Artifactive vs Netlify
Company-login gating on every plan. Enterprise not required.
Netlify is a popular static hosting platform with access control options that scale by plan tier. On the free and mid-range plans, the only way to restrict a site is with a shared password, a single credential that anyone can forward. Company-login gating through an identity provider (Google Workspace, Okta, Entra) is reserved for Netlify's Enterprise plan, which requires a sales conversation and a custom contract.
Artifactive includes company-login gating on every plan. Viewers sign in with their work email and don't need a shared password or an Enterprise upgrade.
What using Netlify for access control actually looks like
The free plan gives you basic HTTP auth. You add a _headers file to your site's publish directory with a username and password. Visitors see the browser's built-in credential prompt. There's no dashboard setting for it. You configure it in a text file.
The Pro plan ($20/month) adds dashboard password protection. You set a single password for the whole site from the Netlify UI. Every visitor who opens the site gets the same password prompt. If you share that password in a Slack channel or an email, anyone who sees it can access the site, and there's no way to revoke access for one person without changing the password for everyone.
Company-login gating is Enterprise only. Netlify calls this "team login protection" and "SSO protection." Both require an Enterprise contract. Team login protection means the viewer needs a Netlify team account. SSO protection routes through your company's identity provider via SAML. Enterprise contracts are custom-priced, with the median sitting around $16,500/year based on third-party transaction data.
A team that needs more than a shared password but isn't ready for an enterprise contract has no middle option on Netlify.
How Artifactive works
Drop your HTML file onto Artifactive, or publish from Claude using the desktop extension. You get a link.
When someone clicks the link, they see a login screen. They enter their company email and they're in. Takes about 30 seconds. Their browser remembers them after that.
If your IT team has connected Google Workspace, Okta, Entra, or another identity provider, the login routes through that instead. This works on every Artifactive plan, not as an add-on.
Getting started
- Sign up. A login link sent to your work email. Takes about five minutes, no identity-provider setup needed to start.
- Set your publishers. Pick Core at $128/month for up to 5 publishers, or Business at $338/month for up to 15 publishers. These are the only seats you pay for.
- Publish. Drag a file onto the page, or publish from Claude Desktop. You get a gated link in about ten seconds.
- Share. Send the link. Anyone in the company signs in with their work email and views. No viewer cap.
Side by side
| Netlify (Free/Pro) | Netlify (Enterprise) | Artifactive | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access method | Shared password | Team login or company identity provider | Company email login |
| Identity provider support | No | Yes (SAML, Enterprise only) | Yes, all plans |
| Can revoke one person's access | No (password is shared) | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing | Free / $20/mo (Pro) | Custom (~$16.5k/yr median) | Per publisher, viewers free |
| Viewer caps | Credit-based bandwidth limits | Custom | No viewer cap |
| Directory sync | No | Yes (SCIM, Enterprise) | Via identity provider |
| Audit trail for viewer access | No | Enterprise | Via identity provider |
| Setup | _headers file or dashboard toggle | Sales process + config | Drag and drop, or publish from Claude |
| Publish from Claude | No | No | Yes, desktop extension |
Common questions
Is Netlify's password protection good enough for internal dashboards?
It depends on what the dashboard contains and who needs to see it. A shared password works for low-sensitivity content viewed by a small, trusted group: staging previews, design mockups shared with a client, that kind of thing. Once the content is sensitive enough that IT cares who specifically can see it, or the audience grows large enough that a shared password is likely to spread beyond the intended viewers, you need identity-based access. On Netlify, that means Enterprise. On Artifactive, it's included from the start.
Does Artifactive work with Google Workspace? Okta? Entra?
All of them, plus every other major identity provider. Your IT team connects it once, and every dashboard you publish after that uses the same company login. Full details on the security page.
What happens when someone outside my company clicks the link?
They see a login screen. If their email domain isn't on your approved list, they can't get in. Nothing is exposed through the URL alone.
Can I publish directly from Claude?
Yes. The Claude desktop extension publishes artifacts as gated links without leaving the conversation. You can also drag and drop any HTML file through the web interface.
We already use Netlify for our main site. Do we need to move everything?
No. Artifactive isn't a general-purpose hosting platform. It does one thing: publish static HTML files behind a company login. If you host your marketing site or web app on Netlify, keep it there. Use Artifactive for the internal dashboards and reports that need identity-based access control without an Enterprise contract.
How much does Artifactive cost?
Two plans: Core at $128/month for up to 5 publishers, and Business at $338/month for up to 15 publishers. Both include unlimited viewers. Anything larger is custom. See pricing →
What's the difference between a shared password and company-login gating?
A shared password is a single credential that every viewer uses. Anyone who has the password can access the site, and there's no record of who viewed what. Company-login gating means each viewer authenticates with their own work email through the company's identity system. Access can be granted and revoked per person, and the company's directory controls who gets in.