Corbado

Overview

Corbado is a passkey specialist that sits on top of an identity provider you already run; it does not replace it. Founded in 2020 and based in Munich, it now sells two products, both described on corbado.com (checked 2026-11-05): Corbado Connect, managed passkeys with passkey-first UI components, rollout controls and funnel analytics around your existing IdP, and Corbado Observe, a read-only authentication observability layer that "maps every login method into one process model." Its site no longer presents a standalone login platform, so treat Corbado as a passkey and analytics layer, not as a CIAM system of record.

What it is good at

Passkey adoption is the specialty, and the value is in the hard parts: handling passkeys across devices, browsers and platforms, deciding when to offer them, falling back cleanly, and measuring whether users actually enroll (see the passkeys recipe for what a do-it-yourself build involves). Because Connect layers on top of the IdP, you add passkeys without migrating the user store. The site lists a wide set of IdPs it works alongside, including Okta, Auth0, Amazon Cognito, Microsoft Entra, Keycloak, Ping Identity and custom CIAM stacks. Observe is useful even before passkeys ship, since it shows where each login method loses users. The security page lists ISO 27001:2022, SOC 2 Type II (covering Observe) and FIDO2 server certification for Connect.

Where it falls short

It is not an identity platform. There is no directory, no lifecycle management, no federation hub and no authorization model: you need an IdP underneath, and Corbado adds an integration and a vendor to your login path. Greenfield teams that want one vendor for the whole stack should pick a CIAM platform with passkeys built in instead. Data residency is a deployment choice rather than a default for everyone: per Corbado's security page, the shared cloud runs on AWS in Frankfurt and dedicated instances run in the AWS region you pick, which changes the price.

Pricing

Custom pricing for both Connect and Observe, with a "Request pricing" call; no free tier is listed (pricing page, checked 2026-11-05). Usage is scoped by monthly active users or login volume in tiers, plus deployment model and support level, usually after a short staging pilot. Since it complements rather than replaces your IdP, weigh the combined cost with the TCO calculator.

Best for, and who should look elsewhere

Choose Corbado to add passkeys, and measure their adoption, on top of an IdP you are keeping. For drop-in passwordless and step-up on an existing app, compare Authsignal. For a full platform with passkeys built in, see Stytch, Descope or the open-source Hanko. Passage by 1Password, once a common comparison, was retired in January 2026.

Bottom line

A focused passkey-adoption and login-analytics layer for teams that want phishing-resistant sign-in on top of an existing IdP, not a replacement for one.