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CyberArk Identity vs Microsoft Active Directory comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
7.7
CyberArk Identity enhances security and provides substantial financial returns, with users noting long-term cost savings and investment value.
Sentiment score
8.8
Microsoft Active Directory offers value by streamlining user management, justifying investment despite limited direct financial calculations.
By the second month, we started seeing the benefits and achieved a return on investment.
The solution is really time-saving since I don't need to create users in each server or system manually, and user access control is streamlined.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.2
CyberArk Identity's customer service is responsive but inconsistent, with varying support experiences and commonly rated around eight out of ten.
Sentiment score
5.9
Active Directory support receives mixed reviews, with delays and quality varying; premium service improves assistance but adds cost.
They resolved the problem immediately after I reported it, on the same day, within one hour.
I have had conversations with them twice, and their technical support team was not that good.
There are times when there is a delay in handling my inquiries via email.
Support documents are available on the internet in every language.
Sometimes support takes long to engage and resolve, extending over weeks or even months.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
CyberArk Identity is highly scalable, suits diverse sizes, but may face challenges with architectural scalability and license complexity.
Sentiment score
6.7
Microsoft Active Directory is scalable for thousands but faces challenges in large infrastructures, with cloud migration as a solution.
We can use it on different phones and computers, demonstrating its scalability.
By addressing the issues I have highlighted, such as stability and making it bug and lag-free, along with improving customer support, they can enhance its scalability.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
CyberArk Identity is highly stable, reliable, with a 99.9% SLA, and minor suggestions include expanding zones and availability dashboards.
Sentiment score
7.5
Microsoft Active Directory is stable and reliable, highly rated by users, effectively scalable, with minimal downtime or performance issues.
When you have it in the cloud, you have CyberArk every time you need it.
There is a timeout period that I do not like, requiring repeated verification.
With respect to stability, I find that stability is very good.
With multiple domain controllers, stability is ensured.
 

Room For Improvement

CyberArk Identity needs improvements in management, scalability, usability, cloud capabilities, and cost-effectiveness, alongside better support and integration features.
Microsoft Active Directory needs interface, security, integration, and scalability improvements, focusing on user experience, migration, and reporting features.
Integration or deployment is extremely difficult for CyberArk Identity.
Something they could improve is the management of multifactor authentication.
To enhance the product, they can consider improving the user interface of the software.
Exporting and verifying group memberships require command line scripts, which isn't simple.
There are some features that need improvements in terms of ease of use and frequency of updates.
AI is offering solutions.
 

Setup Cost

CyberArk Identity's pricing is competitive but costly, valued by larger enterprises for its superior services and security features.
Microsoft Active Directory offers moderate pricing, often packaged with Windows OS, with cloud services like Azure being more cost-effective.
I compared it with other products, and it does not require a heavy investment.
Regarding pricing, it can be quite a lot for small companies.
The pricing is acceptable.
 

Valuable Features

CyberArk Identity enhances security with features like Active Directory integration, multi-factor authentication, password rotation, and compliance support.
Microsoft Active Directory offers robust user management, security, and seamless integration with Microsoft products, ideal for large network management.
It impacts zero trust security strategies. It prevents lateral movements in the organization.
It protects our platform, application, network, and infrastructure resources on any device.
It is the most powerful access management system.
One valuable feature is the centralized creation of IDs.
I can control all the devices in my domain by just changing the group policies in one place.
Having active deployment and well-configured systems helps me manage tasks and easily oversee thousands of users.
 

Categories and Ranking

CyberArk Identity
Ranking in Active Directory Management
11th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
Authentication Systems (8th), Identity Management (IM) (10th), Authorization Software (3rd), Enterprise Password Managers (8th), User Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) (9th), Access Management (7th), Cloud Resource Access Management (2nd), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (6th)
Microsoft Active Directory
Ranking in Active Directory Management
6th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
42
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Active Directory Management category, the mindshare of CyberArk Identity is 1.6%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Active Directory is 4.6%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Active Directory Management
 

Featured Reviews

Julio Montero - PeerSpot reviewer
Access management system provides strong security and effortless user authentication
The solution can be deployed on cloud or on-premises. CyberArk is more on the cloud than on local hardware. The deployment is initially quite difficult. That said, when you are doing the implementation of CyberArk, there are so many tutorials that make the learning process very easy. The only complaint could be the language barrier. It's difficult if you don't have a very good level of English. Otherwise, it is very easy. You can have it set up within three months without much difficulty. It's hard to get started, however, once you get going, it gets easier. A full deployment takes half a year or less. There is some maintenance necessary. A company is constantly hiring and letting go of employees. The access is always changing, so access must always be adjusted. Or, if we need another law of filter, we would need to add those, or even take them away. That's another aspect of maintenance.
Srikanth Subramanian - PeerSpot reviewer
Centralized access control and identity management simplify user management
Even better group management would be beneficial. Creating and searching through groups can be challenging, especially if I need to export data. Exporting and verifying group memberships require command line scripts, which isn't simple. The current Active Directory UI is limited in report generation, necessitating script knowledge to generate various reports.
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Insurance Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about CyberArk Identity?
The integration capabilities, ability to integrate CyberArk into the overall IBB strategy of our current clients.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CyberArk Identity?
The pricing is acceptable. It is worth considering what we are protecting with the amount charged.
What needs improvement with CyberArk Identity?
To enhance the product, they can consider improving the user interface of the software and possibly the customer support team. Sometimes, there is a delay in handling my inquiries via email, which ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Active Directory?
The solution is easy to install and has good reliability.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Active Directory?
Technology is evolving. AI is offering solutions. However, short-term fixes are like band-aids.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Active Directory?
I utilize it in almost every scenario. I use the Hazer database and meet daily needs across every industry, every time.
 

Also Known As

Idaptive
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MLB, Citi, Pfizer, SulAmerica, GE Capital, Shiseido
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about CyberArk Identity vs. Microsoft Active Directory and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
842,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.