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Microsoft Identity Manager vs SAP Identity Management 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

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
SAP Identity Management
Ranking in Identity Management (IM)
14th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
User Provisioning Software (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Identity Management (IM) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Identity Manager is 2.3%, down from 4.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP Identity Management is 2.6%, up from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Identity Management (IM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Identity Manager2.3%
SAP Identity Management2.6%
Other95.1%
Identity Management (IM)
 

Featured Reviews

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.
FM
Sales Executive at Minsait
Identity management enhances connectivity and productivity with streamlined access and robust security, offering time-saving processes and facilitating seamless integration with other BI tools
One area that could be improved with SAP Identity Management, other than support, is user engagement from an implementation perspective. It would be beneficial for SAP to extend their events and workshops that are currently performed for partners to their final customers, as many customers want to know what's new and what else they can do without solely depending on the partners. For SAP support in Brazil, everything is in English, which poses a difficulty for many customers. The support could be improved for the specific needs in Brazil, as many customers have difficulty accessing the support center due to the language barrier. This feedback is specific to Brazil, though it's unclear if SAP receives similar feedback from other countries. It could certainly be enhanced with Portuguese documents, among other improvements.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most crucial feature of Microsoft Identity Manager is integration, especially with Office 365. A specific scenario where automation provided by the identity manager was crucial is when customers use hybrid clouds, with resources both locally and in the cloud. They require an easy identity solution across workspaces, local and cloud, integrating cloud identity with local identity sources, supporting single sign-on and authorizations, and ensuring security across applications.Microsoft Identity Manager integrates such local and cloud identity sources, supporting numerous applications."
"I would recommend Microsoft Identity Manager to others anytime."
"I appreciate how Microsoft keeps adding new features to Microsoft Identity Manager."
"It is one of the easiest products to implement, which is one of the main advantages. The integration is easy. Unlike other products, it is not complicated to integrate."
"It is a stable product. You will experience some issues with it, but it's a good product."
"The most valuable feature is that it provides protection for our company documents."
"MIM's most valuable feature is its connectivity with Exchange."
"The tool's only feature that is generating value for us is the login process for our clients."
"NW IDM is extremely flexible, and with a small amount of effort you can integrate the basic provisioning for most of the commonly used modern systems."
"Some processes that they used to perform in two to three days now take one to two hours, which has been really beneficial for them regarding the time saved."
"What I found most valuable in SAP Identity Management is process automation. The solution also gives transparency about what is happening and why which I find beneficial. Another feature I found valuable in SAP Identity Management is integration. It has very good integration."
"Rather than implement a basic SSO, this solution assisted us with setting up two-factor authentication."
"The setup process is straightforward."
"What I like about SAP Identity Management is that it's stable for experienced users and suitable for access management, not just for SAP accounts, but for Active Directory, including file sharing and process sharing."
"The tool's most valuable features are its access control and approval of access requests. The self-service password reset feature is efficient. Role management capabilities streamline user access by assigning and revoking roles."
"What's most valuable in SAP Identity Management is that it's easily an out-of-the-box solution for connectivity with SAP applications. We do not have to do any customizations, and this makes the solution very compatible with most SAP applications. SAP Identity Management is also very user-friendly."
 

Cons

"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."
"All actions require logging in to the server."
"Some valuable features might go unused because they are not well-documented or connected clearly in user guides."
"MIM's reliability could be improved."
"In terms of the identity and access management solution for on-premises environment, I think Microsoft needs to eliminate or minimize the number of workloads for the solution to run in on-premises environment."
"I haven't explored it deeply enough to identify any areas for enhancement."
"It requires a lot of improvements. Microsoft is killing this product and migrating some of the features to Azure AD. The last version of this solution was 2016. If it is going to stay and integrate with Azure AD, its integration needs to be worked on in terms of connectors, etc. It doesn't seem that they are improving it alone. Microsoft wants to integrate it with Azure AD, but the integration is still not complete."
"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."
"One of the areas for improvement in the solution is its user interface which needs to be up-to-date and fancier, in particular, have better visualization in terms of the tabs and buttons. The user interface of SAP Identity Management should be improved based on the latest trends."
"I find SAP Identity Management complicated to use. Maintaining it is also complex."
"There are also some issues with the UI, the ACLs and performance - depending on the configuration and Identity DB size."
"It needs to have the SSO for the HANA modules that SAP is releasing."
"SAP Identity Management can improve risk analysis and authority checks."
"Research and marketing need to be improved."
"For SAP support in Brazil, everything is in English, which poses a difficulty for many customers."
"I have encountered issues with the host authentication feature."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"My rating for the pricing of Microsoft Identity Manager is average, neither too expensive nor too cheap."
"MIM is free with a Microsoft Azure license."
"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 prices can always be improved. I'd rate it a 4 out of 10 in terms of pricing."
"It is an expensive tool."
"The solution is included in the Microsoft E3 license and premium subscriptions of Azure AD."
"When comparing the cost, Microsoft Identity Manager is the best solution because it is free if you have an Azure P2 license."
"The tool's price is low for my company."
"When evaluating the price of any product, I first look at how it meets my business requirements and if it meets requirements adequately and predictively. Currently, I don't see this from SAP Identity Management, so pricing for it is expensive, in my opinion."
"I rate the solution's pricing a four out of ten."
"The licensing cost varies depending on the specific requirements and deployment size."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Government
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Educational Organization
7%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Energy/Utilities Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise11
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise6
 

Questions from the Community

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 could be improved in several areas. The solution uses a batching process that executes at scheduled times, which differs from other vendor solutions. It is missing capabi...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Identity Manager?
Microsoft Identity Manager is used primarily in the retail business. The implementation is enterprise-level within a national company, specifically at JCPenney, which is a large organization.
What do you like most about SAP Identity Management?
The tool's most valuable features are its access control and approval of access requests. The self-service password reset feature is efficient. Role management capabilities streamline user access b...
What needs improvement with SAP Identity Management?
One area that could be improved with SAP Identity Management, other than support, is user engagement from an implementation perspective. It would be beneficial for SAP to extend their events and wo...
What is your primary use case for SAP Identity Management?
The use cases for SAP Identity Management include the logistics company, and we also have a beverage company that is using SAP Identity Management. We did not make the migration for them, but we im...
 

Also Known As

MIM, Forefront Identity Manager, FIM, MS Identity Manager
SAP NetWeaver Identity Management, NetWeaver Identity Management
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Whole Foods Market
State of Indiana, Automotive Resources International (ARI), Alliander N.V., Chemion Logistik GmbH, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital (SNUBH)
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Identity Manager vs. SAP Identity Management and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.