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Microsoft Entra ID vs Symantec VIP Access Manager 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

Microsoft Entra ID
Ranking in Authentication Systems
1st
Ranking in Access Management
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
276
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (1st), Identity Management (IM) (1st), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (2nd)
Symantec VIP Access Manager
Ranking in Authentication Systems
12th
Ranking in Access Management
18th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
15
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 6.6%, down from 16.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec VIP Access Manager is 2.2%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Entra ID6.6%
Symantec VIP Access Manager2.2%
Other91.2%
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

Stafin Jacob - PeerSpot reviewer
Microsoft 365 Security & Compliance Practice Lead at Invoke
Identity has become our central gatekeeper and has provided secure single sign-on for all users
Microsoft Entra ID can improve by focusing more on new passwordless methods and becoming a primary adopter. One feature we would like to see is the ability to have security questions for password resets. I know the current capability is phasing out, so we do not have an alternative method yet. Customers who already use security questions require a smoother transition for that capability to be available. My experience with the deployment has had some challenges, particularly around the Microsoft MFA campaigns. The hardest part is moving users from a different MFA provider to the Microsoft MFA provider, as it ultimately depends on user activity. In large enterprises with numerous users across various geographies, this transition takes time. If there are ways to exert more control around that process, it would improve the situation.
reviewer2247477 - PeerSpot reviewer
Administrator at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Intuitive and simple to use solution
The initial setup was really easy. For each user, it would take around five minutes or even less. It's very efficient. You just need the email and the code from your phone, and that's it. For maintenance, the entire service desk team, including the team I was in, had access to this particular tool. I would say around 200 to 300 people.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This solution serves as the basis to understand the MS SSO and MFA capabilities."
"The solution is free to use and you can use it for every service."
"It definitely has improved our security posture, certainly from providing that second factor of authentication, and it enhanced our end user experience quite a bit by giving them self-service password reset and a single sign-on experience instead of having to remember multiple usernames and passwords for different systems."
"Active Directory itself is the best feature it has. It also gives us a single pane of glass for managing user access."
"Entra ID has helped us implement role-based authentication rather than conditional keys."
"I would rate Microsoft Entra ID a ten out of ten."
"This product has improved our overall security posture."
"I would definitely recommend this solution; I have been using it extensively, and it works really well."
"The product is useful for providing user access from an in-built office server as we follow the work-from-home model."
"In this version 9.1, lots of changes are done for the dashboard, User Store etc."
"It is easy to use."
"It is a fast and easy solution for end users, and you are always online."
"It's a good tool. It's pretty straightforward."
"The two-factor authentication is most definitely valuable and moves us closer to being able to check off those important boxes for compliance."
"VIP is a strong, cloud-based authentication service that enables organizations to secure access to networks and applications to prevent unauthorized logins to company resources, even when passwords have been compromised or shared."
"After the initial integration, the overall support calls dropped, and customer satisfaction for VPN increased."
 

Cons

"It doesn't function the same way as an Active Directory inside of an infrastructure, that is, a physical infrastructure. In the cloud, it is all flat. That's one of the disadvantages."
"To improve Microsoft Entra ID, it should be made simpler because there is a lot of stuff to do in the platform, which could be reduced to fewer buttons."
"Regarding the stability and reliability of Microsoft Entra ID, we have some issues regarding a team. We have experienced downtime, crashes, or performance issues."
"I would rate my customer service and technical support as about a five right now, as we just got in contact with our Microsoft rep, so it is improving."
"The cost is one area that needs improvement."
"From an admin perspective, I would like to see improvement in the Microsoft Graph API."
"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."
"Sometimes, users are not happy, but at the organizational level, it is good. It is costly, but the improvement is good in terms of performance and security."
"The gateway server is a RADIUS server, but it lacks the functionality of returning RADIUS attributes other than those that are required for the gateway to authenticate the users."
"At times, the relay server could not contact Symantec; it would fail open and allow access without a passcode."
"It gets out of sync with Active Directory or whatever it might be, whatever the authentication piece is on Active Directory, and they just reset it on the backend."
"Geofencing needs improvement."
"The reporting on the VIP Manager is not correct."
"The VIP Manager can be accessed from the outside which is a security vulnerability."
"In the next release, I would like the ability to work offline with remote access."
"Our only issue was with user training. The additional challenge was not well received."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I'm not sure about the specific costs or how they're calculated, but essentially, the costs go up based on the level of security that is required by the organization."
"I work for an academic medical center, where there is a watch kept over every dollar spent. I do have concerns about the micro charges for different levels or features of the product."
"It is in line. Because we are so early, we have not had to come back on a cycle where we are having to negotiate again."
"Microsoft Azure AD has P1 or P2 licensing options, and it depends on the customer's needs. To use Conditional Access, you need to have the P1 license, and to use the PIN features, you need the P2 license."
"I think we're on the E3 — I think it was about 35 dollars per user."
"The process for buying licenses from Microsoft is somewhat messy and really hard to do. We have to talk to someone because it's hard to find out how many licenses we need. If I'm applying for 2,000 users, how many Windows licenses do we need? They could also charge less for support."
"Everything needs to be considered for the requirements and if it is within the budget, then you can come up with a solution, whether it is SaaS, PaaS, or IaaS."
"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."
"There is a one-time setup fee plus the licenses are provided as per the number of users. For SMS and voice calls, the costs are separate."
"There are additional costs for maintenance."
"Licensing and pricing seems very fair."
"I can say that the solution is worth the money."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Comms Service Provider
11%
Construction Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business89
Midsize Enterprise39
Large Enterprise160
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise10
 

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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Active Directory?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that going through and being able to use these things is always part of delivering an M365 bundle, so I don't think the experience is great ...
What needs improvement with Azure Active Directory?
I believe Microsoft Entra ID can be improved, and I think it's already on the roadmap. We value the selective sync where Microsoft Entra ID is actually the authoritative source and then will provis...
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Also Known As

Azure AD, Azure Active Directory, Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Authenticator
Symantec VIP
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Entre ID is trusted by companies of all sizes and industries including Walmart, Zscaler, Uniper, Amtrak, monday.com, and more.
Maine Medical Center, Aria S.p.A
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Entra ID vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
886,932 professionals have used our research since 2012.