The real cost of enterprise SSO: per-connection vs per-MAU pricing - Part 4

In the concluding part of the series on enterprise Single Sign-On (SSO) pricing, the focus is on understanding compliance factors, choosing the right pricing model, and examining Clerk's approach to pricing. Compliance and security significantly shape the real cost of enterprise SSO, where audit reports and features like SCIM can impose hidden costs. Providers often gate access to SOC 2 and ISO 27001 reports behind higher plans, which can be a major expense for enterprises. GDPR compliance, data residency, and Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) are vital, with Clerk providing these across all plans to avoid common procurement blockers. Missing compliance features, such as SCIM, can lead to substantial manual provisioning costs and security risks due to orphaned accounts. When selecting a pricing model, per-connection pricing is recommended for large enterprises for predictability, while a per-MAU model might suit high-volume, consumer-focused usage until costs rise with large customers. Clerk offers a predictable per-connection pricing model, including SCIM directory sync, which avoids tier cliffs and forced sales calls, making it suitable for B2B SaaS companies seeking predictable costs. However, Clerk gates SOC 2 report access and HIPAA compliance to higher plans, making them significant line items in cost considerations.

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