Multi-tenant architecture is a software design in which a single application or shared infrastructure serves multiple customers, known as tenants. Each tenant uses the same underlying system while their data, settings, users, and access permissions remain logically separated. The application manages these boundaries through authentication, authorization, and data-isolation mechanisms, allowing resources to be shared without exposing one tenant’s information to another.
For example, a cloud-based business management platform can support many companies from one application while giving each company its own users, records, and configuration. This approach can reduce infrastructure and maintenance costs while making it easier to scale the service. It is commonly used in SaaS platforms, cloud applications, enterprise software, and AI services.
