Azure Web Application Firewall vs Microsoft Entra ID comparison

Azure Web Application Firewall and Microsoft Entra ID are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Azure Web Application Firewall is ranked #21 with an average rating of 8.2, while Microsoft Entra ID is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.7. Azure Web Application Firewall holds a 1.8% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Entra ID’s 8.7% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of Azure Web Application Firewall users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Microsoft Entra ID users who would recommend it.

Azure Web Application Firewall

Read 11 Azure Web Application Firewall reviews

1,230 Views
1,050 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Microsoft Entra ID

Read 218 Microsoft Entra ID reviews

5,326 Views
3,924 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Azure Web Application Firewall

Microsoft Entra ID

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Azure Web Application Firewall 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 Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Entra ID Report (Updated: December 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Entra ID

December 2024

Download the complete report

Helped 831,265 peers since 2012

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

Azure Web Application Firewall

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

21st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Web Application Firewall (WAF) (13th)

Microsoft Entra ID

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

4th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

218

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 January 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Web Application Firewall is 1.8%, down from 1.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 8.7%, up from 6.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

Thomas Zebar

Azure Principal Architect at Cloud Computech Consultancy

Is priced well, is stable, and the initial setup is straightforward

I previously used Barracuda Web Application Firewall. I hope that Azure Web Application Firewall will look at other products and replicate some of their functionality. Azure WAF is doing great because it is designed to host web applications in Azure. However, it can be improved with other services. Barracuda is the most advanced firewall in the industry, so Azure WAF could pick some of its features and replicate them into its own application firewall. Barracuda WAF was deployed in parallel to the traffic. Azure WAF should not be deployed in the middle of the traffic. It should support both public and private points of presence. Additionally, like Barracuda, Azure WAF should have an inspection engine that covers not just Microsoft products, but also products from other manufacturers. This would be a great addition to the product and would increase its security functionality.

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Aaron Liang

System engineer at a energy/utilities company with 501-1,000 employees

Has significantly improved secure access to applications and resources in our environment

Microsoft Entra ID has helped by simplifying our management of permissions for APIs. We are not directly exposing credentials, as we use tokens instead. It has made management easier and more secure, especially in a multi-user environment. The implementation of Microsoft Entra ID significantly improved secure access to applications and resources in our environment, primarily through the widespread use of single-sign-on. Managing API permissions became much easier, as application registration often involves calling an API to utilize services without directly exposing credentials, relying instead on token-based authentication. This streamlined approach benefits end-users by simplifying access while remaining transparent to them. Ultimately, my role focuses on ensuring a smooth and user-friendly experience, even if the underlying technology remains unseen by the end-users. Our company strongly emphasizes passwordless authentication, primarily through device-bound passkeys in Microsoft Authenticator. While administrators with high-privileged accounts utilize YubiKeys and passwords for tasks like accessing Microsoft Graph, we are actively transitioning all other users towards passwordless methods such as Windows Hello biometrics. This approach streamlines authentication and enhances security. Though initial deployment in 2022 presented challenges due to hardware limitations and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the technology has significantly improved and provides a simple and effective user experience.

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

"It's a good option if you want a solution that's ready to go and easy for your team to learn. It's cloud-based, so you don't need to buy or maintain any hardware infrastructure."

"The initial setup is easy and straightforward...Azure Web Application Firewall is a scalable product."

"The solution has good dashboards."

"It's great for protecting against DDoS attacks."

"We have found the most valuable features to be the web application, minimal skills required for management, control through policies, and automation."

"The most valuable feature of Azure Web Application Firewall is its ability to filter requests and block false positives by using custom rules and the OWASP rule set."

"The most valuable feature is that it allows us to publish our applications behind the firewall."

"It has been a stable product in my experience."

More Azure Web Application Firewall pros

"The two-factor authentication provides an additional layer of security for our organizational data, so Microsoft Authenticator plays a crucial role in making our confidential data more secure."

"The cloud security part is very valuable. Security is the most important thing in today's world. With Azure Active Directory, there are some features that tell you how you need to improve your security level. It informs you if you set up certain policies, e.g., this is where my users sign in. It tends to let you know if your organization has been breached with this security set up. Therefore, it is easier to know when you have been breached, especially if you set up a Conditional Access policy for your organization."

"My two preferred features are conditional access and privileged identity management."

"Delegated permissions and federated credentials are valuable features of Entra ID. We aim for a more secure environment by pushing for minimal use of static secrets. By utilizing delegated permissions, workflows can manage access, and federated credentials allow integration with platforms like GitHub and AWS. Entra ID drives our login and security perimeter, helping with multifactor authentication, despite the legacy systems."

"What I like is that I can go anywhere, at any time, and to any client premise, and I can simply log in to the admin panel and can serve any of my clients."

"Microsoft Authenticator is highly secure."

"https://www.itcentralstation.com/product_reviews/microsoft-bi-review-52460-by-amanda-zhou"

"It helps us with maintaining enterprise identities."

More Microsoft Entra ID pros

Cons

"We would like to see additional site services using AI to provide information about blocking requests and offer analytics on the origin of calls."

"I would say that Azure's customer service is not that good...I am not very happy with the support offered."

"In Brazil, we have some problems with the phone service that affect our connection with the cloud. However, it isn't common."

"From a reporting perspective, they could do more there."

"The support for proxy forwarding could improve."

"Azure WAF should not be deployed in the middle of the traffic."

"The management can be improved."

"There is a need to be able to configure the solution more."

More Azure Web Application Firewall cons

"One thing that they need to improve is the cost."

"In my opinion, Microsoft sometimes releases products too early without providing enough documentation. Our team works with innovative solutions like verified ID, identity governance ,and lifecycle workflow. When we started with lifecycle workflows, we had only two integrated worklows. Still, we couldn't find much of the information we needed in the documentation about our use case or how to leverage IDs in our proof of concept."

"I think the documentation and configuration are both areas that need improvement."

"Having more training would be quite helpful."

"Microsoft support has some room for improvement. I avoid contacting them because it can be time-consuming."

"Customers should be informed that public review features are not intended for production use."

"The only improvement would be for everything to be instant in terms of applying changes and propagating them to systems."

"The thing that is a bit annoying is the inability to nest groups. Because we run an Azure hybrid model, we have nested groups on-premise which does not translate well. So, we have written some scripts to kind of work around that. This is a feature request that we have put in previously to be able to use a group that is nested in Active Directory on-premise and have it handled the same way in Azure."

More Microsoft Entra ID cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the solution depends on your architecture and how you manage it. You can control the cost in Azure quite well. The costs do not directly correlate to expenses in the features we are using."

"The price is for this solution is fair and there is a license needed."

"We have an enterprise agreement with Microsoft and the pricing is good."

"Azure WAF has price advantages over other WAF solutions. The pricing model is flexible because you pay on a scale based on the level of protection you need."

"The price is reasonable. It is approximately $2,000 US per month."

"I give the pricing a nine out of ten."

"Licensing fees are paid on a monthly basis and the cost depends on the number of users."

"I feel Microsoft is very costly compared to other products. That is also what management is thinking. But when we consider security and support, Microsoft is better than any other product."

"I think we're on the E3 — I think it was about 35 dollars per user."

"Microsoft Azure AD has P1 or P2 licensing options, and it depends on the customer's needs. To use Conditional Access, you need to have the P1 license, and to use the PIN features, you need the P2 license."

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

"The price is fair. It's not very expensive given what they offer."

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

"I do not have experience with pricing."

More Microsoft Entra ID pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

20%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Insurance Company

Educational Organization

32%

Computer Software Company

10%

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 Web Application Firewall?

The integration it has with GitHub is great.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Web Application Firewall?

The price is reasonable. It is approximately $2,000 US per month. This cost is one of the main reasons why we selected Azure Web Application Firewall. It provides enough functionality for our needs.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Azure Web Application Firewall?

Microsoft is constantly working on improvements. We would like to see additional site services using AI to provide information about blocking requests and offer analytics on the origin of calls. Th...

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?

We are an enterprise customer with an enterprise agreement in place with many of our partner companies, so there are no special questions or issues about pricing, setup cost, or licensing.

See all answers

Comparisons

AWS WAF vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 43% of the time

Fortinet FortiWeb vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 12% of the time

Azure Front Door vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 4% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Azure Web Application Firewall

Compared 2% of the time

More Azure Web Application Firewall 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 9% of the time

Auth0 vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 6% of the time

CyberArk Privileged Access Manager vs Microsoft Entra ID

Compared 5% of the time

More Microsoft Entra ID Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Web Application Firewall (WAF)

January 2025

Download Azure Web Application Firewall product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Entra ID

January 2025

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 Web Application Firewall (WAF) provides centralized protection of your web applications from common exploits and vulnerabilities. Web applications are increasingly targeted by malicious attacks that exploit commonly known vulnerabilities. SQL injection and cross-site scripting are among the most common attacks.

To learn more about our solution, ask questions, and share feedback, join our Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Community.

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 Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Entra ID

December 2024

Free Report: Azure Web Application Firewall vs. Microsoft Entra ID

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