Cisco Duo vs Symantec VIP Access Manager comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Cisco and Broadcom are both solutions in the Authentication Systems category. Cisco is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.9, while Broadcom is ranked #12 with an average rating of 8.0. Cisco holds a 3.7% mindshare in AS, compared to Broadcom’s 1.9% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Cisco users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 86% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

Cisco Duo

Read 160 Cisco Duo reviews

14,498 Views
7,539 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Symantec VIP Access Manager

Read 15 Symantec VIP Access Manager reviews

3,625 Views
1,994 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

Cisco Duo

Symantec VIP Access Manager

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

Cisco Duo and Symantec VIP Access Manager are both leading solutions in the two-factor authentication space. Cisco Duo generally receives better feedback concerning ease of use and customer service, while Symantec VIP Access Manager is often praised for its robust security features.

What features are offered by Cisco Duo in comparison to Symantec VIP Access Manager?

Cisco Duo is noted for its straightforward integration, extensive compatibility with various apps, and simplicity in implementation. Symantec VIP Access Manager is recognized for its advanced security protocols, comprehensive user management functionalities, and superior security features.

What areas of improvement can be found in Cisco Duo in comparison to Symantec VIP Access Manager?

Cisco Duo users often desire more advanced customization options, detailed reporting capabilities, and broader interoperability with other platforms. Symantec VIP Access Manager users wish for a more intuitive setup process, better compatibility with third-party apps, and streamlined deployment procedures.

How is the ease of deployment and customer service of Cisco Duo in comparison to Symantec VIP Access Manager?

Cisco Duo is known for quick deployment processes and responsive customer support. Symantec VIP Access Manager has a more complex deployment requiring specialized support, which is beneficial for its advanced features.

What setup costs and ROI can be seen with Cisco Duo in comparison to Symantec VIP Access Manager?

Cisco Duo generally provides a cost-effective solution with quick ROI due to efficient implementation and low setup costs. Symantec VIP Access Manager has higher initial costs justified by its superior security measures and long-term performance.

To learn more, read our detailed Cisco Duo vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager

September 2026

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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

Cisco Duo

Ranking in Authentication Systems

2nd

Ranking in Access Management

5th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

160

Ranking in other categories

Single Sign-On (SSO) (4th), ZTNA as a Service (2nd), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (1st), AI Data Analysis (3rd)

Symantec VIP Access Manager

Ranking in Authentication Systems

12th

Ranking in Access Management

22nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Cisco Duo is 3.7%, down from 8.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec VIP Access Manager is 1.9%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Cisco Duo	3.7%
Symantec VIP Access Manager	1.9%
Other	94.4%

Authentication Systems

Featured Reviews

Charles Slaustas

Information Technology Contractor at Insight global

Supports seamless authentication for users across multiple organizations and personal portals

The features I use in Cisco Duo include Duo Pushes to confirm my identity to the device, and eventually as MFA security was increased, I actually had to use exchange passcodes. Sometimes, I have to go into the site and get into Cisco Duo to retrieve the passcode, and many of them have been two-factor, where the sites send a passcode that I have to enter into Cisco Duo. It has been more of the latter. I have not seen issues with lagging or crashing on Cisco Duo's end; it was usually on the client end, often because someone set up a bad upgrade or there were connection issues with the Cisco Duo cloud through the administrative site.

Read full review

Berk Onur

Presales Consultant at Cyberwise

With its mobile application, this tool offers a convenient and user-friendly experience to its users

To improve the tool, I think that the solution should consider integrations with other cybersecurity and IT technologies, such as Privileged Access Management and Site Integration. Additionally, the implementation of second-factor authentication via Symantec VIP Access Manager, CyberArk, and Delinea, among other technologies, could be best for the product. While the existing technology is okay, improving the integration capabilities for Symantec VIP Access Manager would benefit the product. I would like to see the solution meet the integration needs at our company. While many cybersecurity solutions can function independently, they often lack integration with our systems due to missed integration points. Improving the solution's integration feature would be beneficial.

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

"Cisco Duo has provided substantial value, primarily in saved time, but also in low cost because administrators do not have a significant workload with Cisco Duo."

"Clients I implemented Cisco Duo at immediately feel more confident in their security environment, and we can see a lot of illegal attempts to get in, giving me faith in the product."

"The most valuable feature of Cisco Duo for us is the multi-factor authentication."

"Looking back, the biggest impact Cisco Duo has had on our company is enhancing our security posture."

"Cisco Duo has improved my operational efficiency and reduced costs by better managing authentication for our clients and helping to reduce potential compromises and brute force attacks."

"Multifactor authentication and secure two-factor authentication are the most valuable features. It's been around for a while, but now it's becoming an enforced behavior as opposed to something that you used to do as optional."

"The UI of Cisco Duo is easy to use, especially the web backend, and it's really intuitive and easy to set up."

"Overall, it provides functionality and security with the two-factor authentication, enabling us to mitigate rogue access requests to our network and giving our workers the ability to work hybridly and tackle day-to-day jobs securely without having to come into the office."

More Cisco Duo pros

"I like the whole solution, and I would recommend it."

"Pricing was about 25% of the old solution, saving us about $500,000 over three years for 10,000 users."

"Other than it provides us with remote access, so it's fairly easy to install, fairly easy to set up, and provides us the ability to get into our corporate environment."

"It offers more platform support, like Apple, Android, and Microsoft."

"Integration with Citrix Access Gateway, Microsoft Office 365 and Single Sign-On (through Symantec Validation and ID Protection Access Manager) has increased the productivity of the employees for accessing resources."

"Mostly from a product expert's point of view, it provides solutions for my clients."

"In this version 9.1, lots of changes are done for the dashboard, User Store etc."

"After the initial integration, the overall support calls dropped, and customer satisfaction for VPN increased."

More Symantec VIP Access Manager pros

Cons

"I think Cisco Duo could be improved by including email authentication, as there is currently only SMS, SMS push, and code generation, but having email authentication could be beneficial when you don't have a phone."

"It took me a while to figure it out. I went to every user and forced them to set it up. I might have done it the long way."

"We use Yubikey for pushing it to the phones. Yubikeys can get expensive because people tend to lose those for some reason. Fifty dollars a device is pretty high."

"To improve Cisco Duo, wherever the team can try to reduce the number of clicks an end user needs to go through to authenticate would be good."

"Cisco Duo can be improved with better ways to set users up. Currently, we might not be doing it perfectly as we're having them email in phone numbers to get them set up with Duo Mobile. I wish there was more of a self-service option than there is currently, at least to my understanding of Duo."

"My experience with Cisco Duo's strong security authentication system is that sometimes there are difficulties, and sometimes users just won't be able to log in. We have to reset their password so they can use Duo."

"I think we'd need more experience to learn Cisco Duo because we're just at the beginning of using it."

"One downside of Cisco Duo is the expense, as there are clients that can afford only the basic package, which does not include Geo-fencing, leaving them unable to pay for the more expensive level, which I do not feel justifies the double price of that upper tier version."

More Cisco Duo cons

"I would like to see the solution meet the integration needs at our company...Improving the solution's integration feature would be beneficial."

"Our only issue was with user training. The additional challenge was not well received."

"The gateway server is a RADIUS server, but it lacks the functionality of returning RADIUS attributes other than those that are required for the gateway to authenticate the users."

"Every time that I have a new phone or computer, it takes a little longer to deploy it."

"It is challenging to use when installing a new version."

"The VIP Manager can be accessed from the outside which is a security vulnerability."

"At times, the relay server could not contact Symantec; it would fail open and allow access without a passcode."

"If they had dashboards or a report for managers or executives, then it would allow them to see the status and have it make sense to them."

More Symantec VIP Access Manager cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is pretty competitive. It's pretty cheap. Anybody can adopt it."

"From a reseller perspective, it's still challenging to explain the whole license strategy to a client, so we really have to be ahead of that for all the true forward conversations."

"You pay per user when using this solution and the pricing is fair."

"It falls in line with everything else."

"I haven't seen it in a while, but it's at par with everything else licensing-wise."

"From a business perspective, it is a little bit costly. The licensing is on a per-user basis."

"Duo Security is free."

"The product’s pricing is reasonable."

More Cisco Duo pricing and cost advice

"I can say that the solution is worth the money."

"There is a one-time setup fee plus the licenses are provided as per the number of users. For SMS and voice calls, the costs are separate."

"There are additional costs for maintenance."

"Licensing and pricing seems very fair."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Outsourcing Company

14%

Construction Company

13%

Comms Service Provider

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	64
Midsize Enterprise	26
Large Enterprise	80

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	10

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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Duo Security?

Regarding Cisco Duo's affordability for the Ukrainian market, I think it is affordable. It depends on an installation base. For a medium and mid-range market, I think it is a fully affordable price...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Duo Security?

Cisco Duo is a fully cloud-based solution. It would be beneficial if Cisco provided a fully on-premise solution. I have discussed this with the local Cisco office in Kyiv regarding any possibility ...

See all answers

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Comparisons

Microsoft Entra ID vs Cisco Duo

Compared 7% of the time

Fortinet FortiAuthenticator vs Cisco Duo

Compared 6% of the time

Okta Platform vs Cisco Duo

Compared 4% of the time

Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) vs Cisco Duo

Compared 3% of the time

Auth0 Platform vs Cisco Duo

Compared 3% of the time

More Cisco Duo Competitors

Identity Manager by One Identity vs Symantec VIP Access Manager

Compared 7% of the time

Microsoft Entra ID vs Symantec VIP Access Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Okta Platform vs Symantec VIP Access Manager

Compared 6% of the time

Sangfor SSL VPN vs Symantec VIP Access Manager

Compared 5% of the time

Symantec Siteminder vs Symantec VIP Access Manager

Compared 4% of the time

More Symantec VIP Access Manager Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo

September 2026

Download Cisco Duo product report

Buyer's Guide

Symantec VIP Access Manager

August 2026

Download Symantec VIP Access Manager product report

Also Known As

Duo Security

Symantec VIP

Overview

Cisco Duo is a cloud-based identity security platform safeguarding critical resources for any user and device worldwide. Known for its ease of use, Duo offers seamless protection across multi-cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments.

Cisco Duo is designed to secure access with identity-first protection and provides extensive visibility throughout an organization's identity ecosystem. Offering multi-factor authentication, Duo facilitates easy integration and management, allowing teams to protect data effectively on VPNs, applications, and networks. Its single-pane management improves security processes while enhancing trust, making it suitable for diverse IT infrastructures.

What are the key features of Cisco Duo?

Multi-factor Authentication: Strengthens user verification with multiple methods.
Push Notifications: Simplifies authentication with quick approvals.
Single Sign-On: Enhances convenience by allowing one set of credentials.
VPN Access: Secures remote connections with reliable authentication.
User Activity Visibility: Offers comprehensive insights into access patterns.

Which benefits and ROI should users consider?

Quick Deployment: Facilitates rapid integration within existing systems.
Effective Management: Streamlines IT operations with centralized control.
Regulatory Compliance: Aids in meeting industry standards for data protection.
Enhanced Trust: Strengthens security posture across networks.
User-friendly Approach: Simplifies authentication for non-technical users.

In industries like education and finance, Cisco Duo is widely employed to secure multi-factor authentication across platforms such as email, databases, and servers. Its integration capabilities with Microsoft 365, Active Directory, and VPNs like AnyConnect are instrumental in verifying user identities using mobile apps or OTPs, catering effectively to both remote and on-premise environments.

Cisco

Symantec VIP Access Manager offers seamless integration with applications, providing robust user authentication and enhanced security for remote work. Its cloud-based design ensures consistent connectivity and is convenient for users.

Designed for strengthening access security, Symantec VIP Access Manager features strong user authentication and easy application integration. Its fast interface and reliable VPN access support risk-based authentication. Users can securely work remotely, leveraging a mobile app for generating digital codes, crucial for multifactor authentication. The cloud-based solution ensures access even when company VPNs are down, reducing hardware costs with Mobile Credential and offering enhanced dashboards in version 9.1.

What are the standout features of Symantec VIP Access Manager?

Strong Authentication: Provides robust multifactor authentication enhancing security.
Application Integration: Seamlessly integrates with existing applications.
Mobile Utility: Allows secure work through mobile devices for remote access.
Cloud Connectivity: Ensures access even if company VPNs experience issues.
Enhanced Dashboards: Version 9.1 introduces advanced dashboard features.

What benefits should users consider in reviews?

Reduced Hardware Costs: Mobile Credential lowers expenses by lessening hardware dependencies.
Secure Remote Work: Facilitates safe access to networks and emails while working remotely.
Reliability: Provides consistent access through cloud services.
Enhanced Security: Risk-based authentication strengthens data protection.

Symantec VIP Access Manager is commonly used in industries requiring secure remote connectivity. Organizations implement it to generate login codes for multifactor authentication, critical for employees accessing networks via VPN tools like Palo Alto GlobalProtect and Fortinet VPN. It supports secure remote workflows, vital in sectors prioritizing data protection and remote access.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Maine Medical Center, Aria S.p.A

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Duo vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager

September 2026

Free Report: Cisco Duo vs. Symantec VIP Access Manager

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