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 8.8, while RSA is ranked #16. Cisco holds a 4.8% mindshare in AS, compared to RSA’s 2.5% 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 115 Cisco Duo reviews

7,616 Views
4,950 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

RSA Authentication Manager

Read 12 RSA Authentication Manager reviews

1,301 Views
1,249 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Cisco Duo

RSA Authentication Manager

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 28, 2025

RSA Authentication Manager and Cisco Duo are both prominent products in the identity and access management sector. Cisco Duo stands out with its extensive feature set, justifying its higher cost based on the results of the comparisons in each section.

What features are offered by RSA Authentication Manager in comparison to Cisco Duo?

RSA Authentication Manager offers comprehensive security policies, flexibility, and robust support. Cisco Duo provides seamless integration, a range of authentication methods, and a user-friendly experience. The broader feature set of Cisco Duo gives it a competitive edge.

What areas of improvement can be found in RSA Authentication Manager in comparison to Cisco Duo?

RSA Authentication Manager has a steep learning curve, outdated interfaces, and complexity. Cisco Duo faces occasional integration issues and a desire for more diverse authentication options. The complexity of RSA is a more pressing concern than Duo's minor integration hiccups.

How is the ease of deployment and customer service of RSA Authentication Manager in comparison to Cisco Duo?

RSA Authentication Manager's deployment is challenging and time-consuming, yet it has responsive and knowledgeable customer service. Cisco Duo is recognized for its straightforward deployment process and effective customer support, making it a preferable option for setup and reliability in support.

What setup costs and ROI can be seen with RSA Authentication Manager in comparison to Cisco Duo?

RSA Authentication Manager is viewed favorably for its cost-effectiveness and satisfactory return on investment. Cisco Duo, despite its higher price, delivers greater overall value due to its superior features and ease of use. Cisco Duo's higher cost is justified by its enhanced capabilities, leading to stronger user satisfaction.

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

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager

March 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

7.1

Number of Reviews

115

Ranking in other categories

Single Sign-On (SSO) (3rd), Access Management (3rd), ZTNA as a Service (3rd), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (1st)

RSA Authentication Manager

Ranking in Authentication Systems

16th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

8.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Cisco Duo is 4.8%, down from 9.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of RSA Authentication Manager is 2.5%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Cisco Duo	4.8%
RSA Authentication Manager	2.5%
Other	92.7%

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

"The UI of Cisco Duo is easy to use, especially the web backend, and it's really intuitive and easy to set up."

"I lead an IT organization that has a significant amount of technical debt, and we're not in a zero-trust architecture yet. I'm pushing in that direction. Duo helps me considerably with my identity in an environment where I don't have zero trust. It's helping me bridge the gap until I can build a zero trust architecture."

"Cisco Duo is very user-friendly."

"We're working remotely. It helps us keep people more safe. Its adoption has been fine. I like the fact that you can bypass it if you need to because there are situations where the internet doesn't work, etc."

"The feature of Cisco Duo that I prefer the most is the policies, being able to control what we need to within the policies. You can get pretty granular."

"Duo features benefit my company by making logins more secure and simpler. Everything is in one box, so we don't have multiple servers trying to do the same thing."

"The push notifications and the integrations they offer are valuable. Their mobile app is very useful. It is very easy to use."

"My experience with Cisco Duo's strong security authentication system has been good; it is seamless and easy to integrate, and it is flexible."

More Cisco Duo pros

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

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

"It stands out as a comprehensive and adaptable solution that excels in both on-premises and cloud-based authentication, offers strong security with multi-layered authentication, and boasts a well-maintained product with reliable performance."

"The most valuable feature is the SecurID."

"It is a good solution for token identification."

"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."

"RSA Authentication Manager is a robust solution that provides comprehensive protection for both on-premise and cloud-based applications."

"RSA Authentication Manager is the best available solution."

More RSA Authentication Manager pros

Cons

"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."

"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."

"When you come to the push in Duo Security, there are some integrations where you have to use the code instead of the push functionality."

"It already integrates with lots of products, but it can integrate with more products. There should be easy integration with Cisco products because sometimes, it can be quite complicated."

"Removing the need for a password would be a positive change as well as the ability to cover all the different enterprise applications. They don't have coverage for everything."

"Compared to other vendors, Cisco Duo is on the pricey end."

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

"Duo Security should better organize its tile feature to organize applications better."

More Cisco Duo cons

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

"There is room for improvement in the RSA support."

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

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

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

"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."

"The product's capabilities to protect cloud environments need improvement."

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

More RSA Authentication Manager cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

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

"It was very reasonable."

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

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

"Their pricing model is a little bit weird. Currently, there is no price advantage in signing up for yearly contracts. There are no additional costs to the standard licensing costs."

"I haven't seen it in a while, but it's at par with everything else licensing-wise."

"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."

"It's very simple. Its price is fair. We use the hardware tokens as well. You get what you pay for. In terms of licensing, Cisco has very complicated products, but Duo Security was surprisingly easy."

More Cisco Duo pricing and cost advice

"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."

"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."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	41
Midsize Enterprise	24
Large Enterprise	54

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?

Compared to other vendors, Cisco Duo is on the pricey end. However, the other vendors do not have the wide range of features that Cisco Duo offers.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Duo Security?

The primary issue is adoption. When I used to work for Deloitte, I did consulting and advisory for at least 95 of the 100 Fortune 100 companies. The number of enterprises using Cisco Duo was consid...

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 8% of the time

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Cisco Duo

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiToken vs Cisco Duo

Compared 5% of the time

Yubico YubiKey vs Cisco Duo

Compared 4% of the time

Okta Platform vs Cisco Duo

Compared 3% of the time

More Cisco Duo Competitors

Microsoft Entra ID vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 11% of the time

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiToken vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 7% of the time

Yubico YubiKey vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 6% of the time

RSA SecurID vs RSA Authentication Manager

Compared 6% of the time

More RSA Authentication Manager Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo

March 2026

Download Cisco Duo product report

Buyer's Guide

Authentication Systems

February 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 is the platform behind RSA SecurID that allows for centralized management of the RSA SecurID environment including authentication methods, users, applications, and agents across multiple physical sites. It verifies authentication requests and centrally administers authentication policies for organizations' end users.

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

March 2026

Free Report: Cisco Duo vs. RSA Authentication Manager

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