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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) (2nd), 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
17th
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 May 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 6.5%, down from 15.9% 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 ID6.5%
Symantec VIP Access Manager2.2%
Other91.3%
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.
Berk Onur - PeerSpot reviewer
Presales Consultant at Cyberwise
With its mobile application, this tool offers a convenient and user-friendly experience to its users
To improve the tool, I think that the solution should consider integrations with other cybersecurity and IT technologies, such as Privileged Access Management and Site Integration. Additionally, the implementation of second-factor authentication via Symantec VIP Access Manager, CyberArk, and Delinea, among other technologies, could be best for the product. While the existing technology is okay, improving the integration capabilities for Symantec VIP Access Manager would benefit the product. I would like to see the solution meet the integration needs at our company. While many cybersecurity solutions can function independently, they often lack integration with our systems due to missed integration points. Improving the solution's integration feature would be beneficial.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Azure Active Directory provides access to resources in a very secure manner. We can detect which user is logging in to access resources on the cloud. It gives us a comprehensive audit trace in terms of from where a user signed in and whether a sign-in is a risky sign-in or a normal sign-in. So, there is a lot of security around the access to resources, which helps us in realizing that a particular sign-in is not a normal sign-in. If a sign-in is not normal, Azure Active Directory automatically blocks it for us and sends us an email, and unless we allow that user, he or she won't be able to log in. So, the User Identity Protection feature is the most liked feature for me in Azure Active Directory."
"The implementation of Microsoft Entra ID has impacted my secure access to apps or resources in my environment because it made it easier."
"Microsoft Entra ID significantly improved secure access to applications and resources in our environment, primarily through the widespread use of single-sign-on."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Entra ID are the login and the conditional access pieces."
"The ability to grant access to other organizations is helpful."
"The main valuable feature is the integration into a single console, which includes authentication service and endpoint security."
"The solution has some great features, such as identity governance, and user self-service. The Outlook application is very good and is used by a lot of people even if they are using Google services."
"If a company has hundreds of users that already exist in the cloud, and it now wants to enable those same users to be present in third-party applications that their business uses, like Atlassian or GoToMeeting, the provisioning technology can assist in achieving that."
"The two-factor authentication is most definitely valuable and moves us closer to being able to check off those important boxes for compliance."
"The main benefit of Symantec VIP is that it provides strong authentication while keeping it as a very user friendly experience."
"It is easy to use."
"I like the whole solution, and I would recommend it."
"Pricing was about 25% of the old solution, saving us about $500,000 over three years for 10,000 users."
"The tool has been very stable, in my experience. Also, I haven't faced any issues or problems with integration or connectivity."
"After the initial integration, the overall support calls dropped, and customer satisfaction for VPN increased."
"The ease of integrating into an existing authentication system."
 

Cons

"The Azure AD Application Proxy, which helps you publish applications in a secure way, has room for improvement."
"Sometimes, what one customer may like, another may not like it. We have had customers asking, "Why is Microsoft forcing us to do this?" For example, when you use Exchange Server on-premise, then you can customize it for your company and these customizations are unlimited. However, if you use Exchange Online or with Microsoft 365, then your ability to make modifications is limited. So, only the cloud versus is limited."
"Having everything in the cloud and Active Directory, Azure AD is not able to provide Kerberos or Kerberos authentication if you're running only Azure AD it is a limitation."
"My only pain point in this solution is creating group membership for devices."
"It doesn't function the same way as an Active Directory inside of an infrastructure, that is, a physical infrastructure."
"Entra ID has limited integration with non-Microsoft solutions like iOS or Ubuntu. If it worked across different software and all kinds of devices could be managed under it, that would be great."
"The product could be more cost-effective."
"The downside of using a single password to access the entire system is that if those credentials are compromised, the hacker will have full access."
"The reporting on the VIP Manager is not correct."
"Technical support is one of the worst problems."
"Every time that I have a new phone or computer, it takes a little longer to deploy it."
"Geofencing needs improvement."
"In my opinion, for this solution, the technical support is not so expert when we talk about integration using the API."
"If they had dashboards or a report for managers or executives, then it would allow them to see the status and have it make sense to them."
"Our only issue was with user training. The additional challenge was not well received."
"The VIP Manager can be accessed from the outside which is a security vulnerability."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Azure AD comes with Office 365, so we are just paying for the Office 365 license."
"We have various levels of their licensing, which includes users on different levels of their enterprise offering."
"I think the pricing is efficient, but the licensing is overly complicated and difficult to understand. There are many tricks in the licensing that weigh against us."
"Microsoft is so expensive. You know it is expensive when a Fortune 100 company like ours is complaining about the cost. That has been a big thing for me. When I really want to use an Azure service, it is very hard for me to justify the cost, especially with Microsoft support."
"The licensing model is straightforward. I don't think there are any issues with the E3 license or E5 license."
"I feel Microsoft is very costly compared to other products. That is also what management is thinking. But when we consider security and support, Microsoft is better than any other product."
"The product is relatively affordable, especially compared to Okta, a pricey solution."
"It is a packaged license. We have a Premium P1 subscription of Office 365, and it came with that."
"Licensing and pricing seems very fair."
"I can say that the solution is worth the money."
"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."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
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 Business90
Midsize Enterprise41
Large Enterprise161
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?
Microsoft Entra ID can be improved by open-sourcing it. You already have Windows Subsystem for Linux, which is open-source Linux in Microsoft. One major shift for Microsoft would be using the commo...
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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.
894,807 professionals have used our research since 2012.