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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
5.2
CyberArk Identity boosts resource efficiency and security, achieving up to 85% savings and enhancing strategic focus for users.
Sentiment score
4.4
Microsoft Active Directory enhances efficiency and access control, providing value through centralized management despite lacking direct ROI calculation.
I have seen over 30% return on investment due to the improvement in operational efficiencies through automation, which enhances productivity.
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
6.5
CyberArk Identity's support is praised for effectiveness but needs improvement in response times and engineer expertise consistency.
Sentiment score
5.5
Microsoft Active Directory support is inconsistent, with varying response quality, reliance on online resources, and better service via premium options.
They resolved the problem immediately after I reported it, on the same day, within one hour.
They respond immediately when requests are raised, and they are always available for priority one tickets.
I received prompt responses and support, which I would rate as very good.
Support documents are available on the internet in every language.
If you purchase retail, the support will be more difficult because they will assess the priority or rating from the customer.
Sometimes support takes long to engage and resolve, extending over weeks or even months.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
CyberArk Identity is praised for scalability and adaptability, suiting various enterprise sizes despite occasional performance lags.
Sentiment score
6.2
Microsoft Active Directory is scalable and integrates well, but faces challenges at larger scales, suggesting hybrid solutions.
We can use it on different phones and computers, demonstrating its scalability.
When delving deep into the concepts, there is a lot to address and learn, especially when facing real-time scenarios.
You can scale it out pretty easily, and you can implement it very small.
Microsoft Active Directory scales effectively; I don't foresee any issues with that at all.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
CyberArk Identity is praised for stability and reliability, rated highly by users for consistent performance with minimal issues.
Sentiment score
6.4
Microsoft Active Directory is praised for its stability and reliability, with minor issues not significantly affecting performance.
We no longer have our data infiltrated by unauthorized persons, and tracking actions within the system has become very easy.
When you have it in the cloud, you have CyberArk every time you need it.
With a stable network, due to the redundant data centers across the globe, it is a lot easier to use as a SaaS solution.
If you meet the installation requirements from Microsoft, it will be very stable.
With multiple domain controllers, stability is ensured.
I've been working with Microsoft Active Directory for over 3 years, and we've had no problems.
 

Room For Improvement

CyberArk Identity needs enhanced reporting, integration, ease of use, federation capabilities, onboarding, and intuitive user interface.
Microsoft Active Directory needs improvements in usability, integration, security updates, synchronization, setup, reporting, support, scalability, and email group sync.
It would be helpful if they released a generalized document for processes such as migration.
Integration or deployment is extremely difficult for CyberArk Identity.
There's a need to enhance network performance.
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.
Sometimes, it can be overly complicated, and when you apply Group Policy in an Active Directory environment, sometimes those settings apply and sometimes they don't.
 

Setup Cost

CyberArk Identity pricing is higher but competitive, offering robust services appealing to larger companies needing strong security management.
Microsoft Active Directory pricing varies by region and model; Azure offers cost-effective solutions for large enterprises despite perceived expense.
Regarding pricing, it can be quite a lot for small companies.
The pricing is acceptable.
If I am not going fully cloud, there are additional resources I will need to purchase, such as spinning more VMs or acquiring an HSM device to encrypt the vault.
For the cloud solution in our region, the pricing of Microsoft Active Directory is very high.
I consider Microsoft Active Directory expensive because if you buy this thing bundled with the Windows Directory Server, you get five user licenses for about a thousand euros, or a little bit less than this.
The pricing, setup cost, and licensing with Microsoft Active Directory is straightforward; you just buy the server and then have to buy the user CALs.
 

Valuable Features

CyberArk Identity enhances security and operations with robust integration, SSO, MFA, and user-friendly features for improved team productivity.
Microsoft Active Directory simplifies management with integration, group policies, and scalable operations across on-premises and cloud environments.
It impacts zero trust security strategies. It prevents lateral movements in the organization.
The two-factor authentication is very important, but the fact that every account is being regenerated every time we use it is the most important security feature for us.
It is the most powerful access management system.
To assess the impact of Microsoft Active Directory's centralized domain management on security protocols and access permissions, Microsoft Active Directory itself has constraints with security because when we have a solution such as SSO or Single Sign-On, which makes it easier for users to log in, some parts have security openings.
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.
 

Categories and Ranking

CyberArk Identity
Ranking in Active Directory Management
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
29
Ranking in other categories
Authentication Systems (10th), Identity Management (IM) (8th), Authorization Software (3rd), Enterprise Password Managers (6th), User Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA) (9th), Access Management (6th), Cloud Resource Access Management (3rd), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (6th)
Microsoft Active Directory
Ranking in Active Directory Management
5th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
47
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Active Directory Management category, the mindshare of CyberArk Identity is 2.9%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Active Directory is 6.2%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Active Directory Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Active Directory6.2%
CyberArk Identity2.9%
Other90.9%
Active Directory Management
 

Featured Reviews

Hariharan Thangasamy - PeerSpot reviewer
Has strengthened privileged access control and improved audit visibility through session monitoring and password rotation
On the identity product side, it is awesome. However, they can improve in the documentation parts. For example, if there is a migration process, I can see the maximum customers are moving from self-hosted to on-premises or from on-premises to the cloud. It would be helpful if they released a generalized document for processes such as migration. A clear overview document would assist us in understanding more about the tool, configurations, and automations to enhance our security. Regarding the initial setup of CyberArk Identity, I faced some challenges. At some points, I could not find proper documentation for deploying, enhancing, or integrating with other components. I could not find the proper documentation in the community portal.
Eko Kurniawan - PeerSpot reviewer
Has simplified credential management and improved secure access control across departments
The features I find most useful in Microsoft Active Directory are especially for the Single Sign-On. This is very useful for users, particularly if they have plenty of applications, such as tablet applications. When they log in to their computer, the application will automatically log in with their credentials. They don't need to remember another user and password to log in to the application because it's already maintained with Microsoft Active Directory using Single Sign-On. To assess the impact of Microsoft Active Directory's centralized domain management on security protocols and access permissions, Microsoft Active Directory itself has constraints with security because when we have a solution such as SSO or Single Sign-On, which makes it easier for users to log in, some parts have security openings. When their computer is compromised with a threat, malware, or other cyber threats, it becomes easier to enter the application without login permission.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Healthcare Company
6%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Healthcare Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise20
 

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?
I am not certain about CyberArk Identity's exact pricing model. For comparison, Okta was around five dollars per user. CyberArk Identity offers good discounts to some clients, which influences thei...
What needs improvement with CyberArk Identity?
We do not specifically use the password vaulting feature of CyberArk Identity. The centralized user dashboard of CyberArk Identity has not been that important for us. If it would be possible to sha...
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?
I think Microsoft Active Directory could be more intuitive. My impression of the integration of Microsoft Active Directory with third-party applications is that it can be made better. It's not the ...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Active Directory?
My usual use case for Microsoft Active Directory is to share groups of authorization among many different applications. The other use case for Microsoft Active Directory is the authentication of us...
 

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: September 2025.
871,829 professionals have used our research since 2012.