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Firebase Authentication vs JSON Web Token: What are the differences?
Firebase Authentication and JSON Web Token (JWT) are both authentication systems used for securing websites and applications. While they serve similar purposes, there are key differences between the two.
Scalability and Infrastructure: Firebase Authentication is a ready-to-use service provided by Google that handles all aspects of user authentication, including user management, password recovery, and authentication flows. On the other hand, JSON Web Tokens are stateless and require implementation and infrastructure from the developer's end to handle authentication.
Flexibility in Authentication Providers: Firebase Authentication provides built-in support for popular authentication providers like Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more. This allows developers to easily integrate multiple authentication options into their applications. In contrast, JSON Web Tokens can be used with any authentication provider, as long as the server can validate the tokens.
Token Expiration and Revocation: Firebase Authentication provides built-in token expiration and revocation, ensuring security and control over access tokens. In contrast, JSON Web Tokens need to be manually configured for expiration and revocation, which requires additional infrastructure and implementation effort.
Authenticating Backend Services: Firebase Authentication provides backend SDKs that allow easy integration and authentication of backend services with minimal setup. JSON Web Tokens also allow authentication of backend services but require the developer to implement the necessary logic for validating and verifying the tokens.
Storing User Data: Firebase Authentication provides a user management system that securely stores user data, including profile information, user IDs, and authentication details. JSON Web Tokens do not inherently include a user management system and require additional implementation for storing and managing user data.
Powerful Authentication Flows: Firebase Authentication provides out-of-the-box support for authentication flows like email verification, password reset, multi-factor authentication, and social login. JSON Web Tokens do not offer these functionalities natively and require additional implementation and infrastructure to handle these authentication flows.
In Summary, Firebase Authentication offers a ready-to-use authentication system with built-in support for multiple providers and powerful authentication flows, while JSON Web Tokens provide flexibility but require more manual implementation and infrastructure to handle authentication.
Pros of Firebase Authentication
- Completely Free12
- Native App + Web integrations8
- Email/Password8
- Passwordless7
- Works seemlessly with other Firebase Services6
- Integration with OAuth Providers5
- Anonymous Users4
- Easy to Integrate and Manage4
- MFA1
Pros of JSON Web Token
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Cons of Firebase Authentication
- Heavy webpack6