@azure/msal-browser vs firebase vs @auth0/auth0-spa-js vs amazon-cognito-identity-js vs @okta/okta-auth-js vs oidc-client
Web Authentication Libraries Comparison
1 Year
@azure/msal-browserfirebase@auth0/auth0-spa-jsamazon-cognito-identity-js@okta/okta-auth-jsoidc-clientSimilar Packages:
What's Web Authentication Libraries?

These libraries provide various solutions for implementing authentication and authorization in web applications. They enable developers to integrate user authentication, manage sessions, and secure access to resources using different identity providers. Each library has its unique features and is tailored to specific use cases, making it essential to choose the right one based on project requirements and existing infrastructure.

Package Weekly Downloads Trend
Github Stars Ranking
Stat Detail
Package
Downloads
Stars
Size
Issues
Publish
License
@azure/msal-browser5,261,5133,8786.35 MB231a day agoMIT
firebase3,056,6574,97625.9 MB7159 days agoApache-2.0
@auth0/auth0-spa-js1,005,9419581.29 MB3021 days agoMIT
amazon-cognito-identity-js960,8439,5321.38 MB5044 months agoApache-2.0
@okta/okta-auth-js638,82647118.9 MB2172 months agoApache-2.0
oidc-client154,7622,433-1164 years agoApache-2.0
Feature Comparison: @azure/msal-browser vs firebase vs @auth0/auth0-spa-js vs amazon-cognito-identity-js vs @okta/okta-auth-js vs oidc-client

Authentication Methods

  • @azure/msal-browser:

    MSAL primarily focuses on Microsoft accounts and Azure Active Directory, providing OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect flows for secure authentication. It supports single sign-on (SSO) across Microsoft services.

  • firebase:

    Firebase Authentication provides a simple way to authenticate users via email/password, phone authentication, and social providers. It is designed for ease of use, especially for mobile and web apps.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Auth0 supports a wide range of authentication methods, including social logins (Google, Facebook), passwordless authentication, and enterprise connections (SAML, Active Directory). This flexibility makes it suitable for diverse user bases.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Cognito supports user sign-up, sign-in, and access control with features like MFA and federated identities. It integrates seamlessly with AWS services, making it ideal for AWS-centric applications.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Okta offers various authentication methods, including social logins, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and adaptive authentication. It is designed for enterprise environments needing robust security measures.

  • oidc-client:

    OIDC Client is focused on OpenID Connect and supports various authentication flows, including authorization code flow and implicit flow. It is lightweight and suitable for SPAs requiring custom authentication.

Integration with Identity Providers

  • @azure/msal-browser:

    MSAL is tightly integrated with Azure Active Directory and Microsoft identity services, making it the best choice for applications relying on Microsoft ecosystems.

  • firebase:

    Firebase Authentication integrates easily with Google, Facebook, and other providers, providing a unified authentication experience across platforms.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Auth0 provides easy integration with numerous identity providers and allows for custom connections, making it versatile for various applications.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Cognito integrates well with AWS services and allows for federated identities, enabling users to authenticate with external identity providers like Facebook or Google.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Okta offers seamless integration with multiple identity providers and supports SAML and OAuth 2.0 for enterprise applications, providing flexibility in user management.

  • oidc-client:

    OIDC Client is designed for integration with any OpenID Connect-compliant identity provider, allowing for flexibility in choosing authentication services.

User Management

  • @azure/msal-browser:

    MSAL provides basic user management features but relies on Azure AD for more advanced capabilities like role-based access control and user provisioning.

  • firebase:

    Firebase Authentication includes user management features, allowing developers to manage user accounts and access control directly from the Firebase console.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Auth0 offers a comprehensive dashboard for user management, allowing developers to handle user roles, permissions, and profile management with ease.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Cognito allows for user pool management, including user attributes and group management, but is less feature-rich compared to dedicated identity management solutions.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Okta provides a robust user management system with features for user provisioning, lifecycle management, and detailed user analytics, making it suitable for enterprise applications.

  • oidc-client:

    OIDC Client does not provide built-in user management features; it focuses on handling authentication flows and relies on the identity provider for user management.

Security Features

  • @azure/msal-browser:

    MSAL provides strong security features, including token caching, secure token storage, and support for conditional access policies in Azure AD.

  • firebase:

    Firebase Authentication provides basic security features, including email verification and password reset, but may lack advanced security options compared to other providers.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Auth0 emphasizes security with features like anomaly detection, breach detection, and advanced MFA options, ensuring user data is protected.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Cognito offers built-in security features like MFA and encryption for user data, but it may not be as comprehensive as dedicated identity management solutions.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Okta is known for its enterprise-grade security features, including adaptive MFA, user behavior analytics, and compliance with various security standards.

  • oidc-client:

    OIDC Client focuses on implementing secure authentication flows but does not provide extensive security features; it relies on the identity provider for security measures.

Ease of Use

  • @azure/msal-browser:

    MSAL has a moderate learning curve, especially for those familiar with Microsoft services, but offers comprehensive documentation to assist developers.

  • firebase:

    Firebase Authentication is known for its simplicity and ease of use, making it ideal for rapid development and prototyping.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Auth0 is designed for ease of integration with clear documentation and SDKs, making it beginner-friendly for developers.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Cognito can be complex to set up due to its integration with AWS services, but it offers good documentation for guidance.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Okta provides a straightforward API and good documentation, making it relatively easy to implement, especially for enterprise applications.

  • oidc-client:

    OIDC Client is lightweight and easy to integrate, but may require additional setup for user management and security features.

How to Choose: @azure/msal-browser vs firebase vs @auth0/auth0-spa-js vs amazon-cognito-identity-js vs @okta/okta-auth-js vs oidc-client
  • @azure/msal-browser:

    Select MSAL if your application is primarily using Microsoft services or Azure Active Directory. It provides seamless integration with Microsoft accounts and is suitable for enterprise applications that require robust security features.

  • firebase:

    Select Firebase if you are looking for a backend-as-a-service solution that includes authentication as part of a broader suite of services. It's great for rapid development and prototyping, especially for mobile and web applications.

  • @auth0/auth0-spa-js:

    Choose Auth0 if you need a comprehensive identity management solution with support for multiple authentication methods and social logins. It's ideal for applications requiring quick integration and a user-friendly interface for managing users.

  • amazon-cognito-identity-js:

    Choose Amazon Cognito if you are building applications on AWS and want to leverage AWS services for user management and authentication. It integrates well with other AWS services and is suitable for scalable applications.

  • @okta/okta-auth-js:

    Opt for Okta if you need a dedicated identity provider with strong support for enterprise-level security features and user management. It's particularly useful for applications that require advanced user authentication flows and multi-factor authentication.

  • oidc-client:

    Choose OIDC Client if you are implementing OpenID Connect and need a lightweight library for handling authentication flows in single-page applications. It's suitable for applications that require custom authentication solutions.

README for @azure/msal-browser

Microsoft Authentication Library for JavaScript (MSAL.js) for Browser-Based Single-Page Applications

npm version npm version codecov

| Getting Started | AAD Docs | Library Reference | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |

  1. About
  2. FAQ
  3. Changelog
  4. Roadmap
  5. Prerequisites
  6. Installation
  7. Usage
  8. Samples
  9. Build and Test
  10. Authorization Code vs Implicit
  11. Framework Wrappers
  12. Security Reporting
  13. License
  14. Code of Conduct

About

The MSAL library for JavaScript enables client-side JavaScript applications to authenticate users using Azure AD work and school accounts (AAD), Microsoft personal accounts (MSA) and social identity providers like Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft accounts, etc. through Azure AD B2C service. It also enables your app to get tokens to access Microsoft Cloud services such as Microsoft Graph.

The @azure/msal-browser package described by the code in this folder uses the @azure/msal-common package as a dependency to enable authentication in JavaScript Single-Page Applications without backend servers. This version of the library uses the OAuth 2.0 Authorization Code Flow with PKCE. To read more about this protocol, as well as the differences between implicit flow and authorization code flow, see the section below.

This is an improvement upon the previous @azure/msal library which will utilize the authorization code flow in the browser. Most features available in the old library will be available in this one, but there are nuances to the authentication flow in both. The @azure/msal-browser package does NOT support the implicit flow.

FAQ

See here.

Roadmap

See here.

Prerequisites

Installation

Via NPM

npm install @azure/msal-browser

Usage

Migrating from Previous MSAL Versions

MSAL Basics

  1. Initialization
  2. Logging in a User
  3. Acquiring and Using an Access Token
  4. Managing Token Lifetimes
  5. Managing Accounts
  6. Logging Out a User

Advanced Topics

Samples

The msal-browser-samples folder contains sample applications for our libraries.

More instructions to run the samples can be found in the README.md file of the VanillaJSTestApp2.0 folder.

More advanced samples backed with a tutorial can be found in the Azure Samples space on GitHub:

We also provide samples for addin/plugin scenarios:

Build and Test

See the contributing.md file for more information.

Building the package

To build the @azure/msal-browser library, you can do the following:

// Change to the msal-browser package directory
cd lib/msal-browser/
// To run build only for browser package
npm run build

To build both the @azure/msal-browser library and @azure/msal-common libraries, you can do the following:

// Change to the msal-browser package directory
cd lib/msal-browser/
// To run build for both browser and common packages
npm run build:all

Running Tests

@azure/msal-browser uses jest to run unit tests.

// To run tests
npm test
// To run tests with code coverage
npm run test:coverage

Framework Wrappers

If you are using a framework such as Angular or React you may be interested in using one of our wrapper libraries:

Security Reporting

If you find a security issue with our libraries or services please report it to secure@microsoft.com with as much detail as possible. Your submission may be eligible for a bounty through the Microsoft Bounty program. Please do not post security issues to GitHub Issues or any other public site. We will contact you shortly upon receiving the information. We encourage you to get notifications of when security incidents occur by visiting this page and subscribing to Security Advisory Alerts.

License

Copyright (c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Licensed under the MIT License.

We Value and Adhere to the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct

This project has adopted the Microsoft Open Source Code of Conduct. For more information see the Code of Conduct FAQ or contact opencode@microsoft.com with any additional questions or comments.