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Alex Spinov
Alex Spinov

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Better Auth Has a Free TypeScript Auth Library That's Actually Better

#auth #typescript #security #webdev

NextAuth is confusing. Passport.js is outdated. Lucia Auth is being deprecated. Better Auth is a new TypeScript authentication library that's framework-agnostic, fully typed, and handles everything from email/password to OAuth to two-factor.

What Better Auth Gives You for Free

  • Framework agnostic — works with Next.js, SvelteKit, Nuxt, Hono, Express
  • Full TypeScript — end-to-end type safety
  • Email/password — with verification and password reset
  • OAuth — Google, GitHub, Discord, and 20+ providers
  • Two-factor auth — TOTP, email OTP, backup codes
  • Session management — secure, configurable sessions
  • Organizations — teams, roles, invitations
  • Rate limiting — built-in protection
  • Database adapters — Prisma, Drizzle, Kysely, or any SQL

Quick Start 

npm install better-auth
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Server Setup 

// lib/auth.ts
import { betterAuth } from 'better-auth';
import { prismaAdapter } from 'better-auth/adapters/prisma';
import { PrismaClient } from '@prisma/client';

export const auth = betterAuth({
  database: prismaAdapter(new PrismaClient(), { provider: 'postgresql' }),
  emailAndPassword: { enabled: true },
  socialProviders: {
    google: {
      clientId: process.env.GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID!,
      clientSecret: process.env.GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET!
    },
    github: {
      clientId: process.env.GITHUB_CLIENT_ID!,
      clientSecret: process.env.GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET!
    }
  }
});
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Client Usage (React) 

// lib/auth-client.ts
import { createAuthClient } from 'better-auth/react';

export const { signIn, signUp, signOut, useSession } = createAuthClient();
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// Sign up
await signUp.email({
  email: 'user@example.com',
  password: 'securepass123',
  name: 'Alice'
});

// Sign in with email
await signIn.email({ email: 'user@example.com', password: 'securepass123' });

// Sign in with OAuth
await signIn.social({ provider: 'google' });

// Use session
function Dashboard() {
  const { data: session, isPending } = useSession();
  if (isPending) return <div>Loading...</div>;
  return <h1>Welcome, {session?.user.name}!</h1>;
}
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Plugins (Extend Functionality) 

import { betterAuth } from 'better-auth';
import { twoFactor } from 'better-auth/plugins';
import { organization } from 'better-auth/plugins';

export const auth = betterAuth({
  plugins: [
    twoFactor({ issuer: 'MyApp' }),
    organization()
  ]
});
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Better Auth vs NextAuth vs Clerk vs Lucia

Feature Better Auth NextAuth v5 Clerk Lucia
Framework Any Next.js focused Any Any
Type safety Full Partial Full Full
Self-hosted Yes Yes No (SaaS) Yes
2FA Plugin DIY Built-in DIY
Organizations Plugin DIY Built-in DIY
OAuth providers 20+ 50+ 20+ Manual
Cost Free (OSS) Free (OSS) Freemium Deprecated
Setup time 15 min 30 min 5 min 1 hour

The Verdict

Better Auth is the TypeScript auth library that gets the balance right. Self-hosted but not painful. Full-featured but not bloated. Framework-agnostic but with great React/Next.js support. If Lucia is deprecated and NextAuth is too Next.js-specific, Better Auth is your answer.

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