Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence comparison

The compared Cisco and IBM solutions aren't in the same category. Cisco is ranked #2 in NAC , with an average rating of 7.9, and holds a 22.4% mindshare in the category. IBM is ranked #13 in UP , and holds a 2.0% mindshare. Additionally, 87% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Cisco Identity Services Eng...

Read 145 Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) reviews

15,135 Views
9,838 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

IBM Security Identity Gover...

Read 2 IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence reviews

668 Views
367 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Cisco Identity Services Eng...

IBM Security Identity Gover...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Cisco, Fortinet and others in Network Access Control (NAC).

To learn more, read our detailed Network Access Control (NAC) Report (Updated: January 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Network Access Control (NAC)

January 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 Identity Services Eng...

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

145

Ranking in other categories

Network Access Control (NAC) (2nd), Cisco Security Portfolio (4th)

IBM Security Identity Gover...

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

User Provisioning Software (13th), Identity Management (IM) (30th)

Mindshare comparison

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) and IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) is designed for Network Access Control (NAC) and holds a mindshare of 22.4%, down 28.3% compared to last year.
IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence, on the other hand, focuses on User Provisioning Software, holds 2.0% mindshare, up 2.0% since last year.

Network Access Control (NAC) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)	22.4%
Aruba ClearPass	21.6%
Fortinet FortiNAC	16.1%
Other	39.9%

Network Access Control (NAC)

User Provisioning Software Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence	2.0%
SailPoint Identity Security Cloud	25.8%
Saviynt	12.4%
Other	59.8%

User Provisioning Software

Featured Reviews

NicolasFigaro

Network and Technology Information Manager at Akkodis

Has improved authentication management and simplified visitor network access

The log capacity in Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) could be enhanced because today natively on the ISE can only have a look at the logs from the day before. You cannot search into the oldest logs; you have to use another tool for that. This can be blocking if you don't have any log consolidation solution. To do a search for an issue or something that happened two days ago, you cannot search directly in there. The capacity of Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) could be enhanced. Something between one week and one month for the log capacity would be nice.

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reviewer1830612

Head, Cybersecurity at a tech services company with 11-50 employees

We use the solution to ensure organizations conform to industry base certifications and best practices

We use the product to ensure organizations conform to industry base certifications and best practices and do not contradict their security policies within the base points they specify in the system, which are used to match everything against their governance use cases I think the product's most…

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

"Cisco ISE integrates with everything else."

"Being able to authenticate wired users through 802.1X is valuable as it enhances our security."

"For us and our clients, the most valuable features of Identity Services Engine are really around the rich contact sharing that ISE gives you."

"From a configuration point of view, it's simple."

"The initial setup was easy. It took around one month. We did the installation part within half an hour to two hours but we found a couple of issues so we raised a case and once everything was resolved it was a month in total."

"My team has gained a lot from Cisco ISE as it does also provide automation, which is a big asset in the eighth hour. After setting it up, it took a lot of the weight off in many ways. We have a co-worker, who we call the ISE Master because he's in charge of the ISE configurations. He's able to save a lot of time by being able to monitor everything from there. So it did take off a lot of time that we would waste by going individually to that different device and trying to figure out what was wrong."

"I really enjoy the live log section. Sometimes, you will have someone who is having issues connecting to the network, and then you have to ask them the dreaded question of, "Did you type a password wrong?" They will probably tell you, "No," but the live log can help sort that out. It gives us that extra ability to assist the end user and make sure that we are making them happy."

"It offers automatic profiling of phones and computers, enabling administrators to identify and categorize devices seamlessly."

More Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) pros

"I would rate the price eight out of 10, with 10 as the best value for money."

"Lifecycle management, governance and documentation."

Cons

"The interface is a little bit complex."

"I'm working from China currently and the only real issue is that, within the country, there's some concern around Cisco and its ability to offer the solution for the long term. As the United States has banned the Huawei version in their country, we feel there may be retaliation in ours and Cisco will get banned as a countermeasure from the government. The future of Cisco in China is in question. Our local partners are worried about the situation."

"It is a good product, but in order to use all of the functions of the product, you must have a good understanding of the product. You must know how to use and manage it. It is a little bit complicated to configure and manage. It must be simplified to make it easy to manage for end users. In the initial stage, we found ISE complicated for end users. It was not easy to manage it or to write authentication and authorization protocol. They must improve its management and make it easy for end users. The monitoring and reporting capabilities can be improved because end users want to quickly see what is happening in their network. There were some restrictions in working with other vendors. It should also have a better and easy integration with other vendors."

"I believe that Cisco can improve the way its policies are built because it's a little complex."

"Migration could be better. Right now, we back up with the new version, and it requires a lot of licensing and other things. Whenever we choose a product, it's very difficult because we have to meet the requirements of each feature. There is no standard feature, so the best system that we bought may not fit the solution. We have to look at every feature that the customer uses. If you compare it with other products like Aruba, it's not the same. With Cisco, I have to read all about the features on this version and the licensing required for the product. In Aruba, that thing is covered when you get one license because it covers almost everything. It could also be more scalable."

"The user interface can be improved."

"Difficult to figure out the protocols and nodes in order to implement correctly."

"Documentation is probably the worst part of the software."

More Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) cons

"The solution is a bit pricey for some regions."

"Self service center is not always easy to understand."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cisco is moving towards a subscription service, which would mean additional costs."

"The recent changes in the licensing model have caused some issues with the team."

"It is difficult to measure security breaches, but since we have not been attacked so far, it has paid for itself over the years."

"I think licensing costs roughly $2,000 a year. ISE is more expensive than Network Access Control."

"Cisco ISE's licensing can get pricey."

"The price of Cisco ISE (Identity Services Engine) is expensive and we are thinking about changing to FortiGate."

"This solution requires an annual license and it is a bit expensive than competitors."

"The pricing is fair for what it does."

More Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) pricing and cost advice

"I would rate the price eight out of 10, with 10 as the best value for money."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Financial Services Firm

17%

Government

13%

Insurance Company

10%

Computer Software Company

10%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	44
Midsize Enterprise	32
Large Enterprise	91

No data available

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Aruba Clearpass or Cisco ISE?

Aruba ClearPass is a Network Access Control tool that gives secure network access to multiple device types. You can adapt the policies to VPN access, wired, or wireless access. You can securely ...

See all answers

What are the main differences between Cisco ISE and Forescout Platform?

OK, so Cisco ISE uses 802.1X to secure switchports against unauthorized access. The drawback of this is that ISE cannot secure the port if a device does not support 802.1x. Cameras, badge readers, ...

See all answers

How does Cisco ISE compare with Fortinet FortiNAC?

Cisco ISE uses AI endpoint analytics to identify new devices based on their behavior. It will also notify you if someone plugs in with a device that is not allowed and will block it. The user exper...

See all answers

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Comparisons

Aruba ClearPass vs Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

Compared 24% of the time

Fortinet FortiNAC vs Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

Compared 20% of the time

Forescout Platform vs Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

Compared 8% of the time

CyberArk Privileged Access Manager vs Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

Compared 3% of the time

Portnox vs Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

Compared 3% of the time

More Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) Competitors

SailPoint Identity Security Cloud vs IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence

Compared 45% of the time

Saviynt vs IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence

Compared 21% of the time

ForgeRock vs IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence

Compared 15% of the time

More IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE)

January 2026

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) report

Download Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) product report

Buyer's Guide

User Provisioning Software

December 2025

IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence report

Download IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence product report

Also Known As

Cisco ISE

IGI, IBM Security Identity Manager, ISIM

Overview

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) offers comprehensive network access control and visibility, supporting features like 802.1X authentication, profiling, and posturing. It integrates with Microsoft and other Cisco products, facilitating robust security policies across distributed networks.

Cisco Identity Services Engine is a key player in network access control, offering centralized management and a user-friendly interface. It supports zero trust principles and provides strong authentication for wired and wireless networks. ISE's capabilities include granular security policies, enhanced device posturing, and seamless integration, bolstering security infrastructure. Users benefit from its dual authentication through EAP, simplifying access management across networks.

What are the key features of Cisco ISE?

802.1X Authentication: Supports network security for authorized device access.
Profiling: Identifies devices for accurate policy enforcement.
Posturing: Evaluates device compliance for access decisions.
TACACS: Streamlines network device authentication and authorization.
Guest Access: Provides secure access to visitors.
Microsoft Compatibility: Seamlessly integrates with Microsoft environments.

What benefits and ROI should be considered?

Security Enhancement: Offers strong network security policies.
Operational Efficiency: Centralized management improves operational aspects.
Improved Compliance: Ensures adherence to industry standards.
Scalability: Supports growing network demands effectively.

In industries like finance, healthcare, and education, Cisco ISE is pivotal for securing wired and wireless networks, implementing BYOD policies, and managing user access. Organizations leverage ISE for effective authentication and authorization, while maintaining compliance with industry security standards.

Cisco

IBM Security Identity Governance and Intelligence (IGI) delivers a business-centric approach to Identity Management and Governance. It empowers business and IT to work together to meet regulatory compliance and security goals across enterprise applications and data. IGI covers enterprise user lifecycle management, access risk assessment and mitigation, certification, password management as well as powerful analytics and reporting to enable business to make the right decisions on enterprise access.

IBM

Sample Customers

Aegean Motorway, BC Hydro, Beachbody, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Cisco IT, Derby City Council, Global Banking Customer, Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha, Houston Methodist, Linz AG, London Hydro, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Molina Healthcare, MST Systems, New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Reykjavik University, Wildau University

E.ON Global Commodities

Buyer's Guide

Network Access Control (NAC)

January 2026

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