Hanko
Hanko provides open-source, passkey-first customer authentication and user management as a developer-friendly alternative to Auth0, Clerk, and Firebase Auth, serving web and mobile application teams across Europe and globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersKiel, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Hanko does
Hanko (Hanko GmbH) is a Germany-based open-source authentication and user management platform founded in 2018 and headquartered in Kiel. The company provides passkey-first Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) as an alternative to Auth0, Clerk, Firebase Auth, AWS Cognito, and Keycloak, offering FIDO2-certified passkey infrastructure alongside passwords, MFA, SSO, and full user management. Its product portfolio consists of three offerings: Hanko Auth (the core CIAM platform with an API-first architecture and Hanko Elements web components), Passkey API (a standalone FIDO2-certified API for adding passkey support to existing auth stacks), and a white-label Authenticator App for iOS and Android. The technology stack is framework-agnostic with native SDKs and starter templates for React, Vue, Angular, Svelte, Next.js, Nuxt, Remix, Solid, Symfony, Go, Python, Rust, Java/Spring, and Node.js, and is supported by a proprietary Flow API that handles authentication state management on behalf of the frontend.
Hanko firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Hanko
- Legal name
- Hanko GmbH
- Website
- https://hanko.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Hanko provides open-source, passkey-first customer authentication and user management as a developer-friendly alternative to Auth0, Clerk, and Firebase Auth, serving web and mobile application teams across Europe and globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Hanko industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Identity and Access Management
- NAICS
- Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Customer Identity & Access Management (CIAM) (BPAMAEAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Customer Identity & Access Management (CIAM) (HDADAAAD), Customer Identity & Access Management (CIAM) (HDAEAJAF), Single Sign-On (SSO) & Federation (BPAMAEAF), Single Sign-On (SSO) & Federation (SAML/OIDC, Identity Providers) (HDAEAJAB), Federation & Identity Standards (SAML/OIDC/OAuth, Federation Hubs) (HDADAAAG)
Keywords
Where Hanko is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kiel
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Hanko business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Cloud Subscription (SaaS): Cloud-hosted authentication service with tiered pricing based on monthly active users (MAUs). Higher tiers include additional features and SLA guarantees.
- Self-hosted (Open Source): Free open-source version for self-hosting on own infrastructure with community support. Revenue generated from optional commercial support and consulting services.
- Private Cloud Deployment: Managed private Hanko environment on customer-chosen cloud provider with enhanced support and SLA guarantees.
- Startup Program: Free tier with 1 million MAUs for qualifying startups (under $500k ARR or $1M VC funding), with path to paid Pro subscription at $29/month upon exceeding thresholds.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free plan with basic features and community support |
| Freemium | Monthly | Startup program with 1 million free MAUs |
| Subscription | Monthly | Pro subscription at $29/month |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
Hanko product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Hanko provides an open-source Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) platform centered on FIDO2 passkey authentication. It offers a core product (Hanko Auth) for full authentication and user management, a standalone Passkey API for adding passkeys to existing auth stacks, and a white-label Authenticator App for mobile MFA. Customers can deploy via cloud-hosted, private cloud, or self-hosted open-source installations.
Product overview
Hanko is an open-source authentication and user management platform built around passkeys. The product portfolio consists of three offerings: (1) Hanko Auth — the core CIAM platform providing passkeys, passwords, MFA, and SSO with API-first architecture and Hanko Elements web components for fast integration; (2) Passkey API — a standalone FIDO2-certified API for adding passkey support to existing auth stacks without full platform deployment; and (3) Authenticator App — a white-label mobile authenticator (iOS/Android) serving as a biometric MFA factor with Keycloak plugin support. Hanko is developed by a Germany-based team, can be self-hosted or cloud-hosted, and positions itself as an open-source alternative to Auth0, Clerk, Firebase Auth, AWS Cognito, and Keycloak.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Hanko Auth
Quantifiable outcome
- Cost reduction from ~$20k/month to $29/month for 1M MAUs compared to incumbent auth providers
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Hanko
Customer profileNamed customers16 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Hanko technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Feature9 records
Hanko partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Hanko competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Clerk: Developer-focused CIAM platform offering authentication, user management, and passkey support with similar PLG pricing and framework coverage — the closest direct competitor to Hanko's positioning as a modern Auth0 alternative.
- Stytch: Developer-first authentication platform with strong emphasis on passkeys, passwordless, and B2B auth — competes for the same developer adoption funnel and offers comparable API/SDK ergonomics.
- Descope: CIAM and user-management platform purpose-built around passkeys and passwordless flows, with drag-and-drop flow editor; targets the same developer and startup segment as Hanko.
- Keycloak: Open-source identity and access management server (now under CNCF) offering SSO, social login, and passkey support via plugins — the most direct open-source CIAM comparable to Hanko's self-hosted model.
- Ory: Open-source API-first identity infrastructure (Ory Kratos, Hydra, Oathkeeper) with self-hosted and cloud deployment, targeting developers building modern applications — directly comparable to Hanko's architecture and open-source GTM.
- SuperTokens: Open-source authentication solution offering session management, passwordless, MFA, and social login with self-hosted and managed cloud options — competing for the same developer segment migrating off Auth0/Firebase.
- WorkOS: Enterprise authentication platform focused on SSO, SAML/OIDC, and B2B identity features; competes for the enterprise SSO portion of Hanko's offering, especially with SAML IdP support and Entra/Okta integrations.
Broad incumbents
- Auth0 (Okta): The dominant CIAM vendor that Hanko explicitly positions against; offers passkeys, MFA, SSO and enterprise features at scale across thousands of customers, with broader portfolio identity capabilities post-Okta acquisition.
- AWS Cognito: Hyperscaler-bundled identity service offered within the AWS ecosystem; included in Hanko's list of explicit alternatives and represents the 'free with the cloud' competitive threat.
- Firebase Authentication: Google-managed authentication service with generous free tier for mobile and web developers; competes with Hanko on cost and integration ease, especially for startups already on Google Cloud.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Hanko social profiles
Digital presenceHanko compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Hanko financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Hanko leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Hanko funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Hanko M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Hanko
What does Hanko do?
Hanko provides an open-source Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) platform centered on FIDO2 passkey authentication. It offers a core product (Hanko Auth) for full authentication and user management, a standalone Passkey API for adding passkeys to existing auth stacks, and a white-label Authenticator App for mobile MFA. Customers can deploy via cloud-hosted, private cloud, or self-hosted open-source installations.
Is Hanko a public or private company?
Hanko is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Hanko founded?
Hanko was founded in 2018. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Hanko based?
Hanko is headquartered in Kiel, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Hanko make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Cloud Subscription (SaaS) is the primary driver. The others are self-hosted (Open Source), private Cloud Deployment and startup Program.
Who are Hanko's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Clerk, Stytch, Descope, Keycloak, Ory, SuperTokens and WorkOS. Broad incumbents are Auth0 (Okta), AWS Cognito and Firebase Authentication.
Does Hanko have an API?
Yes. Hanko provides a public REST API for authentication and user management. Public API endpoints include Flow API (registration, login, profile), session management (validate, get), WebAuthn/passkey operations, third-party OAuth, SAML IdP callbacks, token management, email management, user management (list, get, create, update, delete), webhooks, audit logs, and status. Admin API endpoints provide project and user administration. Session tokens are validated via POST /sessions/validate. SDKs are available for JavaScript/TypeScript (via @teamhanko/hanko-elements or @teamhanko/hanko-frontend-sdk), Python, Go, Java (Spring), and Rust. Authentication uses Bearer tokens for admin endpoints and cookie-based sessions for public endpoints. The T&C guarantees a minimum 99.5% uptime SLA. Developer documentation is at docs.hanko.io.
What industry is Hanko in?
Hanko's product category is Identity and Access Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAEAA, Customer Identity & Access Management (CIAM), with a secondary code of HDADAAAD, Customer Identity & Access Management (CIAM). Its NAICS code is 541511 and its SIC code is 7371.