Self-Host / Server
Self-Host vs. Cloud.
Both options use the same core model: Client, app configuration, challenge lifecycle and server-side verification. The difference is who operates the backend and which managed product capabilities you get on top.
For application developers, the integration surface stays familiar: render the Client, verify the result, create your own session. The operational question is whether your team wants to run the Sendity server stack and rebuild Cloud product surfaces, or consume those parts as a managed service.
Feature comparison
Use this matrix as a product-boundary checklist. Self-hosting gives you control over the verification backend; Cloud gives you the managed backend plus the product features around it.
| Capability | Self-host | Sendity Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Client and adapter contract | Same public Client and framework-adapter model. | Same public Client and framework-adapter model. |
| Server operation | You run API, storage, queues, inbound channels, keys and monitoring. | Hosted by Sendity, including updates and operational monitoring. |
| Apps management | You provide the app registry, allowed origins, channel settings and secret rotation UI. | Built into the customer area with app limits and plan-aware settings. |
| Verification Log | Optional: implement your own log from adapter events or server data. | Included as hosted audit history with plan-based retention. |
| Profile Data extraction | Not included unless you build and operate your own enrichment pipeline. | Optional Cloud feature, available from Growth. |
| Security reviews | Your team owns hardening, dependency updates, key rotation and reviews. | Regular security audits and hosted-service hardening are part of the service. |
| Compliance boundary | Maximum control, but also maximum operational responsibility. | Managed service boundary with less infrastructure to own. |
What Cloud adds
Cloud is more than a hosted copy of the server package. It adds the operational and customer-facing features teams otherwise have to specify, build, secure and maintain themselves.
- ✓Verification Log: hosted audit history for completed verification events, with retention handled as a product feature instead of an adapter concern.
- ✓Profile Data extraction: optional enrichment from verification context, available from the Growth plan.
- ✓No infrastructure: hosted API, queues, storage, incoming channel handling, updates and monitoring.
- ✓Regular security audits: operational review and hardening of the hosted service.
How to choose
Start with Cloud when you want the authentication capability without operating the verification backend. Choose self-hosting when infrastructure ownership, custom compliance boundaries or deep internal integration matter more than managed product features.
A good rule of thumb: if you mainly want passwordless sign-in and customer-visible verification history, Cloud is the faster and safer default. If your team is prepared to own queues, inbound mail, monitoring, key rotation and custom admin workflows, self-hosting gives you that control.