MojoAuth vs SuperTokens: managed CIAM versus open-source self-hosting
SuperTokens is the leading open-source CIAM platform. MojoAuth is closed-source managed SaaS. This comparison covers the self-host versus managed trade-off, total cost of ownership, and where each fits.
TL;DR verdict
Choose SuperTokens (self-hosted) when data residency requirements forbid SaaS, your team has DevOps capacity, or you want zero per-MAU costs at scale. Choose MojoAuth (or SuperTokens Managed) when total cost of ownership including engineering time matters more than the headline per-MAU price. For most consumer apps, managed SaaS wins on TCO. For regulated enterprises with strict data residency, self-host is the path.
At-a-glance comparison
| Dimension | MojoAuth | SuperTokens |
|---|---|---|
| License | Closed-source SaaS | Apache 2.0 open source |
| Deployment | MojoAuth cloud | Self-host or Managed Service |
| Free tier | 25,000 MAUs (cloud) | Self-host: unlimited / Managed: 5,000 MAUs |
| Paid pricing | Business Pro from $120/mo (25,000 MAU) | Managed: $0.02/MAU after 5k |
| Passkeys / WebAuthn | FIDO2/WebAuthn compliant | Supported |
| WhatsApp OTP | Native (Enterprise) | Not native, custom |
| One Tap Login | Included | Custom build |
| Custom logic | Webhooks | Override functions (code) |
| Source-level control | No | Yes (full source access) |
| SOC 2 Type II / ISO 27001 | Certified / Certified | SuperTokens Managed: SOC 2 |
| HIPAA BAA | Enterprise plan (HIPAA-ready) | Self-host: customer responsibility |
| Operations burden | None (SaaS) | Customer-managed if self-host |
When to choose MojoAuth
Total cost of ownership matters more than per-MAU rates.
Self-hosting SuperTokens is "free" in license cost but not in operational cost. Engineering time to patch, scale, monitor, and recover from incidents costs more than managed SaaS for most teams. MojoAuth's MAU pricing includes the operations.
You want every passwordless method without building it.
MojoAuth ships passkeys, Magic Link, Email OTP, Phone OTP, WhatsApp OTP (Enterprise), Social Login, and One Tap Login behind one API. With SuperTokens, channels such as WhatsApp OTP are custom work.
You want SOC 2 / HIPAA without doing the audit yourself.
Self-hosted SuperTokens means your own infrastructure is in scope for SOC 2 and HIPAA audits, not the vendor's. MojoAuth's certifications cover the auth platform in your audit boundary.
When to choose SuperTokens
Data residency forbids SaaS.
Some regulated industries (defense, certain financial services, some healthcare contexts) cannot ship user identity data to third-party SaaS. Self-hosted SuperTokens keeps everything inside your boundary.
You want source-level customization.
SuperTokens supports "override functions" that let you replace core platform behavior at the code level. For unusual auth requirements that webhooks cannot model, source-level control is decisive.
You have DevOps and want zero per-MAU costs at scale.
If you have a Kubernetes platform team, observability stack, and on-call rotation already in place, adding SuperTokens to the platform is incremental cost. At very high MAU counts (low millions), self-hosting saves money over managed.
Pricing breakdown
| Scenario | MojoAuth | SuperTokens |
|---|---|---|
| 10,000 MAUs, managed | Free | ~$100/mo (Managed) |
| 50,000 MAUs, managed | $200/mo | ~$900/mo (Managed) |
| 10,000 MAUs, self-host | N/A | $0 license + infra + ops |
| 1M MAUs | $3,200/mo (managed) | $0 license + infra + ops |
Self-hosted SuperTokens has zero license cost but real operational cost. Typical estimate for production-grade self-hosting: $5k-$15k/year in infrastructure plus 0.25 to 0.5 FTE in ongoing operations. Below that effort, expect incidents.
Developer experience
Email OTP with MojoAuth
import { MojoAuth } from "@mojoauth/server-sdk";
const mojo = new MojoAuth({ apiKey: process.env.MOJOAUTH_API_KEY });
await mojo.email.sendOtp({ email: "user@example.com" });
const { user, accessToken } = await mojo.email.verifyOtp({
email: "user@example.com",
otp: req.body.otp,
});
Passwordless with SuperTokens (Node)
import Passwordless from "supertokens-node/recipe/passwordless";
const { codeId, preAuthSessionId } =
await Passwordless.createCode({
tenantId: "public",
email: "user@example.com",
});
const { status, user } = await Passwordless.consumeCode({
tenantId: "public",
preAuthSessionId,
userInputCode: req.body.otp,
});
SuperTokens uses a "recipes" model: passwordless, EmailPassword, ThirdParty, Session, Multi-tenancy, etc. Each recipe is composable. The downside is the conceptual surface is larger; the upside is fine-grained control.
Security and compliance
MojoAuth
- SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certified
- FIDO2/WebAuthn compliant passkeys
- HIPAA-ready (BAA on Enterprise)
SuperTokens
- Managed Service: SOC 2
- Self-host: your infrastructure is in scope, not the vendor's
- Source open for security review
Migration from SuperTokens
- Week 1: Export users from SuperTokens (core REST API). Import into MojoAuth with password hashes.
- Week 2: Replace recipe-based code with MojoAuth SDK calls. Map override functions to webhooks. Parallel run.
- Week 3: Cutover and decommission SuperTokens deployment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ready to evaluate?
Sources
- SuperTokens public documentation and pricing pages.
- SuperTokens GitHub repository for source review.
- SuperTokens Managed Service Trust documentation.
- MojoAuth pricing page and Trust Portal.
Advocates for frictionless passwordless authentication and connects product outcomes to real buyer decisions in CIAM.
Builds developer-friendly passwordless authentication systems and reviews SDK ergonomics across vendors.