92
ExcellentThe most comprehensive authentication framework for TypeScript.
- Weekly Downloads
- 6.0M
↑33%
- Bundle (gzip)
- 606.7 KB
- Updated
- Vulns
- 0
Health Score Breakdown
Maintenance
100
Popularity
100
Quality
80
Security
100
Stability
70
Comparison guide
Better-auth vs Next-auth
Side-by-side NPM package comparison
Quick Verdict
Smallest Bundle
Next-auth
81.6 KB gzipped
Most Popular
Better-auth
6.0M weekly downloads
Best Maintained
Better-auth
100/100 maintenance score
Highest Quality
Better-auth
80/100 quality score
Overall Pick
Next-auth
Best all-around based on popularity, size, maintenance & quality
85
ExcellentAuthentication for Next.js
- Weekly Downloads
- 5.3M
2%Stable
- Bundle (gzip)
- 81.6 KB
- Updated
- Vulns
- 0
Health Score Breakdown
Maintenance
100
Popularity
100
Quality
50
Security
100
Stability
70
Choosing between Better-auth and Next-auth? Here's a data-driven comparison based on real npm data — downloads, bundle size, health scores, and more — to help you decide which package fits your project best.
Downloads & Popularity
Better-auth leads with 6.0M weekly downloads — roughly 1.1x more. Next-auth has 5.3M weekly downloads. Higher download counts generally indicate broader community adoption and a larger ecosystem of tutorials, plugins, and support.
Bundle Size
Next-auth has the smallest gzipped bundle at 81.6 KB. Better-auth comes in at 606.7 KB. A smaller bundle size means faster page loads, which improves user experience and Core Web Vitals scores.
Health Score Comparison
Better-auth has an overall health score of 92/100 (excellent), with strong maintenance, quality, security, popularity scores. Next-auth has an overall health score of 85/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. Health scores are calculated from maintenance activity, code quality, security posture, popularity, and stability metrics.
When to Choose Each
Choose Better-auth if you value large community support, actively maintained, strong security track record. Choose Next-auth if you value large community support, actively maintained, strong security track record.
Our Verdict
Both Better-auth and Next-auth are solid choices for JavaScript development. Better-auth has the edge in overall health score (92/100), while each package brings unique strengths to the table. Evaluate them based on your project's priorities — whether that's community size, bundle efficiency, or maintenance activity — and choose the one that aligns best with your requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is better-auth better than next-auth?
- It depends on your needs. Better-auth has a health score of 92/100 while Next-auth scores 85/100. Better-auth has more weekly downloads (6.0M), suggesting broader adoption. Consider your specific requirements — bundle size, community support, and feature set — to decide which is the better fit.
- Which has a smaller bundle size, better-auth or next-auth?
- Next-auth has the smaller gzipped bundle at 81.6 KB. A smaller bundle means faster load times for your users, which can positively impact SEO and user experience.
- How many developers use better-auth vs next-auth?
- Based on npm download statistics, Better-auth has approximately 6.0M weekly downloads and Next-auth has approximately 5.3M weekly downloads. These numbers reflect package installations, not unique developers, but they indicate relative adoption levels.
- Which is better maintained, better-auth or next-auth?
- Better-auth currently has the higher overall health score at 92/100. Better-auth has a maintenance score of 100/100 and Next-auth scores 100/100 on maintenance.
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One PDF: the best package for every category (ORMs, bundlers, auth, testing, state management). Used by 500+ devs. Free, updated monthly.