AWS Secrets Manager vs Azure Key Vault comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft are both solutions in the Enterprise Password Managers category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #3 with an average rating of 9.2, while Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.5. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 13.9% mindshare in EPM, compared to Microsoft’s 14.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 98% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

AWS Secrets Manager

Read 17 AWS Secrets Manager reviews

8,410 Views
8,410 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Azure Key Vault

Read 52 Azure Key Vault reviews

12,584 Views
10,319 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

AWS Secrets Manager

Azure Key Vault

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 11, 2026

AWS Secrets Manager and Azure Key Vault compete in cloud secret management. AWS stands out with better AWS service integration and ease of use, while Azure Key Vault excels in enterprise security and integration within the Azure ecosystem.

Features: AWS Secrets Manager automates secret rotation and provides fine-grained access control, a straightforward interface, and comprehensive API support. Azure Key Vault offers robust cryptographic functionalities, seamless integration with Azure Active Directory, and effective certificate management.

Room for Improvement: AWS Secrets Manager could enhance its integration with non-AWS services, detailing its enterprise capabilities, and reducing its initial costs. Azure Key Vault may improve by streamlining its setup for non-Azure services, enhancing documentation around complex configurations, and offering more user-friendly tools.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: AWS Secrets Manager benefits from simple deployment and reliable support within AWS environments. Azure Key Vault is easily deployable within Azure, backed by robust Microsoft support. AWS offers rapid implementation for AWS-centric infrastructures, while Azure Key Vault's integration requires more setup for non-Azure services.

Pricing and ROI: AWS Secrets Manager uses a pay-as-you-go model leading to potentially higher initial costs but strong operational efficiency ROI. Azure Key Vault provides competitive, predictable cost structures appealing to enterprises seeking cost-effective solutions, particularly those integrated with Microsoft's ecosystem.

To learn more, read our detailed AWS Secrets Manager vs. Azure Key Vault Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

AWS Secrets Manager vs. Azure Key Vault

August 2026

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Helped 909,153 peers since 2012

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 Secrets Manager

Ranking in Enterprise Password Managers

3rd

Ranking in Secrets Management Tools

3rd

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Azure Key Vault

Ranking in Enterprise Password Managers

1st

Ranking in Secrets Management Tools

2nd

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Certificate Management Software (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (20th)

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Enterprise Password Managers category, the mindshare of AWS Secrets Manager is 13.9%, down from 17.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Azure Key Vault is 14.9%, down from 19.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Enterprise Password Managers Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Azure Key Vault	14.9%
AWS Secrets Manager	13.9%
Other	71.2%

Enterprise Password Managers

Q&A Highlights

Netanya Carmi

Content Manager at PeerSpot

Nov 24, 2021

Which is better - Azure Key Vault or AWS Secrets Manager?

Azure Key Vault is a SaaS solution. You can easily store passwords and secrets securely and encrypt them. Azure Key Vault is a great solution to ensure you are compliant with security and governance regulations. We like that with this solution you can retrieve your user account details from the cloud. Azure Key Vault is easily scalable. We found it easy to use and the GUI is very good too. Azure Key Vault would be more attractive if it would expand endpoints. The addition of mobile devices would be great. It would also be advantageous if Azure Key Vault had better integrations and offerings for companies of all sizes. AWS Secrets Manager is quick to deploy and does a great job. The UI is easy to use and provides a good group of APIs that works well with Java, Python, etc. With AWS Secrets Manager you can rotate secrets safely without code deployments. The solution offers pay-as-you-go pricing. You can easily replicate secrets in multiple AWS regions to support your applications and disaster recovery scenarios. You need to have advanced enterprise support to get the quality assistance you need to handle issues. We would like to see AWS Secrets Manager with more customizable options; currently, it can be very cumbersome. If you are not in the AWS ecosystem, AWS Secrets Manager may not be a good fit for you. Conclusion: AWS Secrets Manager offers flexible pay-as-you-go pricing, but as a whole is a somewhat clunky solution. It is most effective in the AWS ecosystem. Azure Key Vault is very well thought-out and easy to use. We found it to be extremely secure. We like that it is Microsoft-backed and feel that it offers the best processes for encryption and ciphering of keys. As we are heavily committed to the Microsoft ecosystem, Azure Key Vault is a great fit for our organization.

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Featured Reviews

Mahadev Metre

Dev Ops Engineer at Paydoh

Consistent security and efficiency improvements optimize IT infrastructure with effective management

When creating AWS Secrets Manager, it should be automated using tools such as Terraform, Puppet, or Ansible. With Terraform code, you specify the encryption key, secret name, rotation policy, and secret replication. Human error occurs when feeding secret values manually, especially with large amounts of secrets to input. Secrets should never be protected only by IAM. They should be protected by multiple layers, such as IAM and one or two KMS keys. Additional security measures could be beneficial if necessary. The rotation policy is crucial because some secrets may become obsolete, require updates, or get compromised. With a weekly rotation policy, if unauthorized access occurs, the exposure is limited to seven days. The rotation policy can be customized according to needs.

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Rajthilak BS

Associate Vice President (Data Security & Protection - Confidential AI) at Standard Chartered Bank

Have addressed compliance challenges but still struggle with seamless integration of certificate issuance between environments

In terms of Azure Key Vault improvements, we have to compare the competitor. If we consider AWS, our bank has Microsoft PKI, which is a Microsoft product, for the entire digital certificate infrastructure. Even in the cloud, when it is AWS, the internal certificates are MS PKI. When we had a problem, users had to come to on-premise to get a certificate and import it to AWS Certificate Manager and assign it. We wondered why we could not issue the certificate directly from the cloud for cloud users. There was a simple way in AWS. They have a Private Certificate Authority (PCA) and Amazon Certificate Manager. Private Certificate Authority issues certificates to Amazon services. They also provide Amazon Certificate Manager to store and deploy certificates. These are two neat components - one is an issuer and another is storage and deployment solutions for certificates. With PCA, I can directly enable it and get certificates from AWS itself. AWS can issue SSL/TLS certificates if you enable it directly. If you consider Azure, it is not very clear. Even the naming convention, Key Vault, might not suggest that this is a PKI or certificate manager. You cannot issue certificates directly. They have app certificates and did not have a clear-cut certificate management solution in the cloud when I worked at that time. I am not sure whether they have updated Azure Key Vault as a full-fledged PKI solution now. From what I saw, it was not a full-fledged PKI solution. We are not majorly using Azure Key Vault because it is only for storing secrets. If some solutions can provide guidance on how we can maximize leverage, we can immediately look forward to doing that. We already have some business problems we want to solve. While our primary focus is AWS, many of the services such as ADO are running on Azure, and the secondary services are growing bigger.

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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 security."

"The API is fine and works well."

"The most valuable feature is the management of credentials."

"Secrets Manager helps in retrieving the enrollment variables used by the code."

"Integrating with other services was straightforward, especially within the AWS environment."

"In summary, this is a good product and well suits our needs."

"I would highly recommend AWS Secrets Manager for secret management in AWS."

"The most valuable feature of AWS Secrets Manager is the ability to keep data secret and assign access permissions to people to grant or restrict access."

More AWS Secrets Manager pros

"Overall, it's a great product."

"The product’s advantageous feature is integration."

"The most valuable feature of Azure Key Vault is the secret storage of data."

"With Azure Key Vault you have something that is free, enterprise-level, global, and it just works."

"This is a very user friendly solution and the security level is very high."

"The centralized storage and secure storage are features we like."

"In summary, this is a good product and one that I recommend."

"Azure Key Vault allows only identified users to get the credentials and rotates the keys automatically."

More Azure Key Vault pros

Cons

"We occasionally have problems with rate limits, although that is a problem more generally with AWS."

"The sidecar feature has room for improvement."

"AWS Secrets Manager could support hybrid infrastructure."

"If you don't have enterprise support, then you will not be able to get through to them to get the help. It is not only applicable to AWS Secrets Manager. It is also applicable to any service on AWS."

"The solution's initial setup process is complicated."

"We contacted AWS support and waited approximately an hour for assistance."

"There is a potential improvement in connecting AWS Secrets Manager to Jenkins CI/CD pipeline to automatically reflect changes in production."

"There is room for improvement in the pricing model."

More AWS Secrets Manager cons

"It needs to offer dynamic secrets management."

"I think the product needs upgrades in terms of access control and certification improvements."

"One area for improvement is the notification system for secret expiration. It would be beneficial if the service could handle this more autonomously, eliminating the need for additional integrations."

"Sometimes, we face issues that the support team is not aware of, necessitating investigation from their end."

"The solution needs to improve reliability and protection."

"The product must provide AI features."

"The solution's usage can be a little better from the user interface point of view."

"The voucher access policy can be improved by configuring it based on groups, rather than just applications or users."

More Azure Key Vault cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We've observed that AWS Secrets Manager pricing is based on a per-secret-per-month model. As a result, we prefer to divide our secrets into individual pieces to increase security and grant specific access permissions to certain secrets, systems, or individuals. However, this approach results in higher costs. Therefore, we have been exploring ways to combine our secrets into groups to reduce expenses and simplify management. Nonetheless, we acknowledge that this issue may not be related to the secret manager's functionality."

"The solution is expensive."

"We purchase a monthly license for the product."

"I don't believe there is a license cost for the solution."

"The cost is somewhat high."

"The pricing is decent. It has a pretty low price. It is a straightforward cost based on usage."

"You don't need to pay for a license for Azure Key Vault. It is billed on a pay-as-you-go basis."

"It is a cheap option."

"The product is affordable, in my opinion."

"Currently, the solution's pricing is based on the number of transactions, which is very high in some cases."

"Pricing is quite reasonable and support is included, although premium support is available for an additional fee."

"Currently, the tool's monthly licensing costs are around 1,800 USD for all the environments combined, including the production and pre-production environments."

"The product costs much less compared to other vendors."

More Azure Key Vault pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	8
Large Enterprise	10

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	27

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Azure Key Vault or AWS Secrets Manager?

See all answers

Which is better - HashiCorp Vault or AWS Secrets Manager?

HashiCorp Vault was designed with your needs in mind. One of the features that makes this evident is its ability to work as both a cloud-agnostic and a multi-cloud solution. As a cloud-agnostic sol...

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What needs improvement with AWS Secrets Manager?

AWS Secrets Manager could not be better because there has been no frustration with the product.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Key Vault?

The pricing of Azure Key Vault is nominal, not that expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Key Vault?

Based on my three years of experience, I believe there have been no updates to Azure Key Vault. I think the product needs upgrades in terms of access control and certification improvements. While A...

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What is your primary use case for Microsoft Azure Key Vault?

Currently, I am not working in Azure cloud, as I work with different products. However, in my previous role, I worked extensively with Azure networking products including Azure Firewall, Virtual Ne...

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Comparisons

1Password Business vs AWS Secrets Manager

Compared 4% of the time

HashiCorp Vault vs AWS Secrets Manager

Compared 3% of the time

Idira Privileged Access Manager vs AWS Secrets Manager

Compared 3% of the time

Bitwarden vs AWS Secrets Manager

Compared 2% of the time

Delinea Secret Server vs AWS Secrets Manager

Compared 2% of the time

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Microsoft Entra ID vs Azure Key Vault

Compared 4% of the time

1Password Business vs Azure Key Vault

Compared 3% of the time

AWS Certificate Manager vs Azure Key Vault

Compared 2% of the time

Delinea Secret Server vs Azure Key Vault

Compared 2% of the time

Bitwarden vs Azure Key Vault

Compared 2% of the time

More Azure Key Vault Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Enterprise Password Managers

July 2026

Download AWS Secrets Manager product report

Buyer's Guide

Azure Key Vault

August 2026

Download Azure Key Vault product report

Also Known As

No data available

Microsoft Azure Key Vault, MS Azure Key Vault

Overview

AWS Secrets Manager offers key-value storage, credential management, and secure access permissions, streamlining the handling of API keys and secret information within the AWS environment.

AWS Secrets Manager integrates seamlessly with AWS services, supporting secure management of credentials and encryption with KMS. It enhances security and efficiency with automated secret retrieval, IAM roles, and version control. While its simplicity and cost-effectiveness are notable, there is potential for improvement in rate limits, integrating with platforms like Azure, and addressing small organization pricing. Its centralized approach benefits auto-scaling, secure card details, microservices, and databases.

What are the main features of AWS Secrets Manager?

Key-Value Pair Storage: Stores credentials securely.
Credential Management: Manages system-to-system credentials.
Rotation Configurations: Supports Lambda-based automatic secret rotation.
Seamless Integration: Works smoothly with AWS services.
API Key Handling: Secure management of API keys and secrets.

What benefits should users consider when evaluating AWS Secrets Manager?

Enhanced Security: Automated encryption and secret retrieval.
Cost-Effectiveness: Reduces risks and facilitates AWS integration.
Operational Efficiency: Simplifies credential management.

AWS Secrets Manager is implemented in diverse industries for managing sensitive information, facilitating secure operations for microservices, GoLang applications, and databases. It supports orchestration and dynamic secret retrieval, beneficial for automated scaling and secure data access during application runtime.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Azure Key Vault provides secure key management, secret storage, and encryption, ensuring data remains protected while integrating seamlessly with Azure services. It centralizes security credentials, facilitating management in both development and production environments.

Azure Key Vault is a robust choice for teams managing secure, automated access to credentials, secrets, and cryptographic keys. With its scalable access policies and automated key rotation, it simplifies identity access management and enhances compliance efforts. The platform’s ability to securely manage secrets while integrating with a wide range of Azure services is a notable advantage. While its user-friendly interface and regional availability are significant benefits, there is room for improvement in areas like ease of configuration, integration with third-party vendors, and overall cost-effectiveness. Suggestions for enhanced disaster recovery options and industry-specific use cases could expand its versatility further.

What are the key features of Azure Key Vault?

Key Management: Secure storage and management of cryptographic keys.
Secret Storage: Safeguard confidential data like passwords and API keys.
Automated Key Rotation: Automatic updating of keys to enhance security.
Integration with Azure Services: Seamless connection with Azure infrastructure.
Scalable Access Policies: Flexible access control tailored to team needs.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Enhanced Security: Protect sensitive information through encryption and controlled access.
Simplified Compliance: Eliminate hard-coded secrets to support regulatory adherence.
Efficient Management: Streamline key and secret management across environments.
User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies security processes with accessible navigation.
Regional Availability: Global access supporting diverse operational needs.

In industries managing sensitive data such as finance, healthcare, and e-commerce, Azure Key Vault is crucial for maintaining compliance and protecting confidential information. By centralizing the management of security credentials, it supports the secure integration of applications and services, helping companies reduce risk while facilitating compliance with industry standards.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Autodesk, Clevy, Stackery

Adobe, DriveTime, Johnson Controls, HP, InterContinental Hotels Group, ASOS

Buyer's Guide

AWS Secrets Manager vs. Azure Key Vault

August 2026

Free Report: AWS Secrets Manager vs. Azure Key Vault

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