Can I reuse the same FusionAuth license key across dev, staging, and production?
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I am migrating from FusionAuth Cloud to a self-hosted deployment. I have successfully set up a new cluster and imported the database from the managed environment.
In the self-hosted FusionAuth instance, I see an option to add a license key. When I check my account portal at account.fusionauth.io, I see a primary license key.
Questions:
- Can I use this same license key in parallel across multiple environments (dev, staging, production)?
- Will using the key in my self-hosted deployment impact or conflict with the existing managed FusionAuth setup?
I want to ensure I don't accidentally disrupt the current managed environment while setting up the new self-hosted instances.
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Yes, you can use your FusionAuth licenses across multiple environments, but you should use the appropriate license type for each:
License Structure
In your account portal at account.fusionauth.io, you should see two licenses:
- Production License — use this for your production environment only
- Non-Production License — use this for your dev and staging environments
Best Practice
- Deploy the Non-Production license to your dev and staging instances
- Deploy the Production license to your production instance
Both licenses can be active simultaneously across different deployments without conflict. The license key itself is tied to your account and does not interfere with your managed FusionAuth Cloud setup when used in self-hosted deployments.
Important Notes
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The non-production license can be used across as many non-production environments as you need — dev, staging, QA, UAT, CI/CD, or even individual developer local instances. There's no limit on the number of instances using the non-production key.
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Do not use the production license on non-production environments — this would cause test logins to count toward your Monthly Active Users (MAU) and affect your billing.
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License costs are not based on the number of instances — whether you have 1, 2, or 100 instances, the license cost is related only to your plan tier and MAU count.
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Using self-hosted licenses won't affect your FusionAuth Cloud deployment — the licenses operate independently, so activating your license keys on self-hosted instances will not disrupt your existing managed environment.
Related Documentation
- Licensing Documentation — Overview of FusionAuth licensing concepts
- License FAQ: Non-Production Licenses — Details on using licenses for dev/QA/UAT servers
- License FAQ: Multiple Deployments — How license costs work with multiple instances
- Account Portal Documentation — Where to find your license keys
- Cloud vs Self-Hosted — Comparison of hosting options
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