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AWS Amplify

Amplify Auth in Gen 2: Passwordless, Passkeys, OIDC and SAML on Cognito

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October 25, 2026

5 min read

Amplify Auth is Amazon Cognito with a TypeScript definition and client libraries. Since November 2024 it supports passwordless sign-in with SMS and email codes and passkeys, and Gen 2 supports OIDC and SAML sign-in with Entra ID, Okta and Auth0. The setup, the limits (no MFA and passwordless for the same user) and the costs.

AWS Amplify
Amazon Cognito
Passkeys
Passwordless
OIDC
SAML

What you can configure

  • Sign-in with email, phone or username; social providers (Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook); user groups.

  • Passwordless: SMS one-time codes, email one-time codes and WebAuthn passkeys, supported in the JavaScript, Swift and Android libraries.

  • OIDC and SAML providers, first-class in Gen 2, for business customers who sign in with Entra ID, Okta or Auth0.

  • MFA with SMS or authenticator apps, and the Authenticator UI component for the sign-in screens.

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Limits to plan around

  • Cognito does not support enabling both MFA and passwordless sign-in for the same user. Decide per user population which you want.

  • Federated users are priced separately: 50 free a month, then $0.015 per MAU.

  • Changes to some user pool settings require recreating the pool, which means migrating users. Get attributes and sign-in identifiers right early.

Costs

Cognito Essentials is free up to 10,000 monthly active users and $0.015 per MAU after that. Lite is cheaper with fewer features; Plus adds threat protection at $0.020 per MAU with no free tier. For most Amplify apps, Essentials is the right tier.

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As of October 25, 2026. Provided as is, for general information, and accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Not legal, compliance, tax, financial or other professional advice. Prices, limits and vendor services change; check current vendor documentation before relying on anything here. Terms of use.