🔐 Session vs JWT Authentication: Express.js Showdown

Session auth stores user state server-side, while JWT uses client-side tokens. But which is better foryour Express.js app?Full comparison with code examples here.

🧩 Key Differences at a Glance

// Session Authenticationapp.use(session({secret:'key',cookie:{maxAge:3600000}}));// JWT Authenticationconsttoken=jwt.sign({userID:123},'secret',{expiresIn:'1h'});

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🚀 When to Use Which?

Choose Sessions When:

• You need instant logout capability
• Handling sensitive financial transactions
• Using server-side templates (EJS/Pug)

Go JWT When:

• Building microservices architecture
• Developing mobile/SPA frontends
• Needing stateless authentication

🛡️ Critical Security Tips

• 🔒Always usehttpOnly andSecure cookie flags
• 🛡️ Implement CSRF protection for sessions
• ⏳ Set reasonable token expiration times
• 🔄 Rotate encryption secrets regularly

👉 Full Step-by-Step Guide with Express.js Code

Includes:

• ✅ Complete middleware setup
• 🛠️ Production-ready configurations
• 🚨 Common security pitfalls
• 📊 Real-world performance benchmarks