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IBM Security Verify Access vs Okta Platform comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 15, 2025

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

IBM Security Verify Access
Ranking in Single Sign-On (SSO)
14th
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
16th
Ranking in Access Management
14th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Identity Management (IM) (20th)
Okta Platform
Ranking in Single Sign-On (SSO)
2nd
Ranking in Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
2nd
Ranking in Access Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
93
Ranking in other categories
Authentication Systems (5th), Privileged Access Management (PAM) (5th), ZTNA as a Service (3rd), Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (1st), AI IT Support (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) category, the mindshare of IBM Security Verify Access is 2.0%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Okta Platform is 8.2%, down from 13.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Okta Platform8.2%
IBM Security Verify Access2.0%
Other89.8%
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS)
 

Featured Reviews

Ateeq Rehman - PeerSpot reviewer
Unit Head System Implementor at Allied Bank Limited
Has improved secure user access while managing development through multiple technologies
I have already explained this in my previous call; I don't handle financial terms and commercials. Pricing is generally managed by functional teams and management looking after licensing matters. In Pakistan, vendors such as Oracle and IBM manage account relationships with clients and have tailored pricing models, so I do not have sufficient insights into that aspect.IBM Security Verify Access installation process is not straightforward; it requires underlying specialized knowledge upon which the IBM products are based. The complexity and scalability of the architecture necessitate in-depth technical knowledge and understanding of the system. Thus, installation is not as simple as clicking through; it requires extensive configuration of the underlying application servers, such as IBM WebSphere, where these products are deployed and configured.
SumitMundik - PeerSpot reviewer
Lead Admin Systems at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Authentication process improves security with quick and intuitive user interface
The best feature is the speed and execution of Okta Workforce Identity. The moment you click on single sign-on, you immediately get the notification on your mobile phone, then you do the authentication and within a second you get authenticated. The entire customer experience is very good. The user interface is pretty simple, straightforward, and really good. Multi-factor authentication in Okta Workforce Identity is very useful so people who do not have access or are trying to access using just a user ID and password will be completely blocked because of this two-factor authentication. You will get the code, and as your device is authorized in the system, only that device can be used for the authentication purpose. A third person trying to access or hack your data will not be able to do that anymore. Additionally, you don't have to remember your passwords going forward. Previously, every 60 days or 90 days, passwords kept changing. With the two-factor authentication or single sign-on option in Okta Workforce Identity, you don't have to remember it anymore or write down passwords in plain text. If something goes wrong, we have the IAM team which can unlock your account immediately if you have issues.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"IBM Security Verify Access is providing a secure way of handling the user login journey, and secure user authentication is fully managed by ISAM or ISVA."
"IBM Security Verify Access, formerly known as ISAM, IBM Security Access Manager, now renamed to ISVA, integrates with central directory services for our organization and provides user management functionality."
"It's a good solution for identification and access management."
"The solution has powerful authentification and authorization. It offers a good way to increase security."
"The most valuable feature of IBM Security Access Manager, at least for my company, is multi-factor authentication. That's the only feature my company is using. The solution works well and has no glitches. IBM Security Access Manager is a very good solution, so my company is still using it."
"The tool provides a password vault, single sign-on, and multifactor authentication. It offers various authentication methods like fingerprint integration, one-time passwords, or tokens sent via email or SMS. This ensures secure access to your accounts by providing multiple authentication options."
"I have found this solution to be really practical and when a user wants to log in, it is effortless and runs smooth."
"From the integration point of view, it supports SAML, OIDC, and OAuth. For legacy applications that don't have support for SAML and other new protocols, it provides single sign-on access to end-users. From the integration compatibility point of view, it is highly capable."
"Okta has more when it comes to the policy level. It has distinctive features where you can do a mix and combination to have users access applications for various business cases."
"The main benefits Okta Customer Identity provides to users include single point of login for all applications and single authentication, which saves time and reduces frustration."
"Okta Customer Identity is considered cheaper compared to other tools in the market, such as IBM and CyberArk products."
"The most valuable aspects of the solution are the integration with external websites one-factor authentication."
"As far as our security team is concerned, the ease of implementing multifactor authentication is definitely the biggest value for our organization."
"Time saved is a great example of return on investment, as Okta Workforce Identity has saved approximately 50 to 80 percent of our time."
"The most valuable features of Okta Workforce Identity are SSO, MFA, and beneficial feature sets."
"The most valuable feature is the identity access authentication."
 

Cons

"What we'd like improved in IBM Security Access Manager is its onboarding process as it's complex, particularly when onboarding new applications. We need to be very, very careful during the onboarding. We have no issues with IBM Security Access Manager because the solution works fine, apart from the onboarding process and IBM's involvement in onboarding issues. If we need support related to the onboarding, we've noticed a pattern where support isn't available, or they don't have much experience, or we're not getting a response from them. We're facing the same issue with IBM Guardium. As we're just focusing on the multi-factor authentication feature of IBM Security Access Manager and we didn't explore any other features, we don't have additional features to suggest for the next release of the solution, but we're in discussion about exploring ID management and access management features, but those are just possibilities because right now, we're focused on exploring our domain."
"IBM Security Verify Access installation process is not straightforward; it requires underlying specialized knowledge upon which the IBM products are based."
"There are a lot of areas that can be improved, but the main area is the lack of customization. You cannot easily customize anything in the product. It is not easy to tweak the functionality. It is challenging to change the out-of-the-box functionality."
"The solution could be classified as a hilt system. There are a lot of resources being used and it is suitable for very large enterprises or the public sector."
"IBM Security Verify Access installation process is not straightforward; it requires underlying specialized knowledge upon which the IBM products are based."
"The user interface needs to be simplified, it's complex and not user-friendly."
"Configuration could be simplified for the end-user."
"They can improve the single sign-on configuration for OIDC and OAuth. That is not very mature in this product, and they can improve it in this particular area. OIDC is a third-party integration that we do with the cloud platforms, and OAuth is an authorization mechanism for allowing a user having an account with Google or any other provider to access an application. Organizations these days are looking for just-in-time provisioning use cases, but IBM Security Access Manager is not very mature for such use cases. There are only a few applications that can be integrated, and this is where this product is lagging. However, in terms of configuration and single sign-on mechanisms, it is a great product."
"Some limitations in scalability. Each application we work with can be completely different, resulting in highly variable implementation processes."
"The product must be provided for free."
"Users sometimes have difficulty getting verification codes."
"Okta Workforce Identity can improve by having more features in governance."
"If that phone or device gets stolen, somebody else can log into the system using that code."
"Okta Workforce Identity could improve provisioning it can be made simpler."
"There should be automated aggregation and complete classification processes included in it."
"The guest user access could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It costs about 300K AED for a year. Its pricing is a bit on the higher end, but in comparison to other products in the market, its price is still better. There are lots of other products that are very costly."
"The license and costs depend on the amount range of users you have. For just approximately 2,000 users, the price is practical and fair. However, when you have 20,000 users, it starts to become really expensive, and the discount per user is not attractive enough to go ahead and purchase."
"The product is not expensive. It depends on the number of users."
"The solution is not the cheapest but not the most expensive. They are in the middle rating."
"Okta's pricing is right where it needs to be and right in the middle of the market."
"The product is expensive compared to other vendors."
"The cost per user for this solution is really high and could be reduced."
"The pricing for Okta Workforce Identity could still be improved or made cheaper. It costs from 50 to 100 euros a year per user. Okta Workforce Identity has different packages you can choose from, and my previous company had all of them, particularly the full Okta suite."
"This is an expensive solution but the security makes it worthwhile."
"The product has a user-based license model."
"Price-wise, Okta Workforce Identity is a cheap solution. The overall cost depends on the license since you can negotiate with Okta or any of Okta's partners only if you opt for many licenses."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Insurance Company
12%
Government
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business40
Midsize Enterprise21
Large Enterprise44
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Security Access Manager?
The tool provides a password vault, single sign-on, and multifactor authentication. It offers various authentication methods like fingerprint integration, one-time passwords, or tokens sent via ema...
What needs improvement with IBM Security Access Manager?
I have already explained this in my previous call; I don't handle financial terms and commercials. Pricing is generally managed by functional teams and management looking after licensing matters. I...
What is your primary use case for IBM Security Access Manager?
We are still using the IBM BPM platform to automate the processes for our organization.I generally use Microsoft Project for project planning and schedule management, especially in relation to Orac...
What do you like most about Okta Workforce Identity?
Okta has introduced the Universal Directory. It has custom attribute capability and user permissions to read/write on their profiles or hide them. Profile sources and identity profile sourcing are ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Okta Workforce Identity?
Pricing for Okta is reasonably not that much, however, I don't have access to the commercial aspect.
What needs improvement with Okta Workforce Identity?
Currently, in Okta Workforce Identity we get the two-digit authentication code. Instead of getting the two-digit authentication code, if we had an option to do fingerprint verification, that would ...
 

Also Known As

IBM Security Verify Access (SVA), IBM Security Access Manager, ISAM
Okta Customer Identity, Workforce Identity
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

POST Luxembourg
FedEx, Zoom, Takeda, Lululemon Athletica, GrunHub, jetBlue, McKensson, Bain & Company, Engie, Peloton, Sonos, T-Mobile, Hewlett Packard, MGM Resorts, Ally Financial, Priceline, Albertsons, Itercom, Classy, FICO, Kensho, Live Nation, Drata, Rotary, and others.
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Security Verify Access vs. Okta Platform and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.