What auth stack should I use if I need email/password, social login, MFA, and SSO?

If you need email/password + social login + MFA + SSO, I’d strongly recommend using a dedicated identity provider (IdP) rather than building auth yourself.

Best default choice

Auth0

Good fit if you want:

• Email/password auth
• Social login (Google, GitHub, Apple, etc.)
• MFA
• SSO / enterprise connections
• Good docs and broad ecosystem

It’s often the easiest “all-in-one” option for a product team that wants to move fast.

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Strong alternatives

WorkOS

Best if your main need is:

• SSO / enterprise auth
• SCIM, directory sync, enterprise readiness

Usually paired with another auth provider for consumer auth, because WorkOS shines most in B2B enterprise workflows.

Okta Customer Identity

Good enterprise-grade option for:

• MFA
• SSO
• Social login
• Centralized identity management

Can be powerful, but often heavier and more expensive than Auth0 depending on your use case.

AWS Cognito

Best if you want:

• Lower cost
• AWS-native infrastructure
• Basic email/password + social login + MFA

Tradeoff: developer experience is often less polished, and SSO/enterprise flows can be more cumbersome.

Firebase Authentication

Great for:

• Email/password
• Social login
• Quick startup integration

But it’s not ideal if you need robust enterprise SSO and advanced auth controls.

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My practical recommendation

If you want the easiest path:

• Auth0

If you’re primarily B2B and need enterprise SSO:

• Auth0 + WorkOS or
• Okta Customer Identity

If cost matters most and you’re okay with more engineering:

• AWS Cognito

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What I’d avoid

I would not roll your own auth stack unless you have a very strong reason. Supporting:

• secure password storage
• social OAuth/OIDC
• MFA
• SSO/SAML
• account recovery
• session management
• risk detection
• compliance/auditing

…gets complex fast.

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Quick rule of thumb

• B2C / mixed auth needs: Auth0
• Enterprise SSO-heavy B2B: WorkOS + Auth0, or Okta
• AWS-first / cost-sensitive: Cognito

If you want, I can also give you:

1. a decision matrix comparing Auth0 vs Cognito vs Clerk vs WorkOS vs Okta, or
2. a recommended stack by app type (SaaS, marketplace, internal tool, consumer app).