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ForgeRock vs Microsoft Identity Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 1, 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

ForgeRock
Ranking in Identity Management (IM)
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
Access Management (15th), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (7th)
Microsoft Identity Manager
Ranking in Identity Management (IM)
11th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Identity Management (IM) category, the mindshare of ForgeRock is 3.7%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Identity Manager is 2.1%, down from 4.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity Management (IM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Identity Manager2.1%
ForgeRock3.7%
Other94.2%
Identity Management (IM)
 

Featured Reviews

Ahmet Murat Ülker - PeerSpot reviewer
Devops Engineer and Trainer at a tech vendor with 1-10 employees
Easy to use, but customizations can be complicated to handle
I would suggest others use the product after asking them to consider their use cases. SSO may be a use case for some, and using the product as an IDM tool may be a use case. At the moment, my company is not deploying all the components of ForgeRock itself. My company uses ForgeRock for OAuth 2.0. For example, my company is not deploying the IDM and identity gateway components. You should consider your use case and select the required components for that use case. My company does not use the SSO features of the tool. My company uses SSO to access ForgeRock's AM Console for individual users. My company does not use single sign on features of the product and instead, we use Auth0. I rate the tool a seven or eight out of ten.
RameshKumar9 - PeerSpot reviewer
Consultant at IOM - UN Migration
Supports reliable identity management and custom policy design
Microsoft Identity Manager can be improved by integrating it with Entra ID as a SaaS application or by having a cloud-based connector, as it is currently limited to on-prem scenarios, and a combination of both would be a great solution compared to competitors such as SailPoint or One Identity Manager. While the initial setup of Microsoft Identity Manager is not completely complex, migrating or upgrading to a new version can be complex and requires multiple backups to ensure it goes smoothly.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It works very well, especially in Identity and Access Management. It helps detect anomalies in user behavior patterns."
"The most valuable features of ForgeRock are social login and data protection."
"We have found the identity and access management tools in the solution to be particularly useful for our organization."
"The solution is very scalable. We have a lot of users that have been increasing over the years that we have been using it. We have approximately 20,000 users."
"We used it to implement multi-factor authentication and to improve our security posture as well as reducing the potential for attacks."
"The product is easy to use in a development environment."
"The solution integrates well and it is important for them to keep up with the current trends in the market quickly enough, and they have been doing a good job at it."
"ForgeRock products are customizable, and the out-of-the-box features are solid, too. I primarily use the OIDC compliance features. It's just a configuration. it's easy to set up and customize trees. We can add our own features if necessary. Banks and corporations have different standards and specific validations."
"The features of Microsoft Identity Manager that have been most impactful in improving security and compliance include the granular policies, report, and the ability to gain end-to-end visibility for each user."
"It is a stable product. You will experience some issues with it, but it's a good product."
"The best features of Microsoft Identity Manager are its 100% compatibility with Active Directory, the ability to customize IAM policies as required, and its simplicity in design."
"The concept is primarily for the people in the business. In business, you can discuss how integrating all the services and resources within the company can bring numerous benefits."
"I would recommend Microsoft Identity Manager to others anytime."
"What makes this solution attractive is the licensing model. Microsoft Identity Manager is included in premium versions of Azure AD and in enterprise agreements such as E3. This makes the solution very attractive to many of our clients who are subscribed to those products."
"The integration with other Microsoft ecosystems, such as Graph API, is really cool."
"Very powerful synchronization tool."
 

Cons

"It should have a better user interface. Its flexibility should also be improved. It is not about simplifying; it is more about flexibility. Each company has its own requirements, and ForgeRock can provide more flexibility in terms of the use of existing modules to implement features for the customers."
"The solution's documentation is not very good, and they do not give more details."
"ForgeRock is an open source solution and is available to everyone but it is not freeware. If you need support, you need a subscription for ForgeRock. Many of its functionalities need to be built up with the help of a consultant."
"We would like this solution to be developed for use with mobile applications."
"The solution's deployment should be made easier."
"It should be a little bit easier to implement. It is user-friendly, but there is always scope for improvement."
"The solution requires more simplified customization. However, part of the problem is my clients determining their own preferences. Technology can help and do many things, but you have to define your own policies to ensure that the solution or service works within those parameters. Helping customers understand their business and different processes is another issue not relating to the functionality of this solution."
"We raised tickets asking for improvements, but sometimes we don't get the proper solution. They are responding, but the ticket is open for weeks and weeks. For some issues, we don't get a satisfactory solution or the solution doesn't work."
"MIM's reliability could be improved."
"This product was only launched two or three years ago and it is still in the process of becoming stable."
"They have to improve the User Entity and Behavioral Analysis."
"I haven't explored it deeply enough to identify any areas for enhancement."
"Integration with third parties and enhanced policy management could be improved."
"The governance reporting of the solution can be improved, as it can be difficult to get good, intelligible reports. Microsoft could implement an API of some sort to allow report customization or some form of SQL model, to further customize modules and improve the reporting. That would be a major improvement to the product."
"Some valuable features might go unused because they are not well-documented or connected clearly in user guides."
"The product could be more friendly for non-native English speakers. It would also be better if it were more intuitive and visually attractive."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its licensing is on a yearly basis, but it also depends on the contract that you have with the vendor. They have multiple types of contracts. There are additional costs to the standard licensing fees. If you need some of the features, you have to pay more."
"The license is purchased annually per user. However, you can negotiate if you are signing for a longer period of time. When comparing this solution to others on the market it is priced fair, it is not at the top of the price range or at the bottom end."
"ForgeRock is an expensive solution."
"ForgeRock's pricing is more competitive than other products."
"It's a bit pricey and could be more competitive."
"The pricing of the solution is fair but I do not have the full details."
"Its price is comparable to other products in the market."
"We have multiple clients we are looking at right now. We are at a very small number, however, the idea and the goal is to grow. We are looking at about $100,000 and $50,000 a minimum a month cost. That'd be minimum maybe in a couple of years."
"Microsoft Identity Manager comes with the premium or community license. If the customer doesn't have a premium license, the reseller who sells the licenses of Microsoft to the enterprise can extend the license for the client."
"The tool's price is low for my company."
"The solution is expensive."
"The solution is included in the Microsoft E3 license and premium subscriptions of Azure AD."
"The prices can always be improved. I'd rate it a 4 out of 10 in terms of pricing."
"My rating for the pricing of Microsoft Identity Manager is average, neither too expensive nor too cheap."
"It is an expensive tool."
"MIM is free with a Microsoft Azure license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
21%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Insurance Company
6%
Government
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Educational Organization
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise13
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise11
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about ForgeRock?
The most valuable features of ForgeRock are social login and data protection.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ForgeRock?
Our company was considering switching back to Keycloak from ForgeRock, so as to not pay any license fees. ForgeRock also supports M-PIN and biometric features that Keycloak does not provide. My com...
What needs improvement with ForgeRock?
In the past, I saw that Splunk was integrated with a testing portal, and then it was integrated with Slack. I don't think ForgeRock directly supports integrations with Slack, making it an area wher...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Identity Manager?
Regarding pricing, setup costs, and licensing of Microsoft Identity Manager, it has a couple of cloud connectors that can sync directly with the O365 admin center, which is good enough, but Entra I...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Identity Manager?
Microsoft Identity Manager can be improved by integrating it with Entra ID as a SaaS application or by having a cloud-based connector, as it is currently limited to on-prem scenarios, and a combina...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Identity Manager?
The typical use case for Microsoft Identity Manager is to automate Active Directory, where it is responsible for onboarding new employees to on-premises AD or to the cloud based on certain criteria.
 

Also Known As

ForgeRock Identity Platform, ForgeRock OpenIDM
MIM, Forefront Identity Manager, FIM, MS Identity Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Geico, Thomson Reuters, Salesforce, McKesson, Trinet, SKY, BNP Paribas, Deloitte, Capgemini, North Western University
Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Whole Foods Market
Find out what your peers are saying about ForgeRock vs. Microsoft Identity Manager and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.