Single sign-on (SSO) is a login system that lets you access multiple applications or websites with one set of credentials.

For example, if you sign in once with your school or work account and can then open email, chat, cloud storage, and other tools without logging in again each time, that’s SSO.

Common examples include:

• Signing into multiple Google services with one Google account
• Using a Microsoft work account to access Teams, Outlook, and OneDrive
• Clicking “Sign in with Google” or “Sign in with Apple” on other websites

Benefits of SSO:

• Fewer passwords to remember
• Faster and easier access
• Better security management for organizations
• Centralized login control (for example, disabling one account removes access everywhere)

A simple way to think about it:

One login → access to many systems.

Setting up single sign-on (SSO) usually means connecting an identity provider (the system that handles logins) to one or more apps.

Common identity providers include:

Most SSO setups use:

OpenID Connect (OIDC) / OAuth 2.0 (common for modern web apps)

SAML 2.0 (common for enterprise apps)