#better auth vs convex auth

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woven adder Feb 17, 2026, 6:56 AM

I’m building a mobile app. What auth should i chhose

random girderBOT Feb 17, 2026, 6:56 AM

Hi @woven adder. I'm kapa.ai, your friendly support bot. I will try to answer your question by searching through the knowledge base. :wave:

For a new mobile app today, the docs and community guidance lean toward Better Auth or a third‑party provider, not new projects on Convex Auth.

Here’s what’s in the sources:

What Convex Auth is good for

Runs entirely in your Convex backend; no extra auth service. [Convex Auth docs; Auth intro]
Officially supports React web and React Native clients. [Auth FAQ]
Supports magic links/OTPs, OAuth, and passwords. [Convex Auth docs]

But:

It’s built on Auth.js, which has gone into maintenance mode. [Convex Auth intro; Discord status]
Staff explicitly say there’s no clear long‑term plan and that for “future proof on a new project” they’d start with Better Auth or a service‑backed provider. [Discord status]
Multiple community members describe Convex Auth as effectively legacy / not actively developed, even if it still works. [Discord abandoned?]

What Better Auth gives you

Official Convex component: “Convex + Better Auth” integration, with full docs. [Better Auth component; Getting started]
Works across many frameworks (including Svelte, Expo/React Native, etc.). [Better Auth component]
Supports email/password, multiple OAuth providers, and MFA. [Better Auth component]
Recommended by staff and community as the go‑to alternative now that Auth.js is in maintenance. [Discord status; Auth abandoned thread]
Can keep auth data in Convex (no separate auth DB) and supports things like cross‑subdomain login. [Multi‑tenant thread]

Caveats from the sources:

Some users have seen slower logins and more overhead when heavily using Better Auth APIs (especially org/admin plugins), and Convex is working to improve this. [Authjs → Better Auth thread]
With the Convex Better Auth component, the auth tables live in a separate schema, which some people dislike. [Authjs → Better Auth thread]

Mobile‑specific angle

From the docs:

Convex Auth explicitly supports React Native mobile apps. [Convex Auth docs; Auth FAQ]
Better Auth is framework‑agnostic and has an Expo (React Native) guide for Convex. [Better Auth getting started; Expo link in that page]

The sources don’t give a detailed, side‑by‑side mobile comparison (e.g., exact DX differences on React Native), so I can’t say more than that with confidence.

Recommendation for your case

Given:

You’re starting now.
You’re building a mobile app (likely React Native / Expo).
You probably care about long‑term support.

Based on the docs and Discord guidance:

If you want something future‑proof and actively developed:
→ Use Better Auth with Convex (the Better Auth component). [Better Auth getting started; Authjs → Better Auth thread]
If you only need simple flows and are okay with a “legacy but working” library:
→ You can still use Convex Auth for React Native, but be aware of its unclear long‑term roadmap and Auth.js dependency. [Convex Auth docs; Auth FAQ; Discord status]

If you share your stack (Expo vs bare React Native, or something else) and what auth flows you need (OAuth providers, OTP, orgs/teams, MFA), I can narrow this down further based only on what’s in the docs.