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DigiCert PKI Platform vs Microsoft Entra ID comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 11, 2024

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

DigiCert PKI Platform
Ranking in Authentication Systems
22nd
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Entra ID
Ranking in Authentication Systems
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
266
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (1st), Identity Management (IM) (2nd), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (1st), Access Management (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of DigiCert PKI Platform is 1.8%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 7.8%, down from 16.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Entra ID7.8%
DigiCert PKI Platform1.8%
Other90.4%
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

Indra Maulana - PeerSpot reviewer
Business Solution and Development Manager at PT ADPS
Tailored to the lifecycle management needs of banks
The customer finds value in adopting a platform from Jira, particularly for the ease it brings to their processes, both for on-premises operations and batch processing. Their objective is to create a new customized server specifically designed for generating certificates. This server is intended for the generation of certificates, emphasizing that it is not meant for free domain replacement. The platform of choice for this purpose is Digital One, a product that offers full customization and aligns well with the customer's preference for tailored solutions. The process of certificate issuance from Microsoft's AB involves renewal or replacement every five years. However, an issue arises in that this particular certificate requires renewal annually instead of the standard five-year cycle. The challenge is attributed to personnel changes, where an administrator responsible for the process resigns within the five-year period. To address this, we seek an automated solution that operates seamlessly with a single sign-on approach, eliminating the need for user IDs or passwords. The automation involves approval and subsequent deployment without complexities. Being a partner of DigiSet, we rely on the implementer for support in service deployment, installation, and resolution of any issues that may arise.
JP
Senior Information Security Engineer at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Implementing seamless integration boosts secure access and supports Zero Trust
What I appreciate the most about Microsoft Entra ID is that it integrates seamlessly with all the Defender products and is easy to use. Microsoft Entra ID's integration capabilities influence our Zero Trust model by allowing us to enforce our Zero Trust model. Conditional access policies allow us to leverage Microsoft Entra ID to verify that devices signing in to our cloud services are coming from registered devices, and that people are passing all the other requirements we have in order to complete sign-on or conditional access policies. Since implementing Microsoft Entra ID, I've observed changes in the frequency and nature of identity-related security incidents. The organization already had it implemented when I arrived, and I've been working to enhance it. Better configuration of Microsoft Entra ID has allowed us to better protect our organization from threats. Having it alone isn't a solution, but ensuring proper configuration goes a long way in preventing future compromises. My company's approach to defending against token theft and nation-state attacks has evolved since implementing Microsoft Entra ID. We haven't experienced any known compromises from nation-state attacks, and implementing newer features gives me more confidence in our protection. Regarding device-bound passkeys in Microsoft Authenticator and our approach to phishing-resistant authentication, we are currently implementing Microsoft Entra ID certificate-based authentication. Adding a strong form of MFA is important as we found it to be the most cost-effective way. While other solutions might be equally or more secure, they are significantly more expensive. Having worked as an IT consultant mainly with the Microsoft stack across various industries, I have experience with different identity management solutions. Microsoft Entra ID remains the best option. The major advantages when comparing it to Okta include integration with Defender products, Defender for Identities' integration with conditional access policies, and insider threat management integration for blocking sign-ins based on risk factors. The enhancement of Microsoft Entra ID's implementation is relatively straightforward. My main concern is the occasional lack of documentation and the frequency of changes, which can make feature location challenging.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the communication based on PKI certificates."
"I emphasize the importance of automation in Wi-Fi management, particularly in tasks such as certificate renewal. The requirement extends to the ability to generate new certificates from a local server within the data center. There is a need to establish a new server for local certificate issuance and highlights the desire for automation in the deployment process. The emphasis lies in leveraging automated solutions to streamline these operations effectively."
"I would assess the stability and reliability of Microsoft Entra ID as very satisfactory, as I am very happy with that. It covers our expectations and meets our requirements."
"The features of Microsoft Entra ID such as token replay detection, attack-in-the-middle detection, and verified threat actor IP protection have all had an impact on defending against these threats, with the last one being particularly significant."
"This product is easy to use."
"It has made our work easier in that it’s simplified everything for us."
"Conditional Access, Geofencing, and Azure Multi-Factor Authentication are the major security features to secure resources."
"The implementation of device-bound passkeys in Microsoft Authenticator helps with phishing-resistant authentication."
"The solution offers business to business and client to business support."
"Entra ID's ability to sync with the local Active Directory provides redundancy, allowing authentication via cloud features even if the local Active Directory faces issues. The SSO features with app registrations are also crucial, as we use Azure globally, allowing role and permission assignments directly from Entra."
 

Cons

"The customer finds value in adopting a platform from Jira, particularly for the ease it brings to their processes, both for on-premises operations and batch processing. Their objective is to create a new customized server specifically designed for generating certificates. This server is intended for the generation of certificates, emphasizing that it is not meant for free domain replacement. The platform of choice for this purpose is Digital One, a product that offers full customization and aligns well with the customer's preference for tailored solutions.The process of certificate issuance from Microsoft's AB involves renewal or replacement every five years. However, an issue arises in that this particular certificate requires renewal annually instead of the standard five-year cycle. The challenge is attributed to personnel changes, where an administrator responsible for the process resigns within the five-year period. To address this, we seeks an automated solution that operates seamlessly with a single sign-on approach, eliminating the need for user IDs or passwords. The automation involves approval and subsequent deployment without complexities. Us, being a partner of DigiSet, relies on their implementer for support in service deployment, installation, and resolution of any issues that may arise."
"From an automation perspective, PKI is a bit of a debatable topic and can be improved as time demands."
"Sometimes, level-one support lacks the immediate information needed, causing delays in receiving appropriate support."
"Technical support could be faster."
"Whatever business requirements we needed in the past three years, users were created, with the name of the user and they were not connected with the Active Directory. We were trying to in house in three years and with directory, but we were not able to achieve it."
"ESAE management, especially the admin tools, could be improved. It should be built in by the vendor, and I shouldn't have to add patches or updates to connect to my domain directly. It should be added by default. The price could be better."
"They have had a few outages, so stability is a little bit of an issue. It is global. That is the thing. I know some of the other competitors are regionalized ID platforms, but Entra ID is global, so when something goes wrong, it is a problem because it underpins everything, whether you are logging in to M365 or you have single sign-on to Azure, Autopilot, Intune, Exchange mailbox or another application. If there is a problem with Entra ID, all of that falls apart, so its great strength and weakness is the global single tenant for it. Stability is a key area for me. Otherwise, it is generally pretty good."
"The transition from on-prem Active Directory to the Azure Cloud was difficult because there aren't group policy objectives."
"The product could be more cost-effective."
"One thing that they need to improve is the cost."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate it seven for the price."
"This solution won't cost much, as this would be free with the licensing from Microsoft."
"The price of Azure Active Directory and Amazon AWS, are almost the same, but most people prefer Amazon AWS because they find it's a little cheaper to some extent and an easier platform to use."
"The licensing is really not clear unless you are a premium client."
"It is a packaged license. We have a Premium P1 subscription of Office 365, and it came with that."
"It's really affordable."
"Our customers are looking for advanced features and processes for it to be cost-effective for their organizations. They see it as an overpriced product. They are enjoying using Azure Active Directory, but they are looking for better prices."
"I give the cost a three out of ten."
"The basic tier of Azure Active Directory is free, so many users use the service for free. For a small company having the security and compliance that Azure offers is a great benefit. For small companies that are using the basic services, not having to pay for Azure Active Directory is the main asset because they can manage their users and have authentications tools and security."
"I'd recommend Azure Active Directory if you are a big company. For small or medium companies, it's probably not the best idea in the world because of the pricing. If you are a small company, you can probably deploy your own solutions because you're not handling a website with tons of traffic. If you are not like Adidas, Nike, or Walmart, you can do it in a way that is more localized than handling everything through a big price solution. However, Azure tends to provide you with solutions that are easier to use. If it was cheaper, I'd definitely recommend going for it."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business85
Midsize Enterprise38
Large Enterprise155
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
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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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Active Directory?
My experience with the pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Microsoft Entra ID is that it is decent.
What needs improvement with Azure Active Directory?
I think Microsoft Entra ID could be improved by assigning permissions to nested groups in the next release.
 

Also Known As

DigiCert PKI, Symantec Managed PKI Service
Azure AD, Azure Active Directory, Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Authenticator
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

paypal, verizon, cloudflare
Microsoft Entre ID is trusted by companies of all sizes and industries including Walmart, Zscaler, Uniper, Amtrak, monday.com, and more.
Find out what your peers are saying about DigiCert PKI Platform vs. Microsoft Entra ID and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
883,824 professionals have used our research since 2012.