Betty Blocks is a leading low-code software development platform based in the Netherlands. They empower businesses to build software applications without the need to learn programming languages. Their specialty is in helping mid-market and enterprise customers build applications at scale.
Summary - Betty Blocks Chooses FusionAuth
Key Takeaways
- Enterprise-scale low-code authentication: FusionAuth enables Betty Blocks to support 10,000+ applications with seamless authentication, proving that low-code platforms can achieve enterprise-grade security at massive scale
- Unified architecture advantage: FusionAuth’s single, cohesive solution eliminates the complexity and integration challenges of “patchwork” authentication systems common with competitors
- Zero identity provider tax: FusionAuth’s open model allows unlimited identity provider connections without additional fees, reducing total cost of ownership for low-code platform providers
- Developer-friendly implementation: FusionAuth’s intuitive configuration approach aligns perfectly with low-code methodology, requiring no custom coding while supporting both basic and enterprise authentication needs
- Massive scalability with minimal infrastructure: Betty Blocks runs thousands of applications on minimal FusionAuth servers, demonstrating exceptional performance efficiency for high-volume low-code environments
- Future-proof authentication features: New capabilities like passkeys can be instantly deployed to thousands of customer applications through simple FusionAuth configuration, accelerating innovation delivery
Definitions
- Low-code platform authentication: A dual-layer approach where users authenticate to access the development platform itself, while applications built on the platform maintain their own separate authentication systems, both managed through centralized identity infrastructure
- Identity Provider Tax: Hidden fees charged by some authentication vendors for connecting to external identity providers like Active Directory or SAML systems, artificially inflating costs for standard enterprise integration requirements
- Unified authentication architecture: A single, cohesive identity management system that handles all authentication needs through one integrated platform, contrasting with “patchwork” solutions that require multiple disparate products and complex integrations
- Enterprise authentication pathway: Integration capability that allows business applications to connect with existing corporate identity providers and directory services, enabling single sign-on and maintaining security compliance within established IT infrastructure
- Authentication at scale: The ability to support thousands of simultaneous applications and hundreds of thousands of users through optimized infrastructure, essential for platform-as-a-service and low-code development environments
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How can low-code platforms ensure enterprise-grade security while maintaining ease of use?
A: Modern low-code platforms like Betty Blocks achieve enterprise-grade security by partnering with dedicated authentication providers like FusionAuth. This approach provides professional-level security features including multi-factor authentication, identity provider integration, and compliance controls, while maintaining the simple configuration approach that low-code users expect. FusionAuth’s unified architecture eliminates complex integrations while supporting both basic username/password authentication and enterprise SSO requirements.
Q: How does FusionAuth handle authentication for thousands of applications built on low-code platforms?
A: FusionAuth’s architecture is specifically designed for massive scale, as demonstrated by Betty Blocks’ implementation. Using a single FusionAuth instance, Betty Blocks supports over 10,000 low-code applications on minimal server infrastructure, with each application serving 100-10,000 users while maintaining high performance. FusionAuth’s multi-tenant capabilities allow thousands of applications to share the same authentication infrastructure while maintaining logical separation through Applications and Tenants, ensuring centralized management and consistent security policies across all applications.
Q: Can FusionAuth be deployed using Docker or Kubernetes for low-code platform infrastructure?
A: Yes, FusionAuth offers flexible deployment options including Docker and Kubernetes, making it ideal for low-code platforms that need to scale rapidly. Betty Blocks leverages FusionAuth’s deployment flexibility to support their growing customer base efficiently. The containerized approach allows for easy scaling and management of authentication services alongside low-code application infrastructure.
Q: How does FusionAuth compare to Auth0 abd other auth providers for low-code platform authentication needs?
A: FusionAuth provides significant advantages for low-code platforms compared to Auth0, particularly in cost structure and architectural simplicity. Unlike Auth0’s per-user pricing and additional charges for identity provider connections, FusionAuth eliminates the “identity provider tax” that can quickly escalate costs for platforms supporting thousands of applications. Betty Blocks specifically chose FusionAuth over competitors because of its unified architecture versus “patchwork” solutions and its open approach to identity provider integration.
Q: How can identity providers help low-code platforms with regulatory compliance and enterprise requirements?
A: Identity providers like FusionAuth enable low-code platforms to meet enterprise compliance requirements through features like audit logging, role-based access control, and integration with existing corporate identity systems. For Betty Blocks, FusionAuth’s enterprise authentication pathway allows their customers to maintain compliance with corporate security policies while using low-code applications. This includes SAML v2 support, LDAP integration, and detailed authentication logging required for compliance frameworks.
The company was founded by Chris Obdam and his brother Tim when they recognized a gap in the market. While running a custom software development business, they noticed that non-developers needed a way to make changes to software without always requiring technical expertise. This inspired them to create Betty Blocks, which has since evolved into an enterprise-grade low-code platform used by thousands of customers globally.
The Challenges
For Betty Blocks, authentication presented a dual challenge:
- Platform Authentication: Users needed to securely log into the Betty Blocks development platform
- Application Authentication: The applications built on Betty Blocks required their own authentication systems
As a company committed to making software development accessible and easy, Betty Blocks needed an authentication solution that would:
- Provide enterprise-grade security
- Offer flexibility and extensive feature support
- Support both on-premises and cloud deployments
- Integrate seamlessly with existing identity providers
- Scale to thousands of applications
- Maintain high performance at scale
- Align with their open, flexible business model
Why FusionAuth?
After evaluating numerous authentication providers, Betty Blocks selected FusionAuth for several key reasons:
1. Unified, Simple Architecture
Unlike competitors that offered “patchwork” solutions cobbled together from different products, FusionAuth provided a clean, unified architecture:
“The simplicity of the architecture is something that really stands out. Other products are a patchwork…while Fusion is just one product with a very basic architecture which really does the job right.”
2. Open and Flexible Model
FusionAuth’s hybrid nature and flexible deployment options perfectly aligned with Betty Blocks’ values:
“Having an open nature…provides a lot of possibilities and flexibility. A lot of people are okay with paying for software as long as they know that there’s a good way out as well. And I think that is part of the open nature of FusionAuth, that there’s flexibility there.”
3. No “Identity Provider Tax”
Unlike competitors who charge extra fees for connecting to identity providers, FusionAuth’s model made more sense to Betty Blocks:
“The open nature of FusionAuth is something we like because we can connect to different identity providers and there’s no charge for that, which doesn’t make sense to us because it sounds like a very normal feature to have.”
4. Developer-First Approach
Betty Blocks appreciated FusionAuth’s product-first philosophy:
“I’d rather choose a platform where the product goes first, and a good product always leads to paying for that as well.”
5. Ease of Use and Implementation
FusionAuth’s intuitive design and straightforward setup process stood out:
“Everything speaks for itself and it’s really straightforward and it is as you expect it to be, and that is not true with every product.”
The Implementation
Betty Blocks implemented FusionAuth to support their two main authentication pathways:
- Basic Authentication: A simple username/password setup stored in an encrypted database
- Enterprise Authentication: Integration with customers’ existing identity providers
FusionAuth enabled Betty Blocks to offer both options in a low-code way, requiring only configuration without any coding necessary. This perfectly aligned with their low-code methods.
Results at Scale
Betty Blocks has successfully scaled their implementation to remarkable levels:
- 10,000+ applications using FusionAuth through the Betty Blocks platform
- Each application serving between 100 to 10,000 users
- Users authenticating daily through the system
Despite this enormous scale, FusionAuth’s still performs flawlessly:
“…if you’re a bigger company, you might have 10-20 applications using FusionAuth, but with us, it goes into the multiple thousands of applications running on a very small amount of FusionAuth servers. You can use it at a really big scale and continue to be performant as well.”
The Future
Betty Blocks continues to grow as a recognized player in the low-code space, having been featured in Gartner Magic Quadrants and Forrester Wave reports. As they execute on their strategy of providing even greater flexibility to customers, FusionAuth remains a key part of their plans:
“We are working on the next step of our own open strategy, and that means that we will provide more flexibility to our customers, and also more flexibility in terms of authentication. FusionAuth will be really important in that first step.”
As new authentication features like passkeys emerge, Betty Blocks appreciates how easily they can offer these innovations to their customers through FusionAuth:
“Recently passkey and other features that are popping up have been a joy for us to use because it’s just as simple as configuring it in FusionAuth, and now we can offer it to our customers.”
Key Benefits of FusionAuth
- Unified Architecture: A clean, integrated solution versus competitors’ patchwork offerings
- Open and Flexible: Supports Betty Blocks’ commitment to providing flexibility to customers
- No Hidden Costs: No extra charges for connecting to identity providers
- Excellent Performance at Scale: Supports thousands of applications with minimal infrastructure
- Easy Implementation: Intuitive interface that “makes authentication look easy”
- Strong Cultural Fit: Direct communication and product-first approach aligned with Betty Blocks’ values
“We’re a very happy customer and continue to be so. I would expect that our new strategy in terms of openness will push people to use FusionAuth even more, and Betty Blocks will benefit from that as well.”
To see how FusionAuth can help you scale while keeping costs down, schedule a demo.
