Keygate vs LicenseSpring
LicenseSpring provides cloud-based software licensing with a polished experience. Keygate offers a self-hosted, open-source alternative with built-in payments and usage metering.
LicenseSpring is a reliable cloud-based licensing platform with solid device management and a user-friendly interface. Keygate differentiates by being fully open source and self-hosted, with built-in Stripe/PayPal payment integration and atomic usage metering included out of the box at no cost.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Keygate | LicenseSpring |
|---|---|---|
| Open Source | ✓ | — |
| Self-Hosted | ✓ | — |
| Floating Licenses | ✓ | ✓ |
| Usage Metering | ✓ | — |
| Built-in Payments | ✓ | — |
| Customer Portal | ✓ | ✓ |
| Webhooks | ✓ | ✓ |
| Audit Logs | ✓ | — |
| Multi-language | ✓ | — |
What sets Keygate apart
Open source & free
Keygate is free and open source under AGPL v3. No per-seat pricing or usage-based billing.
Self-hosted, full data ownership
Deploy on your own infrastructure. Your license data stays on your servers — no third-party dependency for a critical business function.
One deployment, everything included
License management, usage metering, built-in Stripe/PayPal payments, admin dashboard — one binary, one database.
Frequently asked questions
- Does Keygate support floating licenses like LicenseSpring?
- Yes. Keygate supports concurrent (floating) license sessions with heartbeat-based cleanup. Seat limits are enforced atomically at the database level to prevent race conditions.
- Can Keygate handle subscription billing?
- Yes. Keygate integrates directly with Stripe and PayPal for end-to-end subscription management — checkout, upgrades, downgrades, dunning, cancellations, and refunds.
- How does Keygate compare on pricing?
- LicenseSpring charges $50-500+/month depending on usage. Keygate is free under AGPL v3. You only pay for your own server hosting.
Get started with Keygate
Deploy in under 5 minutes. One Go binary. One PostgreSQL database.