Azure DNS vs Cisco Umbrella comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on Dec 11, 2022

We performed a comparison between Azure DNS and Cisco Umbrella based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Users of Azure DNS share mixed reviews on deployment. In contrast, users of Cisco Umbrella agree that deployment is easy and simple.
  • Features: Users of both products are happy with their stability and scalability.

    Azure DNS users like the solution’s ease of use, automation features, and the fact that it integrates quickly with other products. Users say that the process of creating a virtual mission could be improved, and that the solution has some latency issues.

    Cisco Umbrella users like its single pane of glass because it helps save a lot of time. Reviewers mention that the solution has some interface issues, and that more flexibility in policy creation would be useful.
  • Pricing: Azure DNS users say the pricing of the solution is competitive. Cisco Umbrella has a free version and a paid version. Regarding the paid version, users shared mixed opinions on the pricing.
  • Service and Support: Users of Azure DNS share mixed reviews on the level of support they receive. However, Cisco Umbrella users are satisfied with the support.
  • ROI: Users of both solutions report a positive ROI.

Comparison Results: In this comparison, Cisco Umbrella takes the lead. It is easy to deploy, has a free version and a paid version of the product, as well as good support. In contrast, Azure DNS users share mixed opinions on deployment and support.

To learn more, read our detailed Managed DNS Report (Updated: March 2023).
686,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"The best feature is the domain register. The other great feature is that whenever you create any resources, Azure DNS will automatically create a record for you.""The initial setup is straightforward and not that complex.""What I like about Azure DNS is that it doesn't have any issues and integrates quickly with other products. It has good integration, which is incredible. I also like that whenever you deploy private links and endpoints, Azure DNS gives you the option to select the Azure native DNS, private DNS, or go with the Azure custom DNS. It depends, but if you don't have any dependencies on the DNS, then, like many customers, you won't have DNS issues. Azure DNS is a very good solution that helps you with domains and other resources.""From a security perspective, Microsoft is much better than other cloud providers.""If you're running your enterprise application on Azure, it's convenient to use Azure DNS. It has native integration with other Azure solutions, and Microsoft is a globally recognized DNS provider. You also get CDN services. If you're a media company that requires on-demand data streaming, your DNS plays a vital role by working with CDN services to publish your application. It's cheaper and easier to expand your solution.""The solution allows you to host DNS service without using Azure's servers.""The most valuable feature of Azure DNS is it works automatically after configuration. Additionally, the solution is secure.""Azure DNS provides value beyond its user-friendly interface and easy learning curve."

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"When it comes to hybrid work it's pretty effective. We've got the agents. We can protect people inside our building and, when they're using their laptops out in the field, they're still protected. It's working well.""The most valuable feature is the ability to filter malware sites that could infect clients or allow them to download infected files.""The single-pane-of-glass management is really important. In today's era, administration costs and operational expenses will cost you a lot, and it reduces that as well. You don't need extra resources to manage all your parameter firewalls, looking at every single device to allow resources internal access. By just introducing the single-pane-of-glass management, it has lifted the burden off of management, especially the network management.""You can manage and create policies based on a group of users. It can permit some URLs and block others.""I think recently with many people working from home, Cisco Umbrella has been very useful. For example, we can manage the device and the network when the employee is not working on the local host. Cisco Umbrella is very valuable for this kind of infrastructure.""Any time someone went off the network, the AnyConnect client had the Umbrella agent built in, and it would realize when their computer connected that they were not on the corporate network. It would monitor and they would have pretty close to the same rules that they had to follow when they were in the office, regarding what kind of website browsing they could do.""The integration features within, for example, the Cisco VPN product and the Umbrella module are valuable.""The most valuable thing is how easy it is to deploy. We did it with 9,000 users at my last job, and it took a week to get to all the endpoints. Doing that without having to physically touch all those endpoints was very simple."

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Cons
"The process of creating a virtual mission could be improved.""Azure DNS does provide enhanced support for applications and includes several security features to protect against threats. One of the security features it offers is the ability to detect and prevent dangling DNS records, which can be used in cyber attacks. Dangling DNS records occur when a website owner creates a domain name but forgets to remove the CNAME record, leaving the domain vulnerable to takeover by malicious actors. Azure DNS includes security measures to identify and prevent such threats, helping to keep your DNS infrastructure secure. However, if Microsoft could add more security capabilities to the DNS, that would be great to detect and identify anomalies that are happening to prevent cyber threats.""The CDN integration could be improved.""The DNSSEC feature is not yet available on the DNS server so it needs to be added.""There are some latency issues that could be improved.""The technical support can be more knowledgeable.""Azure DNS could improve by having more updates.""The initial setup of this solution could be less complex and require less manual configurations."

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"In my experience with Umbrella support, sometimes the response times take a bit more time than we would like... sometimes, if you go through email, it can take quite a while to get a response.""We faced an issue regarding virtual appliances (VAs) during deployment. They could improve the quality and management of the virtual appliances offered right now. You can't see much because it is a Linux machine, and they have customized it. You don't have any route access to the machine, only seeing limited things in it. When we opened a ticket, they didn't know much about VAs themselves. So, that is where it is lacking right now. I know this will improve in the long run.""I think it's a very basic solution, and because of that, Cisco Umbrella would not be a suitable solution for large companies.""The integration with Cisco could be better.""I'd like to see improvement in its overall integration with all the other platforms. There's some integration between Umbrella and Meraki, but an overall Cisco problem is that there are so many different tools, and finding easy, seamless ways of connecting everything together is always a challenge.""Its price could be better.""If we're trying to deploy it to a Mac through Meraki, it's impossible. The method of deployment for a Mac, and the features available in Meraki, are not compatible at all.""The API is very Cisco orientated, which is absolutely fine if you're using Cisco Firepower and SecureX kind of products, but if you want to integrate with third parties, it is a bit tricky. There are some key API connectors for the more prevalent SIEM tools. I would really like to see in Cisco Umbrella the ability to create customized reports and then assign the rights to view these reports to people within a group. I should be able to create a customized report, which is viewable by anybody who has the rights. I should be able to create groups within Cisco Umbrella, and then assign reports to groups and have those reports split out automatically only to those groups. I can kind of do it by restricting my email list, but it is a half-complete way of doing it."

More Cisco Umbrella Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "The solution payment model is based on how many users use it. This is not an expensive solution, but it can depend on how long we use it. However, if the price was decreased it would be helpful."
  • "We have an enterprise license agreement with Microsoft. Their pricing is competitive. I would rate it a three and a half out of five."
  • "The solution itself is free but you need to pay for the Microsoft Azure infrastructure and host your domains in Azure to use it."
  • More Azure DNS Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "It has a reasonable price. It is certainly not as expensive as it used to be. It is in line with other offerings on the market. There are a number of different flavors of Umbrella. They could bring Umbrella SIG down a bit because its price is a little bit high for what it does, but I also understand why its price is high."
  • "Cisco Umbrella is expensive and could be cheaper."
  • "When talking about Cisco solutions in general there pricing model is horrible. For example, you can sell a Meraki-based solution, but if the customer starts shopping around, someone is going to have access to the pricing at a level that you cannot compete because they do not have uniform pricing. Not everybody gets fair pricing. Unless you are one of the real major corporations selling the solution your ability to compete is impossible. Cisco will acknowledge the situation and assure you next time it will be in your favor but it never becomes favorable for you. Cisco is not very good in this regard. However, Umbrella is good."
  • "The licensing fee is paid on a yearly basis."
  • "In the region I'm from, that of EMAR, Europe, the Middle East, Eastern Asia and Africa, our organizations do not have many liquid cash assets, so the price could be better."
  • "The price depends on the use case, and it's a bit linear. But it depends on the customer's strategy and how Cisco plans to optimize the costs."
  • "We were using the free version, and we implemented the paid version about two months ago. I'm paying a fair price, but everything is negotiable with Cisco. One of the benefits that I got by having Cisco Umbrella is the licensing of the Cisco AnyConnect VPN client."
  • "There are no hidden costs with Umbrella. Everything is included in the package."
  • More Cisco Umbrella Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Azure DNS is a hosting service of DNS domains. It has excellent operating time and performance, resulting in fast resolution. We like the ability to view everything in the Azure portal - this makes… more »
    Top Answer:The most valuable feature is the ease of installation.
    Top Answer:Azure DNS is great, but it could use some improvements. One thing Azure DNS needs is better performance when resolving requests - many users have reported slow responses, especially when compared to… more »
    Top Answer: Cisco Umbrella and Zscaler Internet Access are two broad-spectrum Internet security solutions that I have tried. Zscaler Internet Access is a good option for carrying out multiple security… more »
    Top Answer:Cisco Umbrella is an integral component of the Cisco SASE architecture. It integrates security in a single, cloud-native solution, unifying multiple features like DNS-layer security, threat… more »
    Top Answer:We are very new users of the solution and are still in the exploration stages, but we are happy with the product thus far.
    Ranking
    3rd
    out of 23 in Managed DNS
    Views
    7,756
    Comparisons
    6,346
    Reviews
    9
    Average Words per Review
    406
    Rating
    8.8
    Views
    45,477
    Comparisons
    34,181
    Reviews
    35
    Average Words per Review
    862
    Rating
    8.8
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    OpenDNS
    Learn More
    Overview

    Azure DNS is a hosting service for DNS domains, providing name resolution using Microsoft Azure infrastructure. By hosting your domains in Azure, you can manage your DNS records using the same credentials, APIs, tools, and billing as your other Azure services.

    Cisco Umbrella offers flexible, cloud-delivered security according to users’ requirements Cisco Umbrella includes secure web gateway, firewall, and cloud access security broker (CASB) functionality all delivered from a single cloud security service. Cisco Umbrella’s protection is extended to devices, remote users, and distributed locations anywhere. As company employees work from many locations and devices, Cisco Umbrella is the easiest way to effectively protect users everywhere in minutes.

    Cisco Umbrella uses machine learning to search for, identify, and even predict malicious domains. By learning from internet activity patterns, this DNS-layer security solution can automatically identify attacker infrastructure being staged for the next threat. These domains are then proactively blocked, protecting networks from potential compromise. Cisco Umbrella analyzes terabytes of data in real time across all markets, geographies, and protocols.

    Cisco Umbrella works with leading IT companies to integrate its security enforcement and intelligence. Built with a bidirectional API, Cisco Umbrella makes it easy to extend protection from on-premises security appliances to cloud controlled devices and sites.

    Cisco Umbrella is suitable for small businesses without dedicated security professionals, as well as for multinational enterprises with complex environments.

    Why use Cisco Umbrella?

    • Simplify security management: Cisco Umbrella is the fastest and easiest way to protect all users within minutes and reduces the number of infections and alerts sent from other security products by stopping threats at the earliest point. With no hardware to install and no software to manually update, ongoing management is simple

    • Reliable reporting: Cisco Umbrella reports show activity for each device or network in the system. Users gain a more complete picture of the security risks facing their organization and can take action to remedy them.

    • Manage and control cloud apps: Umbrella provides visibility into sanctioned and unsanctioned cloud services in use across the enterprise. Users can uncover new services being used, see who is using them, identify potential risk, and block specific applications easily.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Cisco Umbrella stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Some of the major ones are its DNS-based protection, ability to protect users no matter where they are located, stability, and high performance.

    Daniel B., a network specialist at Syswind Kft, writes, “We primarily use the solution as cloud security for our branches. It protects us from direct internet outbreaks. It makes for good flexibility. The solution is very easy to manage. We found the initial setup, for example, to be quite simple. Efficient protection on the DNS level and even higher. The sandboxing feature analyses and handles the complicated security risks.”

    Victor M., SOC & Security Services Director at BEST, notes, “It provides security for the remote workers and it helps to improve enterprise security in a very easy way. We mainly enjoy web software protection capabilities. It prevents the end-users from getting into bad sites or sites that potentially could have malware or could be phishing. It helps end-users avoid the wrong sites. The solution works very smoothly. The user interface is good.”

    Offer
    Learn more about Azure DNS
    Learn more about Cisco Umbrella
    Sample Customers
    M-Files
    Chart Industries, City of Aspen, Eastern Mountain Sports, FLEXcon, George Washington University, Jackson Municipal Airport Authority, Ohio Public Library Information Network, PTC, Richland Community College, Smart Motors, Tulane University, VeriClaim
    Top Industries
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company21%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Financial Services Firm8%
    Government7%
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm14%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Educational Organization8%
    Healthcare Company8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company21%
    Comms Service Provider10%
    Financial Services Firm9%
    Government6%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business45%
    Midsize Enterprise9%
    Large Enterprise45%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business22%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise62%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business37%
    Midsize Enterprise24%
    Large Enterprise38%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business21%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise64%
    Buyer's Guide
    Managed DNS
    March 2023
    Find out what your peers are saying about NS1, Cloudflare, Microsoft and others in Managed DNS. Updated: March 2023.
    686,748 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    Azure DNS is ranked 3rd in Managed DNS with 10 reviews while Cisco Umbrella is ranked 1st in Secure Web Gateways (SWG) with 39 reviews. Azure DNS is rated 8.6, while Cisco Umbrella is rated 8.8. The top reviewer of Azure DNS writes "Beneficial integration and security, and highly stable". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Cisco Umbrella writes "We can see all of our locations in one place and only have to make changes once for all our locations". Azure DNS is most compared with Amazon Route 53, Cloudflare DNS, Google Cloud DNS, Akamai Edge DNS and Dyn, whereas Cisco Umbrella is most compared with Zscaler Internet Access, Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps, Palo Alto Networks DNS Security, Fortinet FortiGate SWG and Prisma SaaS by Palo Alto Networks.

    We monitor all Managed DNS 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.