Better Auth

Better Auth arrived in late 2024 and won the argument faster than anyone expected. In September 2025 the Auth.js maintainers handed their project to the Better Auth team, which makes this the library the previous default now points at. It is TypeScript-first, you own the DB schema, and the plugin model is unusually clean.

Why people are switching

• You own the schema. Better Auth generates the SQL tables you need; they live in your migrations like any other table. Inspect, modify, query.
• Framework-agnostic. Works with Next, Remix, Hono, SvelteKit, Astro, Express, Solid Start. The core is just functions.
• Plugins are first-class. Passkeys, organizations, 2FA, magic links, OAuth proxy: each is a plugin you opt in to.
• End-to-end types. The client knows what the server configured. No casting, no "user as any".

Install

pnpm add better-auth
pnpm add -D @better-auth/cli

The auth instance

import { betterAuth } from "better-auth";
import { drizzleAdapter } from "better-auth/adapters/drizzle";
import { db } from "@/db";

export const auth = betterAuth({
  database: drizzleAdapter(db, { provider: "pg" }),
  emailAndPassword: { enabled: true },
  socialProviders: {
    github: {
      clientId: process.env.GITHUB_ID!,
      clientSecret: process.env.GITHUB_SECRET!,
    },
  },
});

Generate the schema

npx @better-auth/cli generate
# Adds user, session, account, verification tables to your Drizzle schema
# Then run your usual migration step
pnpm drizzle-kit push

The route handler

import { auth } from "@/lib/auth";
import { toNextJsHandler } from "better-auth/next-js";

export const { POST, GET } = toNextJsHandler(auth);

Client SDK (typed)

import { createAuthClient } from "better-auth/react";

export const authClient = createAuthClient({
  baseURL: process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_APP_URL,
});

export const { signIn, signOut, signUp, useSession } = authClient;

"use client";
import { useSession, signIn, signOut } from "@/lib/auth-client";

export function Nav() {
  const { data: session, isPending } = useSession();
  if (isPending) return null;
  return session ? (
    <button onClick={() => signOut()}>Sign out, {session.user.name}</button>
  ) : (
    <button onClick={() => signIn.social({ provider: "github" })}>
      Sign in with GitHub
    </button>
  );
}

Reading the session on the server

import { auth } from "@/lib/auth";
import { headers } from "next/headers";

export default async function Dashboard() {
  const session = await auth.api.getSession({ headers: await headers() });
  if (!session) redirect("/login");
  return <h1>Hello, {session.user.name}</h1>;
}

Plugins that ship

• passkey: WebAuthn / FIDO2, built on SimpleWebAuthn. This one lives in its own package, @better-auth/passkey, rather than in core.
• organization: multi-tenant orgs, invites, roles.
• twoFactor: TOTP, with backup codes.
• magicLink: email-based passwordless.
• admin: built-in admin user model with banning.
• jwt: emit JWT alongside session cookies, for mobile or third-party consumers. Import it from better-auth/plugins; some older posts show a @better-auth/jwt package that does not exist on npm.

Better Auth vs Auth.js: how to pick

• Better Auth wins for: organizations/multi-tenant, passkeys out of the box, owning the schema, fewer surprises in non-Next frameworks.
• Auth.js wins for: an enormous provider ecosystem, and the sheer number of production deployments that have already shaken its bugs out.
• New TypeScript project, Drizzle or Prisma, Next 16: start with Better Auth unless you need a provider only Auth.js has.

Sessions without a database

If you want a session with no persistence layer at all, omit the database option. Better Auth then keeps the session in a signed or encrypted cookie, configured through session.cookieCache, with HMAC-SHA256 by default and JWT or JWE strategies available.

Quiz

Recap

• Better Auth = TS-first, you-own-the-schema, framework-agnostic.
• Plugins for passkeys, orgs, 2FA, magic links, admin, JWT.
• Typed client SDK with useSession, signIn, signOut.
• Pick Better Auth if you want multi-tenancy or passkeys, Auth.js if you need an obscure provider or are deep in legacy Auth.js setup.