Cisco Duo vs RSA Authentication Manager comparison

Cisco and RSA are both solutions in the Authentication Systems category. Cisco is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.9, while RSA is ranked #14. Cisco holds a 3.8% mindshare in AS, compared to RSA’s 2.4% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of RSA users who would recommend it.

Cisco Duo

Read 157 Cisco Duo reviews

13,267 Views
7,164 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

RSA Authentication Manager

Read 12 RSA Authentication Manager reviews

2,424 Views
2,279 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Cisco Duo

RSA Authentication Manager

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

RSA Authentication Manager and Cisco Duo are both key players in user authentication solutions. Cisco Duo holds an advantage with a broader range of features and flexibility favored by users.

Features: RSA Authentication Manager provides strong multifactor authentication, extensive integration capabilities with legacy systems, and secure token delivery. Meanwhile, Cisco Duo features robust mobile support, a cloud-based model, and seamless integration with cloud applications, which enhances its usability in modern IT environments.

Room for Improvement: RSA Authentication Manager's reliance on on-premise deployment could benefit from faster initial setup. Improvement in scalability would help its adaptability to cloud environments. Its customer support system could be enhanced for quicker resolution times. Cisco Duo could add more detailed reporting features. Enhancements in handling complex legacy system integrations and offering a more expansive selection of user interface languages would improve its accessibility globally.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: RSA Authentication Manager, with its on-premise requirements, involves a longer setup time but delivers reliable customer service post-installation. Cisco Duo offers a rapid deployment process, requiring fewer resources due to its cloud-based structure, alongside responsive and ongoing support, appealing to IT departments with varying infrastructure needs.

Pricing and ROI: RSA Authentication Manager's large initial setup cost is offset by good ROI for organizations with significant legacy systems integration. Contrarily, Cisco Duo's flexible subscription-based pricing model supports dynamic businesses seeking lower upfront costs and quicker ROI, making it attractive for those preferring flexible spending plans.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager

August 2026

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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

Cisco Duo

Ranking in Authentication Systems

2nd

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

157

Ranking in other categories

Single Sign-On (SSO) (3rd), Access Management (4th), ZTNA as a Service (2nd), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (1st), AI Data Analysis (3rd)

RSA Authentication Manager

Ranking in Authentication Systems

14th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

8.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Cisco Duo is 3.8%, down from 9.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of RSA Authentication Manager is 2.4%, up from 2.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Cisco Duo	3.8%
RSA Authentication Manager	2.4%
Other	93.8%

Authentication Systems

Featured Reviews

Charles Slaustas

Information Technology Contractor at Insight global

Supports seamless authentication for users across multiple organizations and personal portals

The features I use in Cisco Duo include Duo Pushes to confirm my identity to the device, and eventually as MFA security was increased, I actually had to use exchange passcodes. Sometimes, I have to go into the site and get into Cisco Duo to retrieve the passcode, and many of them have been two-factor, where the sites send a passcode that I have to enter into Cisco Duo. It has been more of the latter. I have not seen issues with lagging or crashing on Cisco Duo's end; it was usually on the client end, often because someone set up a bad upgrade or there were connection issues with the Cisco Duo cloud through the administrative site.

Read full review

Uwe Schomäcker

VP Business Development at SDVG

Enhancing security with seamless single sign-on and Microsoft integration

We use RSA Authentication Manager for web applications and internal applications. We have a number of applications connected to it, serving over thirty thousand clients. It is integrated into everything from our standard login to Windows in the morning, as well as our applications Due to its…

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

"For me, the biggest return on investment when using Cisco Duo is my time."

"The integration with Azure Active Directory and the AWS cloud is amazing, as most products nowadays require the creation of a customized integration. With Duo Security, it was more like native integration, and it took me five minutes to register."

"Multifactor authentication and secure two-factor authentication are the most valuable features. It's been around for a while, but now it's becoming an enforced behavior as opposed to something that you used to do as optional."

"Cisco Duo has made us more secure. We've managed to stop some threats with it and keep our users and devices safe."

"The biggest benefit of Cisco Duo for my customers is the license because they count licenses for the user—one user can use many applications integrated with Cisco Duo."

"Cisco Duo is a simple and effective tool that gives detailed information about users who connect to your domain."

"My overall rating for the solution is ten out of ten."

"We get fewer threats to remediate due to the two-factor authentication, which does not allow as many threats through."

More Cisco Duo pros

"Easy setup, deployment, and integration in different infrastructures, including virtual ones."

"In 2005 we started with a managed authentication service for three small companies with each having approx. 250 users, and now we have 25 large enterprises/government departments with over 150,000 authenticating users and an uptime of nearly 100% over the last five years."

"I have found RSA Authentication Manager to be scalable."

"The most valuable feature is the provision part. The mapping and the logging is also very good. In addition, the troubleshooting, from a console point of view, is easy for administration and on the provisioning and logging part."

"The technical support has been great; their service is perfect."

"It is a good solution for token identification."

"RSA Authentication Manager Appliance is almost like Plug 'n' Play, so it's an excellent experience."

"The single sign-on feature is the most important."

More RSA Authentication Manager pros

Cons

"I do not think Cisco Duo is the best option on the market thus far."

"Cisco Duo can be improved by exploring a way to make it a more seamless integration and by deploying an in-house server."

"Regarding the pricing, setup costs, and licensing, I find that for some companies using Azure, they question why they should switch when they already have Microsoft Authenticator, which can make it commercially challenging when explaining why they need to transition to Cisco Duo."

"One downside of Cisco Duo is the expense, as there are clients that can afford only the basic package, which does not include Geo-fencing, leaving them unable to pay for the more expensive level, which I do not feel justifies the double price of that upper tier version."

"Improving Cisco Duo might involve alerting us about telephony credits when people receive texts. We hit zero at one point, and we were running around in circles without any idea until I discovered it. That's my only complaint."

"I know that Cisco Duo is pretty expensive; we have affiliates that use the Microsoft product just because Cisco Duo is so expensive, and they don't want to pay for it."

"Cisco Duo could be improved, possibly by adding features for the healthcare space. If you're selling something to a healthcare provider, there needs to be consideration for how to launch Cisco Duo with a handheld device that is not native, where you can install the application."

"I think that the dashboard needs to be improved."

More Cisco Duo cons

"The price needs to be improved."

"Enhancing the user interface and expanding their marketing efforts in regions like Nigeria and West Africa could be beneficial."

"We are not planning on using the solution in the future."

"Perhaps parts of the the user interface should become more intuitive."

"We have encountered issue when trying to expand this particular solution for a large set of users across the country."

"We found technical support was not very responsive to our requests for assistance."

"Our major problem is the authentication via Microsoft, via Microsoft cloud systems. This is our major aim, to be a valued product for the future. The biggest problem is to work against cheap cloud systems. Cloud identification is our main problem at this time."

"My observation over the years is that the system upgrades can be complicated and must be well planned out to address 'what if' issues, including backing off upgrades if necessary."

More RSA Authentication Manager cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing has been good, with no issues. I am pleased that the prices remained stable after Cisco acquired the solution."

"The cost was reasonable. Licensing was pretty straightforward for a change."

"Overall, the pricing is fair. Customers can wrap it into their Enterprise Agreement, making it easier for them to solve their issues."

"I believe the licensing model is excellent as it offers flexibility to our customers, allowing them to adopt a crawl, walk, or run approach."

"The pricing was a lot more than what we were paying for our previous solution."

"The pricing is pretty competitive. It's pretty cheap. Anybody can adopt it."

"It's a bit confusing because we're on a three-year plan with a certain number of licenses, and we've gone over that number. They told us that when we renew, they will add all these licenses. We've expanded quickly, so everyone's kind of scared because no one knows what the bill is with the long pricing cycle."

"Duo Security's pricing is good, fair, and very comparable to today's market."

More Cisco Duo pricing and cost advice

"As a new customer, the minimum cost would be four dollars, but you have room for negotiation, potentially bringing it down to as low as three dollars."

"The solution is costly."

"The pricing is a little bit complicated because sometimes resellers are able to make prices that are too low. Our price, with a discount, is typically not as high as some of our competitors."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

Outsourcing Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Construction Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	62
Midsize Enterprise	26
Large Enterprise	79

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	5
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Duo Security?

My experience with the pricing, the setup cost, and the licensing of Cisco Duo is that it is really inexpensive in the first place, but the value that I get in return is hard to beat, especially wh...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Duo Security?

For the next release, Cisco Duo could be improved by adding touchless authentication and biometric features.

See all answers

What needs improvement with RSA Authentication Manager?

RSA Authentication Manager is perfect. We do not see current missing products or enhancements yet emphasize the importance of a continuous development roadmap.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for RSA Authentication Manager?

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering RSA Authentication Manager?

RSA Authentication Manager is the best available solution. However, for other companies, it might seem expensive. It's important for RSA to keep developing new features and maintain a robust roadma...

See all answers

Comparisons

Microsoft Entra ID vs Cisco Duo

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Cisco Duo

Compared 6% of the time

Okta Platform vs Cisco Duo

Compared 3% of the time

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs Cisco Duo

Compared 3% of the time

SAASPASS vs Cisco Duo

Compared 2% of the time

More Cisco Duo Competitors

Certificate Lifecycle Manager vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 8% of the time

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 8% of the time

Yubico YubiKey vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Symantec Advanced Authentication vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 6% of the time

More RSA Authentication Manager Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo

August 2026

Download Cisco Duo product report

Buyer's Guide

Authentication Systems

July 2026

Download RSA Authentication Manager product report

Also Known As

Duo Security

ACE/Server

Overview

Cisco Duo is a cloud-based identity security platform safeguarding critical resources for any user and device worldwide. Known for its ease of use, Duo offers seamless protection across multi-cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments.

Cisco Duo is designed to secure access with identity-first protection and provides extensive visibility throughout an organization's identity ecosystem. Offering multi-factor authentication, Duo facilitates easy integration and management, allowing teams to protect data effectively on VPNs, applications, and networks. Its single-pane management improves security processes while enhancing trust, making it suitable for diverse IT infrastructures.

What are the key features of Cisco Duo?

Multi-factor Authentication: Strengthens user verification with multiple methods.
Push Notifications: Simplifies authentication with quick approvals.
Single Sign-On: Enhances convenience by allowing one set of credentials.
VPN Access: Secures remote connections with reliable authentication.
User Activity Visibility: Offers comprehensive insights into access patterns.

Which benefits and ROI should users consider?

Quick Deployment: Facilitates rapid integration within existing systems.
Effective Management: Streamlines IT operations with centralized control.
Regulatory Compliance: Aids in meeting industry standards for data protection.
Enhanced Trust: Strengthens security posture across networks.
User-friendly Approach: Simplifies authentication for non-technical users.

In industries like education and finance, Cisco Duo is widely employed to secure multi-factor authentication across platforms such as email, databases, and servers. Its integration capabilities with Microsoft 365, Active Directory, and VPNs like AnyConnect are instrumental in verifying user identities using mobile apps or OTPs, catering effectively to both remote and on-premise environments.

Cisco

RSA Authentication Manager provides robust security for authentication needs, offering features like multifactor authentication and decentralized administration. It supports both on-premises and cloud environments, integrating seamlessly with Microsoft products.

RSA Authentication Manager is designed to enhance security through comprehensive multifactor authentication and advanced security administration. The integration capabilities with Microsoft products allow for versatile deployment in both cloud and on-premises environments. Known for its reliable performance, it offers simple setup and token deployment, making it highly adaptable for organizations looking for efficient management and mapping solutions. Despite some challenges with reporting and cloud integration, strategic improvements can address these issues. Enhancements in mobile authentication, pricing, and cloud management consoles have been suggested by users. In industries requiring stringent security, RSA's features like Fortinet VPN integration and adaptability for global file transfers make it a preferred choice.

What are the key features of RSA Authentication Manager?

Multifactor Authentication: Provides comprehensive multifactor authentication to enhance security.
Security Administration: Offers effective decentralized administration for seamless management.
Integration Capabilities: Strong integration with Microsoft products and support for VPNs.
Token Deployment: Facilitates easy self-service token deployment for administrators.
Mapping and Logging: Advanced capabilities for efficient security management.

What benefits can users expect?

Reliable Performance: Ensures stable and consistent operations across environments.
Easy Setup: Simplified setup process enhances usability and deployment speed.
Flexible Management Roles: Advanced troubleshooting and role management for effective operation.
Comprehensive Reporting: Built-in reporting tools for detailed insights and analysis.
Integration Flexibility: Seamless integration with legacy systems and custom applications.

RSA Authentication Manager is extensively used in authentication for applications requiring enhanced security measures. It supports improved protection for Cisco VPN connections and file transfers through robust APIs, offering two-factor authentication. Organizations have incorporated it extensively for web and internal application security, demonstrating its widespread application connectivity. Solutions like Fortinet VPN integration further define its capability in providing authentication support globally, serving thousands of organizations effectively.

RSA

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Tiera, Fred Loya, BRE Leasing, ADP, BlueFort Security, New Hanover County

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager

August 2026

Free Report: Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager

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