Both are self-hosted, open about their security model, and don't lock you into a cloud vendor. Here's where they actually differ.
| Jadex Vault | Bitwarden | |
|---|---|---|
| Self-hosted | ✓ | ✓ |
| Install method | Double-click .exe / .deb installer | Docker container (or official Bitwarden Server, more complex) |
| Pricing (team) | $69/yr flat, unlimited users | $4/user/month |
| Free trial | 15 days, full Unlimited features, up to 10 users | Unlimited devices, but 1 user (no team sharing free) |
| LDAP/AD sync | ✓ Included in Unlimited | Enterprise tier only |
| One-time password share (QR/email) | ✓ | ✕ |
| UI | Newer, card-based | Functional but frequently criticized as dated/clunky in user reviews |
| Open source | Not yet | ✓ Fully open source |
| Track record | New (2026) | Established, large user base, audited |
Bitwarden pricing and features as publicly listed in 2026. Bitwarden is a mature, independently audited, fully open-source project — a reasonable, well-regarded choice, especially if open-source verification matters most to you. Jadex Vault is newer and prioritizes install simplicity and flat team pricing instead.
Self-hosting Bitwarden means running Docker Compose with several containers (web vault, API, identity, admin, notifications, database), or paying for Bitwarden's managed/enterprise offering to avoid that setup. Jadex Vault installs as a single Windows service via a double-click .exe, or a single Linux systemd service via a .deb package — no container orchestration, no docker-compose.yml to maintain.
Bitwarden's $4/user/month adds up: a 20-person team is $80/month ($960/year), a 50-person team is $200/month ($2,400/year). Jadex Vault's Unlimited plan is $69/year flat regardless of team size — the crossover point is roughly 2 users, after which Jadex Vault is cheaper for every additional person you add.
Both support LDAP/Active Directory sync so users are auto-provisioned and deprovisioned from your corporate directory. Bitwarden gates this behind its Enterprise tier; Jadex Vault includes it in the standard Unlimited plan with no separate enterprise upsell.
This is Bitwarden's clearest advantage: it's fully open source and has undergone independent third-party security audits over several years. Jadex Vault is closed source and has not yet undergone a formal third-party audit — if verifiable code transparency is a hard requirement for your team, that weighs toward Bitwarden.
You specifically want a fully open-source, independently audited codebase with a long track record, and you're comfortable with Docker for self-hosting.
You want self-hosting without Docker or a command line, flat team pricing regardless of headcount, and built-in LDAP sync without an enterprise upsell.