Axiad Conductor vs Yubico YubiKey comparison

Axiad and Yubico are both solutions in the Authentication Systems category. Axiad is ranked #12 with an average rating of 10.0, while Yubico is ranked #7 with an average rating of 9.0. Axiad holds a 0.5% mindshare in AS, compared to Yubico’s 9.6% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Axiad users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Yubico users who would recommend it.

Axiad Conductor

Read 6 Axiad Conductor reviews

756 Views
152 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Yubico YubiKey

Read 4 Yubico YubiKey reviews

5,117 Views
4,518 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Axiad Conductor

Yubico YubiKey

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 16, 2025

Yubico YubiKey and Axiad Conductor are competing in multi-factor authentication and identity management. Yubico YubiKey holds an edge with its straightforward deployment and initial cost-effectiveness, while Axiad Conductor leads in comprehensive management and flexibility for enterprise solutions.

Features: Yubico YubiKey is highlighted for its strong hardware security, portability, and broad system compatibility. Axiad Conductor is recognized for its robust cloud-based platform, capable of handling scalable identity management and supporting various authenticators, including non-hardware options.

Room for Improvement: Yubico YubiKey could enhance integration support for more platforms, expand enterprise-level features, and offer more granular management of keys. Axiad Conductor could streamline its user enrollment processes, offer more immediate deployment options, and improve integration processes for users with limited tech infrastructure.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Yubico YubiKey benefits from a plug-and-play deployment approach, easing integration within existing frameworks. Axiad Conductor requires initial complex setup due to its cloud-based approach but compensates with detailed guidance and support suited for larger organizations needing custom solutions.

Pricing and ROI: Yubico YubiKey follows a one-time purchase model, facilitating a quick ROI given its lower ongoing costs. Axiad Conductor, though involving higher upfront investment, offers long-term ROI potential through its enhanced capabilities designed for comprehensive enterprise management.

To learn more, read our detailed Axiad Conductor vs. Yubico YubiKey Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Axiad Conductor vs. Yubico YubiKey

March 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Axiad Conductor

Ranking in Authentication Systems

12th

Ranking in Passwordless Authentication

3rd

Ranking in Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

5th

Average Rating

9.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Privileged Access Management (PAM) (13th), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (14th)

Yubico YubiKey

Ranking in Authentication Systems

7th

Ranking in Passwordless Authentication

4th

Ranking in Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

2nd

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Axiad Conductor is 0.5%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Yubico YubiKey is 9.6%, down from 10.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Authentication Systems

Featured Reviews

Eric Brown

Cybersecurity Director - Enterprise Identity & Access Management at SAIC

The day-to-day tasks, running the servers, and making sure that everything is patched is all handled by the platform

The most valuable feature is the overhead management of the platform. There is less for my team to worry about. The day-to-day tasks, running the servers, and making sure that everything is patched is all handled by the platform. We just consume the service and work with them to refine it, making it even more valuable. Aside from Active Directory, anything that is a multi-factor platform is handled through Axiad Cloud. It is critical for helping to enforce usage of authentication devices across our organization. One of our requirements to continue some of our contracts is to have multi-factor authentication across all devices accessing the network. It is extremely easy to enroll a user with “One Click Issuance”. I have had very few calls to the service desk regarding enrollment. It takes a couple of minutes to enroll a user with "One Click Issuance". Deploying and managing authenticators is very easy, either done by a mobile application or enrollment of an OTP token. It is very simple. This is important to my userbase, which makes it important to me. Functionality-wise, it is pretty solid.

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OmerKhan1

IT Specialist at Friendly Solutions Corp

A stable solution that is efficient, user-friendly, and easy to use

It would be better if the product can come up with a serial number for the keys. It would be nice if they had a numbering system as a configuration identity that would help the IT and technical teams to identify the keys because they look all the same. It would be more like putting a tag on them.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"And when it comes to enrolling a user, it's super easy with One Click Issuance... It's so easy now that we can offload the process to our clients who can self-enroll. Previously, we would have to do the enrollment process because it was so complicated."

"It's very user-friendly. We're issuing YubiKeys for our corporate users and they just plug it in, go to the Axiad Cloud portal, and click the issue button. It's a couple of steps."

"The solution has also saved us time by having end-users troubleshoot issues through the MyCircle feature, and has definitely reduced the efforts of our administrators. It is saving us five to 10 minutes per incident."

"What I have found most valuable is the overall way Axiad listened to our problems and helped us solve them. They provided guidance and expertise, with their experience, that enabled us to be successful in a very challenging space."

"The life cycle management of credentials is the aspect that we have found to be the most useful... The differentiator that Axiad provided was the ability to provide users a way to self-serve the updating of their credentials on their private keys. That was the feature we were most interested in and Axiad does an excellent job of it."

"Aside from Active Directory, anything that is a multi-factor platform is handled through Axiad Cloud. It is critical for helping to enforce usage of authentication devices across our organization."

"The most valuable feature of Yubico YubiKey is security."

"YubiKey is a hardware security device with advanced security features."

"It's small and lightweight. Like a phone, it doesn't run out of battery. It also doesn't have to be unlocked. It doesn't break. Moreover, they're very durable and it's very convenient."

"The solution is simple to use and we have installed it in our clients' endpoints. The tool is just plug-and-play for the end user. The end user can just put in the key to the security computer and log in without any hassle. The solution is efficient, user-friendly, and easy to use."

Cons

"macOS is notoriously ever-evolving and it's difficult to keep pace with it as it pertains to certain kinds of crypto authentication. That's really not even on Axiad. That's a decision by Apple, but it makes it a moving target."

"There are just some minor tweaks that could be made on the front end. It would be cool to have nicknames for authenticator devices. If you have more than one, it's hard to discern what you have."

"With their licensing model, it becomes hard to scale. For example, we couldn't roll it out enterprise-wide because if you scale it across more than 100,000 users, the cost becomes too exorbitant."

"We would prefer that the solution be hosted in Canada because we're a Canadian entity. That would be nice to have. It's not a feature, as such, but it would really make us a lot happier if it could be located in Canada."

"I'm looking forward to seeing how they move to FIDO U2F as their primary authentication method across all of their solutions."

"I would like a more modern look to the portal."

"Yubico YubiKey is inconvient. No one likes the idea of having to put a USB device into the system, having to remember to take it out, and having passwords. It may be very good for security but it is not great for people to use."

"Currently, an area where the product lacks is in addressing service needs."

"It would be better if the product can come up with a serial number for the keys. It would be nice if they had a numbering system as a configuration identity that would help the IT and technical teams to identify the keys because they look all the same. It would be more like putting a tag on them."

"It's a hardware device, so it isn't cost-effective to use for all your accounts. You might have a hard time getting budget approval. It's better to take a strategic approach and use it only for critical accounts. You can use other forms of authentication for the rest."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Don't just focus on the hardware or software costs of acquiring a solution, but look at it from the perspective that so much of what it takes to run a PKI environment has to do with the people who are running it.... look at the total cost of ownership and not just the cost of acquisition."

"Axiad's pricing was what we were expecting. It was at the right spot. They were competitive."

"It's very cheap on a per-year basis. The cards themselves last about three years and the license is on the order of double-digit dollars per user, and not hundreds of dollars per user, per year."

"The pricing is very competitive for what is offered at the level that we need. They are right there with what the industry standards are. They tend to be a little bit less, in terms of cost, when we are talking about security at government standards. So, I would say that they have a slight advantage on cost compared to the industry average. They are the lower cost solution and the best bargain out on the market today."

"We paid 100 bucks for one Yubikey."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

20%

Government

12%

University

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Axiad Cloud?

The life cycle management of credentials is the aspect that we have found to be the most useful... The differentiator that Axiad provided was the ability to provide users a way to self-serve the up...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Axiad Cloud?

Our use case is credential management for one of the business units. Axiad provides credential management for those users, including the creation of new credentials and life cycle management of the...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Axiad Cloud?

You have to understand the number of users and the number of devices that are going to use the solution. I'm saying that because of my experience with the licensing part. That's my one gripe. If yo...

See all answers

What do you like most about Yubico YubiKey?

The solution is simple to use and we have installed it in our clients' endpoints. The tool is just plug-and-play for the end user. The end user can just put in the key to the security computer and ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Yubico YubiKey?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Yubico YubiKey?

We use YubiKey to authenticate online services with email, web, and Twitter. We deploy it for some sensitive administrative accounts to improve security.

See all answers

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Compared 40% of the time

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Compared 12% of the time

Cisco Duo vs Yubico YubiKey

Compared 10% of the time

Thales Authenticators vs Yubico YubiKey

Compared 7% of the time

Ping Identity Platform vs Yubico YubiKey

Compared 1% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Axiad Conductor

March 2025

Download Axiad Conductor product report

Buyer's Guide

Authentication Systems

March 2025

Download Yubico YubiKey product report

Also Known As

Axiad Cloud

YubiKey

Overview

Axiad Conductor offers a user-friendly platform for managing multifactor authentication and credential lifecycle, supporting seamless transitions to cloud environments for enhanced security compliance and access control.

Axiad Conductor stands out with intuitive management of multifactor authentication systems, assertive device lifecycle management, and a managed cloud solution that streamlines operations. It promotes user self-service for credential updates, minimizing the need for extensive training. With the capability to handle large networks, it enhances efficiency while meeting contract demands. Addressing user suggestions, plans include interface design updates and Canadian hosting, although macOS's frequent updates pose integration challenges.

What are the principal features of Axiad Conductor?

"One Click Issuance": Simplifies user enrollment through easy interface actions.
Multifactor Authentication: Manages critical authentication processes securely.
PKI Support: Facilitates seamless management in PKI environments.
Credential Self-Service: Empowers users to handle updates independently.
Cloud Management: Reduces operational burdens due to its managed environment.

What should users look for in terms of ROI and benefits?

Efficiency: Streamlined operations boost productivity across large networks.
Flexibility: Adaptability to meet evolving challenges and contract requirements.
User Empowerment: Enables users to manage their credentials autonomously.
Compliance: Supports regulation adherence effortlessly.

In diverse industries, Axiad Conductor is implemented to manage multifactor authentication and PKI elements like smart cards and YubiKeys. Organizations leverage it to ensure compliance, facilitate secure workforce access, and transition PKI systems to the cloud, handling substantial volumes of smart card and machine certificates with ease.

Axiad

The YubiKey works with hundreds of enterprise, developer and consumer applications, out-of-the-box and with no client software. Combined with leading password managers, social login and enterprise single sign on systems the YubiKey enables secure access to millions of online services.

Yubico

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Google Inc., Salesforce, Novartis, Facebook, GitHub, CERN, Duke University, Code Enigma, Luther Burbank High School, ZorgSaam, Agfa, Santa Clara County Fire Department, Dyson Ltd, Portugal Telecom, Boral, Canonical Ltd

Buyer's Guide

Axiad Conductor vs. Yubico YubiKey

March 2025

Free Report: Axiad Conductor vs. Yubico YubiKey

Find out what your peers are saying about Axiad Conductor vs. Yubico YubiKey and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.

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See our list of best Authentication Systems vendors, best Passwordless Authentication vendors, and best Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) vendors.

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