---
title: "Aserto (Topaz) vs Permit.io — Identity Tool Comparison | IDSync"
url: https://idsync.com/compare/aserto-vs-permit-io
description: "Side-by-side comparison of Aserto (Topaz) vs Permit.io: best for, pricing, deployment, integrations, and more."
lang: en
---

# Aserto (Topaz) vs Permit.io

Side-by-side comparison of identity tools. Sponsored placement is disclosed where applicable.

Last updated today

Quick answer

## Aserto (Topaz) vs Permit.io: which should you choose?

Short answer

Aserto (Topaz) vs Permit.io have overlapping use cases in identity and access management. The right pick depends on your company size, deployment model, integrations, and pricing tolerance — compare those attributes side-by-side below.

Best for

Aserto (Topaz): Platform or backend teams that want a self-hosted, OPA-compatible authorizer with a Zanzibar-style relationship store and are comfortable operating it without a vendor behind it. · Permit.io: Engineering teams that need to ship fine-grained authorization across their application and want both programmatic API access and a low-code interface for policy administrators to manage permissions without engineering involvement.

When to choose

Pick the option whose company-size fit, deployment model, and integrations most closely match your stack.

When not to choose

Skip a head-to-head if you haven't shortlisted a category yet — start with the IAM Stack Finder instead.

Related tools & categories

Aserto (Topaz): https://idsync.com/directory/aserto
Permit.io: https://idsync.com/directory/permit-io
IAM Stack Finder: https://idsync.com/stack-finder
Buyer resources: https://idsync.com/resources

| Attribute | Aserto (Topaz): https://idsync.com/directory/aserto | Permit.io: https://idsync.com/directory/permit-io |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Best for | Platform or backend teams that want a self-hosted, OPA-compatible authorizer with a Zanzibar-style relationship store and are comfortable operating it without a vendor behind it. | Engineering teams that need to ship fine-grained authorization across their application and want both programmatic API access and a low-code interface for policy administrators to manage permissions without engineering involvement. |
| Short description | Aserto built a fine-grained authorization platform around Topaz, an Apache 2.0 authorizer that pairs Open Policy Agent (Rego) with a Zanzibar-style relationship directory. The hosted Aserto Control Plane shut down on 31 May 2025; Topaz continues as a self-hosted open-source project. | Permit.io provides authorization-as-a-service with a low-code policy management interface, RBAC/ABAC/ReBAC policy support, and a managed policy decision layer — enabling teams to ship fine-grained access control without building it from scratch. |
| Company size | startup, smb, mid_market | Startup, Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Deployment | self_hosted | SaaS / Cloud-hosted |
| Source | open source | Open core (built on OPA/OPAL open standards; management layer is proprietary) |
| Pricing model | free (open source); hosted plans discontinued | MAU and evaluation-based; free tier available |
| Integrations | Go, Node.js, JavaScript, Python, Java, .NET, Ruby, gRPC | OPA, OPAL, Python, Node.js, Java, Go, REST APIs |
| Categories | Authorization | Authorization |
| Claimed profile | | |

Buyer help

### Request a vendor shortlist

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Request shortlist → (https://idsync.com/request-shortlist)

### Request a vendor shortlist

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https://idsync.com/request-shortlist

### Run the IAM Stack Finder

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https://idsync.com/stack-finder

### Buyer's guides & checklists

RFP templates, migration checklists, and rollout playbooks.
https://idsync.com/resources

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