Azure Bastion vs Microsoft Entra ID comparison

Azure Bastion and Microsoft Entra ID are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Azure Bastion is ranked #17 with an average rating of 8.9, while Microsoft Entra ID is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.7. Azure Bastion holds a 1.5% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Entra ID’s 8.2% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Azure Bastion users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Microsoft Entra ID users who would recommend it.

Azure Bastion

Read 9 Azure Bastion reviews

1,840 Views
846 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Entra ID

Read 195 Microsoft Entra ID reviews

5,035 Views
3,810 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Azure Bastion

Microsoft Entra ID

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Azure Bastion and Microsoft Entra ID based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Microsoft Security Suite solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Entra ID Report (Updated: October 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Entra ID

October 2024

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Helped 814,763 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Azure Bastion

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

17th

Average Rating

8.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Network Monitoring Software (28th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (7th)

Microsoft Entra ID

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

4th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

195

Ranking in other categories

Single Sign-On (SSO) (1st), Authentication Systems (1st), Identity Management (IM) (1st), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (1st), Access Management (1st)

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2024, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Bastion is 1.5%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 8.2%, up from 5.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

Aladin Steiner

Head of Value Stream Azure at SmartIT Services AG

Nov 28, 2023

Has good scalability and provides secure access to the virtual machines

Our customers use the product to connect to Azure virtual machines. It is a perfect solution that they can easily connect to the browser and experience the VM services Azure Bastion makes it easy to provide quick virtual machine access to our customers. We don’t have to build complex SSL VPN…

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Vinod Survase

M365 Senior Consultant at Capgemini

Oct 31, 2022

Saves us time and money and features Conditional Access policies, SSPR, and MFA

I want better integration between Azure AD and the on-prem environment because there are currently limitations that can hamper employee experience. We use a feature called password writeback, that can be challenging to implement in a hybrid environment. Employees can change their passwords using a self-service password reset (SSPR) feature, which reflects from the cloud to the on-prem identity, but not the other way around. Currently, there is no way to reflect passwords from on-prem identities to the cloud. There are other similar limitations, such as a cap on the number of identities that can be synchronized in a particular time frame, which can be an issue for large enterprises with 300,000 employees or more.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution's most valuable feature is that it is easy to use...It is modernized, so I can create complex infrastructures."

"The ability to operate the product with scripting is excellent."

"It provides all the security to us. Without getting on the internet, we can access our servers. We can access our desktop through our web browser. We don't need to run the mstsc command and login to the VM. All those things are not required."

"The connection to virtual machines is very useful."

"As an Azure consultant, for me, it is the best way to give the administrator access as you can manage the permission - including who can access Bastion."

"The interface is available in the edit portal."

"Azure Bastion makes it easy to provide quick virtual machine access to our customers."

"The most significant advantage lies in its runbook features, particularly beneficial for our infrastructure team."

More Azure Bastion pros

"The user management groups are valuable. It is a pretty basic product, but user management, in general, is valuable with the ability to differentiate between business lines and add different policies, group-based management, and dynamic user groups."

"Every feature in Microsoft Entra ID plays a crucial role in overall security."

"As an end-user, the access to shared resources that I get from using this product is very helpful."

"Very stable and scalable IAM service with good SSO and authentication features."

"Being able to easily authenticate yourself on the MSA app is valuable. It is easy to use. Rather than receiving a code in an SMS, you can just verify that it is you. You don't have to punch in any password or any six-digit code. That's the feature that I like the most."

"We can centralize and manage everything much more effectively with this tool."

"We can have an audit and we can easily audit logs."

"The technical support is pretty good."

More Microsoft Entra ID pros

Cons

"You are charged for retrieving your own data."

"We are not able to copy and paste files directly into the server over the patch host. We have to transfer files over to Azure Storage."

"The protocol speed could be faster."

"The solution breaks down sometimes."

"Speaking of AI, having Microsoft Copilot in Azure Bastion would be good."

"There are some challenges because Bastion is more compatible with Edge but not with the other browsers. As an organization, it doesn't make sense that we have to use only Edge. We should be able to access Bastion over Chrome, Mozilla, or Opera. It should be our choice."

"While general support is valuable, having a detailed breakdown of the specific issues would contribute to a more streamlined and efficient resolution process."

"When you have a boot issue on Windows, you cannot use Azure Bastion to fix it. You have to use the Azure console or the VM console, and it is very limited."

"Azure Active Directory could benefit by adding the capability for identity life cycle for the on-premise solution. For example, an HR solution, which is built on-premise or, in general, better on-premise capable solutions."

"I believe it can also be integrated into other Microsoft products, as well as more integrations with other solutions."

"The product needs to improve its support."

"The dashboard and interface could be better. It would be ideal if it was easier to use."

"I want to see new functionalities for the active directory."

"I would rate it an eight out of ten. The price plays a factor in the rating."

"The B2B Federation functionality is not perfect and could be improved. It is not on the same level that we could have if it were being used on-premises. It offers a different experience, which is a bit complicated and has some additional drawbacks."

"There are some features, where if you want to access them, then you need to make use of PowerShell. If someone is not really versed in PowerShell scripting, then they would definitely have issues using some of those features in Azure Active Directory."

More Microsoft Entra ID cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It does not save money for us."

"The tool is cheaply priced. I would say that the product is free to use."

"The pricing is a lower decision point than high-quality security for our organization. Better security comes at a cost, but it's worth it, and that's what we tell our customers."

"Azure Bastion's pricing is good."

"It comes free with the Microsoft account. We have a yearly agreement, and all products are covered under it."

"I would advise implementing the solution to VIPs and admins; it's affordable, effective, and efficient. I would say training staff on properly using the tool is also essential."

"The P1 version costs $6 per user per month."

"Azure AD comes with Office 365, so we are just paying for the Office 365 license."

"Entra ID is not too bad, but Microsoft licensing generally is insane. Most customers normally buy a bundle license with Microsoft 365, E3, or E5. Out of our 2,000 customers, for 99.9% of our customers, the Entra ID license that they are getting through the part of that would be sufficient. There are some more advanced ones that give you a bit more functionality, but we probably have not had a customer for that. We do not even internally use that ourselves. When you buy the Entra ID license on its own, it is probably three or four pounds. You just get it included in the license."

"The solution has three types of tiers: E1 has very basic features. You get limited stuff in E2 and cannot have Office 360 associated with it. E3 is on the costly side and has all the features."

"The basic tier of Azure Active Directory is free, so many users use the service for free. For a small company having the security and compliance that Azure offers is a great benefit. For small companies that are using the basic services, not having to pay for Azure Active Directory is the main asset because they can manage their users and have authentications tools and security."

"Microsoft Authenticator is included in the package when we purchase a license from Microsoft."

More Microsoft Entra ID pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Financial Services Firm

Educational Organization

30%

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Bastion?

Azure Bastion makes it easy to provide quick virtual machine access to our customers.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Bastion?

The tool is cheaply priced. I would say that the product is free to use.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Azure Bastion?

I think the tool is pretty good. It is like having a tool that just works. If there are better tools that Azure comes up with, then that is a separate thing. In the current scenario, Azure Bastion ...

See all answers

How does Duo Security compare with Microsoft Authenticator?

We switched to Duo Security for identity verification. We’d been using a competitor but got the chance to evaluate Duo for 30 days, and we could not be happier. Duo Security is easy to configure a...

See all answers

What do you like most about Azure Active Directory?

It is very simple. The Active Directory functions are very easy for us. Its integration with anything is very easy. We can easily do third-party multifactor authentication.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Active Directory?

Initially, customers can get good prices for a three-year package, but renewal prices tend to increase significantly. If a customer looks for an alternative solution after three years, we often fin...

See all answers

Comparisons

Azure Firewall vs Azure Bastion

Compared 29% of the time

Azure Front Door vs Azure Bastion

Compared 22% of the time

Microsoft Entra Verified ID vs Azure Bastion

Compared 10% of the time

TeamViewer Remote Management vs Azure Bastion

Compared 9% of the time

Azure Web Application Firewall vs Azure Bastion

Compared 9% of the time

More Azure Bastion Competitors

Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 11% of the time

Google Cloud Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 10% of the time

Okta Workforce Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 8% of the time

CyberArk Privileged Access Manager vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 6% of the time

Auth0 vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Entra ID Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Azure Bastion

November 2024

Download Azure Bastion product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Entra ID

October 2024

Download Microsoft Entra ID product report

Also Known As

No data available

Azure AD, Azure Active Directory, Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Authenticator

Learn More

Microsoft

Interactive Demo

Demo not available

Microsoft

Overview

Azure Bastion is a service you deploy that lets you connect to a virtual machine using your browser and the Azure portal. The Azure Bastion service is a fully platform-managed PaaS service that you provision inside your virtual network. It provides secure and seamless RDP/SSH connectivity to your virtual machines directly from the Azure portal over TLS. When you connect via Azure Bastion, your virtual machines do not need a public IP address, agent, or special client software.

Microsoft Entra ID is used for extending on-premises Active Directory to the cloud, managing application access, enabling multi-factor authentication, and single sign-on. It facilitates policy enforcement and secure access, ensuring centralized identity management across cloud and on-premises resources.

Organizations utilize Microsoft Entra ID for robust user and group management, identity synchronization, and conditional access. Its seamless integration with third-party apps, scalability, and support for remote work make it a preferred choice. The admin center streamlines identity and access tasks, enhancing efficiency and security with features like privileged identity management and audit logs.

What are the key features of Microsoft Entra ID?

Single Sign-On: Simplifies user access to multiple applications with one login.
Multifactor Authentication: Enhances security by requiring additional verification.
Conditional Access: Establishes policies that determine how users' access cloud apps.
Integration: Easily integrates with various third-party applications.
User Identity Protection: Safeguards user identities from threats.
Privileged Identity Management: Manages elevated access to sensitive resources.
Audit Logs: Provides thorough activity logs for oversight and compliance.

What benefits should users look for in Microsoft Entra ID reviews?

Enhanced Security: Offers strong multifactor authentication and identity protection.
Administrative Efficiency: Simplifies identity and access management tasks.
Scalability: Supports growing user bases and remote work environments.
Integration Capabilities: Compatible with numerous third-party applications.
User-Friendly Interface: Makes managing user identities straightforward.

Microsoft Entra ID implementation varies across industries. Tech firms leverage it for secure, scalable access management, while healthcare organizations utilize its identity protection features to safeguard patient data. Educational institutions adopt Entra ID for streamlined user management and policy enforcement, ensuring secure access for students and staff across on-premises and cloud resources.

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Microsoft Entre ID is trusted by companies of all sizes and industries including Walmart, Zscaler, Uniper, Amtrak, monday.com, and more.

Buyer's Guide

Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Entra ID

October 2024

Free Report: Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Entra ID

Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Entra ID and other solutions. Updated: October 2024.

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