Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Microsoft Entra ID vs One Identity Defender comparison

Microsoft and One Identity are both solutions in the Authentication Systems category. Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.7, while One Identity is ranked #15 with an average rating of 10.0. Microsoft holds a 15.9% mindshare in AS, compared to One Identity’s 0.7% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of One Identity users who would recommend it.
Microsoft Entra ID
Read 234 Microsoft Entra ID reviews
  • 9,863 Views
  • 7,461 Comparison Views
95% willing to recommend
One Identity Defender
Read 3 One Identity Defender reviews
  • 280 Views
  • 216 Comparison Views
100% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report
Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 11, 2024

Microsoft Entra ID and One Identity Defender are both robust identity management solutions. Users appear more satisfied with the pricing and support of Microsoft Entra ID. Yet, One Identity Defender seems to excel in feature richness, making it potentially worth the higher expense.

What features are offered by Microsoft Entra ID in comparison to One Identity Defender?

Microsoft Entra ID is praised for its seamless integration with other Microsoft services, effective multi-factor authentication, and ease of use. One Identity Defender stands out for its extensive scalability, advanced security features, and superior customizability.

What areas of improvement can be found in Microsoft Entra ID in comparison to One Identity Defender?

Microsoft Entra ID users highlight concerns about limited customization options, occasional performance issues, and insufficient advanced features for complex environments. One Identity Defender users point out that its interface can be somewhat convoluted, documentation is lacking, and initial setup can be challenging.

How is the ease of deployment and customer service of Microsoft Entra ID in comparison to One Identity Defender?

Both products receive positive feedback for deployment, but Microsoft Entra ID is noted for quicker setup times due to its integration with existing Microsoft infrastructure. Customer service for Microsoft Entra ID is valued for responsiveness, while One Identity Defender’s support is praised for its in-depth technical assistance.

What setup costs and ROI can be seen with Microsoft Entra ID in comparison to One Identity Defender?

Microsoft Entra ID users find the product to be cost-effective with a good return on investment, especially for businesses already using Microsoft services. One Identity Defender, though more expensive, is considered worth the investment by users who need its advanced capabilities. Microsoft Entra ID appeals to those seeking cost efficiency, while One Identity Defender justifies its higher price with superior features.

DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE REPORT
To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender Report (Updated: April 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender
April 2025
Download the complete report
Helped 851,604 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

Microsoft Entra ID
Ranking in Authentication Systems
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
234
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (1st), Identity Management (IM) (1st), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (1st), Access Management (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (2nd)
One Identity Defender
Ranking in Authentication Systems
15th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Microsoft Entra ID is 15.9%, down from 21.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of One Identity Defender is 0.7%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

Bahram Piri - PeerSpot reviewer
Security focus and seamless implementation increase platform productivity
Microsoft Entra ID can be improved in many ways, and there's a big wish list.If we're focusing on security, something that I definitely expect is improvement in the UI and UX for frontline workers. This is important, especially for non-tech savvy individuals. It is something Microsoft Entra ID could do to improve for a wider audience. It's important to focus on the frontline workers since they are non-tech savvy individuals. They are not like those back-office engineering C-level employees who are constantly dealing with computers, and we need to build a specific user experience and user interface for them to handle this stuff. That's something I expect Microsoft to focus on more for Microsoft Entra ID.
Read full review
Maksym Tkachenko - PeerSpot reviewer
Good compatibility, responsive support, and a nice interface
The solution works very well. The initial setup is pretty easy. It is stable and pretty reliable in general. We find that the product scales very well.  Technical support is responsive. The interface is good.  It is compatible with other products.  It has everything we need right now. The login…
Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It offers features that improve our security posture such as multifactor authentication, which is the second layer of protection that is used when we log into the cloud."
"Being able to easily authenticate yourself on the MSA app is valuable. It is easy to use. Rather than receiving a code in an SMS, you can just verify that it is you. You don't have to punch in any password or any six-digit code. That's the feature that I like the most."
"Identity management with policies stands out as the most valuable feature. It offers a hands-off experience, providing full control over user access."
"I would rate Microsoft Entra ID a ten out of ten."
"Microsoft Entra ID efficiently responds to numerous requests, and we have not faced significant connectivity issues, making it reliable."
"I like Azure AD's conditional access policies. Microsoft Entra provides a single pane of glass for managing user access, improving the overall user experience."
"Our most valuable features are conditional access and Azure application proxy."
"Don't delay implementing this solution, it's the best thing you can do for your identity protection."
More Microsoft Entra ID pros
"We find that the product scales very well."
"It's very fast, and it's easy to use because it's integrated with Active Directory."
"One Identity Defender has good network protection."
 

Cons

"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."
"Azure AD could be more robust and adopt a saturated model, where they can offer unlimited support for a multi-cloud environment."
"The role-based access control can be improved. Normally, the role-based access control has different privileges. Each role, such as administrator or user, has different privileges, and the setup rules for them should be defined automatically rather than doing it manually."
"We'd like to be able to link to non-Mircosft products, like Linux."
"The permission management is a mess."
"The scalability of the solution is good."
"The pricing is okay, however, it could always be better in the future."
"Microsoft plans to move away from SMS authentication for Multi-Factor Authentication and only implement application-based authenticator, which will be challenging for retail outlets reliant on Microsoft Active Directory."
More Microsoft Entra ID cons
"We have some clients that are wanting to protect their Apache web servers with One Identity Defender but all the research I have done says cannot be done. It can only be oriented to an IIS server. One Identity Defender should have more integration with more types of web servers."
"The login capabilities could be better."
"Maybe it could provide support for more web applications. It seems more focused on IIS web applications."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing of Azure Active Directory is competitive. By default, the product exists in almost every Microsoft cloud product. But it then depends on the features that a customer really wants to make use of."
"For you to make use of some of the security features, you need to upgrade your licenses. If it is possible, could they just make some features free? For instance, for the Condition Access policy, you need to set that up and be on Azure AD P2 licensing. So if they could make it free or reduce the licensing for small businesses, that would be cool, as I believe security is for everyone."
"The cost is billed on a per-user licensing basis."
"Licensing fees are paid on a monthly basis and the cost depends on the number of users."
"The process for buying licenses from Microsoft is somewhat messy and really hard to do. We have to talk to someone because it's hard to find out how many licenses we need. If I'm applying for 2,000 users, how many Windows licenses do we need? They could also charge less for support."
"I work for an academic medical center, where there is a watch kept over every dollar spent. I do have concerns about the micro charges for different levels or features of the product."
"Entra has P1 and P2 licenses that are bundled with lots of applications."
"We have various levels of their licensing, which includes users on different levels of their enterprise offering."
More Microsoft Entra ID pricing and cost advice
Information not available
report
See which vendors are best for you
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Authentication Systems solutions are best for your needs.
See recommendations
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
28%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Non Profit
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Retailer
13%
Government
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

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...
See all answers
What do you like most about Azure Active Directory?
It is very simple. The Active Directory functions are very easy for us. Its integration with anything is very easy. We can easily do third-party multifactor authentication.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Active Directory?
Regarding pricing, for the services we receive, it seems within the market range and about average.
See all answers
What do you like most about One Identity Defender?
It's very fast, and it's easy to use because it's integrated with Active Directory.
See all answers
What needs improvement with One Identity Defender?
Maybe it could provide support for more web applications. It would be useful to focus on other web applications. For example, if an application needs to be installed on an iOS server and it's not, ...
See all answers
What is your primary use case for One Identity Defender?
Our primary use cases include functions such as role-based access control, user registration, and integration with other systems. We use it to improve the security of our web applications. Addition...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

Google Cloud Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID Logo
Google Cloud Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID
Compared 11% of the time
Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Entra ID Logo
Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Entra ID
Compared 10% of the time
Okta Workforce Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID Logo
Okta Workforce Identity vs Microsoft Entra ID
Compared 8% of the time
Auth0 vs Microsoft Entra ID Logo
Auth0 vs Microsoft Entra ID
Compared 6% of the time
Amazon Cognito vs Microsoft Entra ID Logo
Amazon Cognito vs Microsoft Entra ID
Compared 5% of the time
More Microsoft Entra ID Competitors
Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs One Identity Defender Logo
Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs One Identity Defender
Compared 49% of the time
More One Identity Defender Competitors
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Entra ID
May 2025
Microsoft Entra ID reportDownload Microsoft Entra ID product report
Buyer's Guide
Authentication Systems
May 2025
One Identity Defender reportDownload One Identity Defender product report
 

Also Known As

Azure AD, Azure Active Directory, Azure Active Directory, Microsoft Authenticator
No data available
 

Interactive Demo

Microsoft
Demo not available
One Identity
 

Overview

Microsoft Entra ID is used for extending on-premises Active Directory to the cloud, managing application access, enabling multi-factor authentication, and single sign-on. It facilitates policy enforcement and secure access, ensuring centralized identity management across cloud and on-premises resources.

Organizations utilize Microsoft Entra ID for robust user and group management, identity synchronization, and conditional access. Its seamless integration with third-party apps, scalability, and support for remote work make it a preferred choice. The admin center streamlines identity and access tasks, enhancing efficiency and security with features like privileged identity management and audit logs.

What are the key features of Microsoft Entra ID?
  • Single Sign-On: Simplifies user access to multiple applications with one login.
  • Multifactor Authentication: Enhances security by requiring additional verification.
  • Conditional Access: Establishes policies that determine how users' access cloud apps.
  • Integration: Easily integrates with various third-party applications.
  • User Identity Protection: Safeguards user identities from threats.
  • Privileged Identity Management: Manages elevated access to sensitive resources.
  • Audit Logs: Provides thorough activity logs for oversight and compliance.
What benefits should users look for in Microsoft Entra ID reviews?
  • Enhanced Security: Offers strong multifactor authentication and identity protection.
  • Administrative Efficiency: Simplifies identity and access management tasks.
  • Scalability: Supports growing user bases and remote work environments.
  • Integration Capabilities: Compatible with numerous third-party applications.
  • User-Friendly Interface: Makes managing user identities straightforward.

Microsoft Entra ID implementation varies across industries. Tech firms leverage it for secure, scalable access management, while healthcare organizations utilize its identity protection features to safeguard patient data. Educational institutions adopt Entra ID for streamlined user management and policy enforcement, ensuring secure access for students and staff across on-premises and cloud resources.

Microsoft

Defender enhances security by requiring two-factor authentication to gain access to your network resources. Defender uses your current identity store within Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to enable two-factor authentication.

One Identity
 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Entre ID is trusted by companies of all sizes and industries including Walmart, Zscaler, Uniper, Amtrak, monday.com, and more.
Bakersfield Police Department, Village of Westmont, Illinois
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender
April 2025
Free Report: Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
DOWNLOAD NOW
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.
See our Microsoft Entra ID vs. One Identity Defender report.
See our list of best Authentication Systems vendors.

We monitor all Authentication Systems reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.