Happy Valley

Keycloak vs Papermark

Keycloak and Papermark are both security & identity tools. Keycloak is aimed at enterprise and developers, while Papermark is aimed at small businesses and enterprise. Both have a free plan.

Keycloak

Open-source identity and access management

Papermark

Open-source document sharing and virtual data rooms with analytics

PricingOpen sourceOpen source · $35
Starting priceNot published$35/mo
Free planYesYes
Free trial—7 days
Built forEnterprise, DevelopersSmall businesses, Enterprise, Developers
Platformswebweb
CountryUS · 2014—
Rating——

Choose Keycloak if

Organizations needing self-hosted enterprise IAM.

  • Free and open source
  • Enterprise-grade features
  • Full control over identity data

Look elsewhere if: Startups wanting simple hosted auth (Clerk, Auth0).

Choose Papermark if

Founders, funds and small deal teams who want a self-serve, open-source data room with published pricing and AI agent access.

  • Open source with a real self-hosting path
  • Published flat-rate pricing with unlimited data rooms from the first room tier
  • Free plan with unlimited visitors and page-level analytics

Look elsewhere if: Large banks running complex multi-party deals with dedicated project managers, or teams that mainly need proposals and e-signature (Datasite, PandaDoc).

Keycloak vs Papermark pricing

Keycloak

  • Open source$0Apache 2.0, self-hosted
  • Red Hat buildCustomCommercial support subscription

Papermark

  • Free$01 user, 50 links, 50 documents, page-by-page analytics
  • Pro$35/mo$29/mo yearly; 100 docs, custom branding, folders, video
  • Business$90/mo$69/mo yearly; 3 users, custom domain, API, CLI, MCP
  • Data Rooms$179/mo$119/mo yearly; unlimited rooms, NDA, dynamic watermark
  • Data Rooms Plus$399/mo$299/mo yearly; 5 users, Q&A, upload requests, audit log

Keycloak · Key features

  • SSO via OIDC and SAML
  • User federation with LDAP/AD
  • Identity brokering and social login
  • MFA and password policies
  • Fine-grained authorization
  • Admin and account consoles

Cons

  • Operationally complex
  • UI and theming are dated
  • Upgrades require care

Papermark · Key features

  • Tracked document links with page-by-page view analytics
  • Virtual data rooms with folders, groups and file-level permissions
  • NDA gating, email verification, allow and block lists
  • Dynamic watermarking and screenshot protection
  • Built-in Q&A, upload requests and an audit log on higher tiers
  • Custom domains and full white-labelling for links and rooms

Cons

  • Pricing page shows euros by default; USD needs a toggle
  • Q&A, upload requests and the audit log require Data Rooms Plus
  • SSO and AI redaction only from the $799 Premium tier

Keycloak vs Papermark: FAQ

Do Keycloak and Papermark have a free plan?

Yes, both Keycloak and Papermark have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.

Which is better for small businesses, Keycloak or Papermark?

Papermark lists small businesses as a core audience, while Keycloak is aimed more at enterprise and developers.

Not sure yet?