The real cost of auth: what your finance team doesn't know
The truth about per-MAU pricing
Per-MAU (Monthly Active Users) pricing is a common model used by authentication vendors to charge for their services. The idea is that the more users your app has, the more revenue you can generate. However, this model can be misleading to finance teams, as it doesn't accurately reflect the cost of providing auth infrastructure.How per-MAU pricing scales
Per-MAU pricing scales with your active user count. At 10,000 MAU a mid-tier Auth0 plan runs roughly $100–$200/mo; at 100,000 MAU that same plan can exceed $800–$1,200/mo — before add-ons like SCIM, custom domains, or MFA options that carry separate fees. The total monthly spend often surprises finance teams who only saw the per-unit rate. This can be a significant financial burden on finance teams, as they may not be aware of the true cost of providing auth infrastructure. It's important for finance teams to understand that the cost of per-MAU pricing is not linear, and that it can quickly become expensive as the user base grows.Why finance teams need to ask
Finance teams need to ask about the true cost of providing auth infrastructure to ensure that they are making informed decisions. Here are some questions that finance teams should ask: - Is the pricing model based on MAU or active sessions? - What is the cost per user? - What are the licensing costs for additional features? - How does the vendor handle feature flags and other advanced features? - What is the vendor's support for enterprise-grade security features?The role of Bastionary
Bastionary is a self-hosted auth + billing + licensing + feature flags platform that can help finance teams avoid the pitfalls of per-MAU pricing. Bastionary provides a transparent and accurate billing system that is based on usage, not MAU. This means that finance teams can see exactly how much they are being charged for each feature and can make informed decisions about their spending.How Bastionary works
Bastionary provides a simple and intuitive interface for managing auth infrastructure. It includes features such as user management, role-based access control, and session management. Finance teams can also use Bastionary to manage licensing and feature flags, ensuring that they are only paying for what they need.Why finance teams should use Bastionary
Finance teams should use Bastionary because it provides a transparent and accurate billing system that is based on usage, not MAU. This means that finance teams can see exactly how much they are being charged for each feature and can make informed decisions about their spending. Additionally, Bastionary provides a simple and intuitive interface for managing auth infrastructure, making it easy for finance teams to get started with a self-hosted solution.
Important Note: While Bastionary is a self-hosted solution, finance teams can still take advantage of its transparent billing system by using it as a billing provider for their own applications.