--- title: "Features, benefits and use cases" description: "Every Cerbos feature, benefit and use case in one index: what each page covers, and its markdown where one is served." canonical: "https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases" source: "https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases" --- # Features, benefits and use cases What Cerbos does, grouped as the section itself groups it. Each entry links to the page and, where one is served, to its markdown. ## Benefits - **Decoupled authorization** — Separate your authorization logic from core application code for enhanced security and maintainability. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/decoupled-authorization) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/decoupled-authorization.md) - **Scalability** — Ensure your authorization processes scale seamlessly with your user base. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/scalability) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/scalability.md) - **Private by design** — Ensure complete control and peace of mind by keeping your data within your environment. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/private-by-design) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/private-by-design.md) - **Security standards** — Align with prevalent security standards like HIPAA, PCI DSS, and GDPR. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/security-standards) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/security-standards.md) - **Advanced observability** — Gain insights into your authorization processes and decisions. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/advanced-observability) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/advanced-observability.md) - **Authorize anywhere** — Empower your authorization with on-device and edge capabilities. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/authorize-anywhere) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/authorize-anywhere.md) - **Human readable authorization** — Implement and update authorization policies with low-code, human-readable configuration. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/human-readable-authorization) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/human-readable-authorization.md) - **Testable authorization** — Ensure the reliability of your authorization policies with built-in testing capabilities. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/testable-authorization) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/testable-authorization.md) - **No cloud or vendor lock-In** — Deploy on any platform, ensuring independence and adaptability. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/no-cloud-vendor-lock-in) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/no-cloud-vendor-lock-in.md) - **Simplified policy testing and distribution** — Validate, test, and roll out policy updates with a fully managed pipeline. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/simplified-policy-testing-and-distribution) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/simplified-policy-testing-and-distribution.md) - **Centralized management** — Unify your authorization strategy in one central hub. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/centralized-management) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/centralized-management.md) - **Coordinated rollout and monitoring** — Seamlessly coordinate, rollout, and monitor your policies with Cerbos Hub. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/coordinated-rollout-and-monitoring) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/coordinated-rollout-and-monitoring.md) - **Zero Trust security** — Adopt a security model that assumes breach and verifies every request. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/zero-trust-security) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/zero-trust-security.md) - **Embed anywhere** — Empower your authorization with on-device and edge capabilities. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/embed-anywhere) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/embed-anywhere.md) - **Standardized authorization** — Achieve interoperability, auditability and consistent policy enforcement in accordance with AuthZEN standards. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/authzen) - **On-premise & air-gapped** — Run Cerbos Hub inside your environment. Keep policies and audit data under your control. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/on-premise-air-gapped) ## Features - **RBAC (Role-based access control)** — Manage user permissions based on predefined roles within your organization. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/rbac) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/rbac.md) - **ABAC (Attribute-based access control)** — Define access controls based on user attributes and environmental conditions. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/abac) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/abac.md) - **Policy-Based Access Control (PBAC)** — Ensure dynamic and flexible access control with policy-driven decisions. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/pbac) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/pbac.md) - **Permissions-aware data filtering** — Efficiently filter data at the source, ensuring only authorized data is fetched. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/permission-aware-data-filtering) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/permission-aware-data-filtering.md) - **Stateless authorization** — Ensure real-time access decisions without managing application states, while benefiting from unlimited scaling. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/stateless-authorization) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/stateless-authorization.md) - **Audit logs** — Maintain a comprehensive record of all authorization activities for accountability and compliance. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/audit-logs) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/audit-logs.md) - **Cerbos Playground** — Experiment, test, and understand Cerbos policies in a sandboxed environment. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/cerbos-playground) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/cerbos-playground.md) - **REPL (Read-eval-print loop)** — Quickly test and evaluate policy and conditions. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/read-eval-print-loop-repl) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/read-eval-print-loop-repl.md) - **Flexible policy conditions powered by Google CEL** — Experiment with writing CEL conditions, enjoy a seamless policy development experience. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/flexible-policy-conditions-powered-by-google-cel) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/flexible-policy-conditions-powered-by-google-cel.md) - **Scoped policies** — Define precise access controls tailored to specific scenarios. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/scoped-policies) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/scoped-policies.md) - **Role policies** — Author permissions from a role’s point of view, not just the resource, and enforce least privilege by default. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/role-policies) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/role-policies.md) - **Derived roles** — Dynamically derive roles based on contextual information. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/derived-roles) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/derived-roles.md) - **GitOps & CI/CD** — Implement a reliable CI/CD workflow with Cerbos' GitOps approach and take advantage of GitHub Actions support. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/gitops-and-ci-cd) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/gitops-and-ci-cd.md) - **Ecosystem** — Integrations and SDKs for popular languages. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ecosystem) - **Flexible deployment models** — Deploy Cerbos in a way that aligns with your infrastructure needs. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/flexible-deployment-models) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/flexible-deployment-models.md) - **Admin API** — Simplify administration functions with the Cerbos Admin API. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/admin-api) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/admin-api.md) - **WebAssembly (WASM) embedded Policy Decision Points** — Take advantage of Cerbos Hub’s unique, flexible approach to authorization by leveraging WASM for embedded PDPs. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/wasm-embedded-pdp) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/wasm-embedded-pdp.md) - **IDE plugins** — Accelerate your development workflow and ensure that your policies are error-free with real-time syntax checking. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ide-plugins) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ide-plugins.md) ## Use cases - **AI security** — Policy-driven access control and full decision logging for AI agents and agentic workflows. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ai-security) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ai-security.md) - **Dynamic authorization for MCP servers** — Secure your MCP server tools from day one. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/dynamic-authorization-for-MCP-servers) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/dynamic-authorization-for-MCP-servers.md) - **Access control for RAG** — Apply permissions-aware data filtering to your RAG architecture. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/access-control-for-rag) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/access-control-for-rag.md) - **AI gateway authorization** — Control which LLMs, tools, and agents each identity can reach through your AI gateway. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/ai-gateway-authorization) - **Agentic commerce security** — Authorize every AI agent transaction before money moves. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/agentic-commerce) - **Application permissions** — Implement context-aware authorization for granular access control. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/application-permissions) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/application-permissions.md) - **Multi-tenant SaaS** — Scale your SaaS offering with controlled, audited, and isolated environments. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/multi-tenant-saas) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/multi-tenant-saas.md) - **Per-tenant custom policies** — Define and manage tenant-specific policies dynamically for every tenant, customer, or organizational unit. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/per-tenant-custom-policies) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/per-tenant-custom-policies.md) - **Dynamic policies** — Create, update and deploy policies programmatically to save engineering hours and accelerate releases. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/dynamic-policies) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/dynamic-policies.md) - **Authorization for non-human identities** — Secure every AI agent, workload identity, service, and API client in your ecosystem. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/authorization-non-human-identities) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/authorization-non-human-identities.md) - **Support enterprise organizations** — Manage the intricate requirements of large enterprises with ease [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/support-enterprise-organizations) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/support-enterprise-organizations.md) - **Product packaging** — Offer trials, feature bundles, and custom packages with Cerbos policies. [Page](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/product-packaging) · [Markdown](https://www.cerbos.dev/features-benefits-and-use-cases/product-packaging.md)