, user management, provider support, scopes and claims, integration complexity, and pricing.

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CLI (Node.js)

Manual

Detailed Comparison

OpenID Connect	Firebase Authentication
It is a simple identity layer on top of the OAuth 2.0 protocol. It allows Clients to verify the identity of the End-User based on the authentication performed by an Authorization Server, as well as to obtain basic profile information about the End-User in an interoperable and REST-like manner.	It provides backend services, easy-to-use SDKs, and ready-made UI libraries to authenticate users to your app. It supports authentication using passwords, phone numbers, popular federated identity providers like Google,
Statistics
Stacks 233	Stacks 533
Followers 133	Followers 610
Votes 0	Votes 55
Pros & Cons
No community feedback yet	Pros 12 Completely Free 8 Email/Password 8 Native App + Web integrations 7 Passwordless 6 Works seemlessly with other Firebase Services Cons 6 Heavy webpack
Integrations
JSON Web Token Spring Security OAuth2	No integrations available

What are some alternatives to OpenID Connect, Firebase Authentication?

Auth0

A set of unified APIs and tools that instantly enables Single Sign On and user management to all your applications.

Stormpath

Stormpath is an authentication and user management service that helps development teams quickly and securely build web and mobile applications and services.

Keycloak

It is an Open Source Identity and Access Management For Modern Applications and Services. It adds authentication to applications and secure services with minimum fuss. No need to deal with storing users or authenticating users. It's all available out of the box.

Devise

Devise is a flexible authentication solution for Rails based on Warden

Amazon Cognito

You can create unique identities for your users through a number of public login providers (Amazon, Facebook, and Google) and also support unauthenticated guests. You can save app data locally on users’ devices allowing your applications to work even when the devices are offline.

WorkOS

Start selling to enterprise customers with just a few lines of code.

OAuth.io

OAuth is a protocol that aimed to provide a single secure recipe to manage authorizations. It is now used by almost every web application. However, 30+ different implementations coexist. OAuth.io fixes this massive problem by acting as a universal adapter, thanks to a robust API. With OAuth.io integrating OAuth takes minutes instead of hours or days.

OmniAuth

OmniAuth is a Ruby authentication framework aimed to abstract away the difficulties of working with various types of authentication providers. It is meant to be hooked up to just about any system, from social networks to enterprise systems to simple username and password authentication.

ORY Hydra

It is a self-managed server that secures access to your applications and APIs with OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect. It is OpenID Connect Certified and optimized for latency, high throughput, and low resource consumption.

Kinde

Simple, powerful authentication that you can integrate in minutes. Free your users from passwords with secure and frictionless one click sign up and sign in. Built from the ground up using the best in class security protocols available today.

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Firebase Authentication vs OpenID Connect: What are the differences?

Introduction

Firebase Authentication and OpenID Connect are both authentication protocols used for user authentication in web applications. However, there are key differences between the two.

Token Validation: Firebase Authentication uses Firebase Authentication Tokens, which are generated by the Firebase Authentication server. These tokens are validated on the server-side using Firebase SDKs, ensuring that the user is authenticated and authorized to access certain resources. On the other hand, OpenID Connect relies on JSON Web Tokens (JWT) for token validation. These tokens are verified using public key cryptography, ensuring the security and validity of the user's identity.
User Management: Firebase Authentication provides a complete user management system, allowing developers to create and manage user accounts directly within the Firebase console or through the Firebase Authentication API. It also provides features like email verification, password reset, and account linking. OpenID Connect, on the other hand, relies on an Identity Provider (IdP) for user management. The IdP is responsible for handling user registration, password management, and other user-related tasks.
Provider Support: Firebase Authentication supports a wide range of authentication providers out of the box, including email/password, Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more. It also allows developers to add custom authentication providers using Firebase Authentication API. In contrast, OpenID Connect relies on Identity Providers that support the OpenID Connect protocol. While there are many popular IdPs that support OpenID Connect, the support for custom IdPs may vary.
Scopes and Claims: Firebase Authentication does not include support for scopes and claims, which are used to define the permissions and attributes associated with a user. OpenID Connect, on the other hand, provides support for scopes and claims through the process of Claims Gathering and Claims Verification. This allows developers to define fine-grained access control and retrieve additional user information.
Integration Complexity: Firebase Authentication provides an easy-to-use SDK that simplifies the integration process with web applications. It provides libraries for various platforms and frameworks, making it straightforward to authenticate users and manage their sessions. On the other hand, integrating OpenID Connect into a web application typically requires more development effort, as it involves implementing the necessary logic to handle authentication requests, token validation, and user management.
Pricing: Firebase Authentication offers a free tier that includes a certain number of monthly active users. Beyond the free tier, pricing is based on the number of monthly active users and additional features used. OpenID Connect does not have a specific pricing model, as it is a protocol rather than a service. The cost associated with using OpenID Connect depends on the Identity Provider chosen and any additional services required for user management.

In summary, Firebase Authentication and OpenID Connect differ in token validation, user management, provider support, scopes and claims, integration complexity, and pricing.