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AWS Directory Service vs SailPoint Identity Security Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 2, 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

AWS Directory Service
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
16th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
SailPoint Identity Security...
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
70
Ranking in other categories
User Provisioning Software (1st), Identity Management (IM) (2nd), SaaS Management Platforms (2nd), Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) category, the mindshare of AWS Directory Service is 1.8%, down from 2.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SailPoint Identity Security Cloud is 11.0%, up from 9.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Basa Saiteja - PeerSpot reviewer
A valuable access management system with a user-friendly and straightforward setup
The solution is scalable, and we can scale according to our needs. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. In our organization, our access to our AWS comes from IAM. We use AWS consoles using our credentials and don't have route access, so each person will log in through our IAM programmatic access, and everyone on our team can work on cloud. Over 10,000 people in our organization utilize the solution.
Praveen Jalumuru - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced automation and AI-driven integration offer significant time savings
The most valuable features include its ability to integrate with AI and machine learning, the automation of reports, and the built-in connectors that enable easy connection with both legacy and cloud-based applications. Its code-less drag-and-drop functionality allows for easier adjustments, and it provides strong support with reduced SLAs compared to SailPoint IQ.

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 ease of use."
"Provides good performance and availability."
"The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features."
"AWS handles everything on the backend requiring minimal legwork from our team. We only require a dedicated database administrator while depending on Amazon for RDS."
"The most valuable feature is that because it's all in the cloud, you don't need to manage the infrastructure."
"We can provide specific access to people based on what they need from our accounts."
"Two-step authentication is very useful and important."
"AWS has eliminated the downtime we waste when our on-premises resources go down."
"I like IdentityIQ's granular attachment management and certification customization features."
"Certifications and user provisioning features are the most valuable."
"SailPoint IdentityIQ has a good and straightforward user interface. They also have a lot of resources and documentation available to understand the process."
"The product feature is quite nice and simple, especially in terms of the UI and implementation."
"The solution’s stability and performance are good."
"Provisioning in multiple environments."
"The big one now is that they're adding AI and machine learning to figure out automated approvals and make recommendations to their reviewers. So, if I bring up Doug McPherson and it says he has access to this application, the system will make a review based on peer group analysis. That's one of the biggest new things. The problem used to be that people would get everything loaded on, and they created too much work for themselves. Now, they can use these policies and start to let the machine pick the less risky things."
"The most valuable features of SailPoint IdentityIQ are the reporting because it is better than other solutions. The workflows can be customized to our requirements and the overall features are good."
 

Cons

"Can be improved by including on-premises access for services through Identity Access Management."
"The solution lacks certain features."
"Some of the security protocols are difficult to understand."
"Our only complaint is that you cannot integrate your Exchange server. Or, if you are planning to install an Exchange server on your Amazon EC2 instance, then you need to configure Active Directory on EC2 instance. We would like for this limitation to be lifted."
"I would like to see better integration with other business solutions."
"To get CloudWatch to monitor your memory and storage, you have to do some configuration within your server, which sometimes results in errors."
"The AWS Directory Service should be easier to integrate."
"AWS Directory Service needs to improve processing."
"The product’s cloud offering could be flexible."
"I would rate the vendor support around five out of ten. Sometimes, the support is slow, and they often suggest resorting to expert services."
"Some setups should be done in the interface and in the code, and could be made simpler."
"The product must improve its support."
"The price of IdentityIQ could be lower. There are additional costs when you buy the licenses, and they force the customers to pay for them."
"The product has poor reporting and analytic capabilities. Reports are not easy to use and its analytic capabilities are limited."
"We have had a lot of service breaks because of the lack of support."
"SailPoint lacks some features like privileged account management and access management features found in products like Okta."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is reasonable."
"AWS' pricing is fair, and costs can be cut if you look carefully at when you're using it."
"The pricing depends because with AWS there are two types of directory objects: 30,000 and 500,000. It varies. AWS provides the pricing calculators so we can get an estimate from there as per the company requirement of how many users and objects that we need to create. So we can go to that portal, put in the data, and get the quotation. There are no extra licensing fees. It's all included."
"We pay an annual subscription fee."
"Usually, the cost of deploying about 5,000 licenses or 5,000 users, would be the equivalent to the cost of the license, which would be reaching up to around $90,000."
"It is affordable licensing."
"The product is expensive. People need to opt for a licensing plan for one year or three years."
"This is an expensive solution. I would rate it a two and a half out of five for pricing."
"I rate the solution a seven on a scale where one is cheap and ten is too expensive. In short, the solution falls under the higher side of pricing."
"We pay an annual licensing cost for SailPoint IdentityIQ."
"I found the pricing to be relatively high."
"The licensing fees are on a yearly basis."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Healthcare Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Insurance Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS Directory Service?
The most valuable feature of AWS Directory Service is cost-cutting features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS Directory Service?
The pricing is very good because it is low and there is no management cost. You do not need to hire any system administrator to manage your Active Directory.
What needs improvement with AWS Directory Service?
Currently, there is no option to integrate our on-premises Cisco AWS Directory Service, requiring some manual configuration. If AWS Active Directory Service provided additional domain controller fu...
How does Sailpoint IdentityIQ compare with CyberArk PAM?
We evaluated Sailpoint IdentityIQ before ultimately choosing CyberArk. Sailpoint Identity Platform is a solution to manage risks in cloud enterprise environments. It automates and streamlines the m...
What do you like most about SailPoint IdentityIQ?
The first valuable feature of the solution is its interface. The second feature of the solution is the level of flexibility it provides.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SailPoint IdentityIQ?
The product is expensive. People need to opt for a licensing plan for one year or three years.
 

Also Known As

AWS Managed Microsoft AD
IdentityIQ, IdentityNow, Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management, Intello
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Adobe, AXA Technology Services, Cuna Mutual Group, Equifax, ING Direct, Orrstown Bank, Rockwell Automation, SallieMae, Spirit Aerosystems, TEL
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Directory Service vs. SailPoint Identity Security Cloud and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.