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CyberArk Secure Cloud Access vs VMware Aria Automation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 29, 2026

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

CyberArk Secure Cloud Access
Ranking in Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM)
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) (16th)
VMware Aria Automation
Ranking in Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM)
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
172
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Management (3rd), Configuration Management (8th), Network Automation (6th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (19th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) category, the mindshare of CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is 3.9%. The mindshare of VMware Aria Automation is 5.8%, down from 5.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Aria Automation5.8%
CyberArk Secure Cloud Access3.9%
Other90.3%
Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM)
 

Featured Reviews

Manojkumar Reddy - PeerSpot reviewer
Associate Technology Consultant at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Centralized cloud access has strengthened identity control and simplified keyless logins
The best feature of CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is that private keys can be configured once and users can log in using CyberArk credentials. Instead of providing the private key every time into the system, it is not needed. With CyberArk, we do not require it and can directly use CyberArk credentials to access the virtual machines or run the pipelines. Using CyberArk credentials instead of private keys has made things easier for our team because previously every user had to remember the private key and store it somewhere else and insert it whenever they attempted to log into the server. This was cumbersome. Instead, organizations use CyberArk to configure the private keys, which helps because it is no longer required for users to store it on their system or somewhere else to maintain security. This additionally prevents users without access to the server from logging in. This feature of CyberArk Secure Cloud Access also reduces time and dependency on other people. Once a user is given access, they can be tracked anytime and anywhere. Access is revocable whenever people leave the organization. CyberArk Secure Cloud Access has positively impacted our organization because we have observed many changes. One significant impact is that since implementing it, the dependency on people has drastically been reduced. Additionally, we do not need to log in or store the private keys every time as they can be automatically configured.
VasilisGiannitsiotis - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior IT at ITSolutions
Automation has streamlined complex financial workflows but still needs more intuitive orchestration
Something to improve in VMware Aria Automation would be related to VCF 9, as I do not know what it is trying to bring because they exposed it as the solution of everything. So VCF 9 will bring VCF Automation and VCF Operations, the new product line of VMware. I have not seen what this brings or what else it includes. Maybe in the area of vRealize Orchestrator, this would be beneficial because VRO can do everything. Perhaps a more user-friendly way to use that tool would be helpful because the possibilities there are endless. I am looking for more user-friendly navigation in VMware Aria Automation.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is a good product that is well positioned in the market as an enhancement that provides new possibilities beyond the classical PAM solution, for which CyberArk is most recognizable with its classical on-premises PAM."
"My advice to others looking into using CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is that it is a must-go product if they want to have a secure platform and secure product, and integrate it with the different products that the organization is using or virtual machines."
"My advice to others looking into using CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is that it is a must-go product if they want to have a secure platform and secure product, and integrate it with the different products that the organization is using or virtual machines."
"Their presence in the European market and the cloud-based SaaS consumption model is the most exciting aspect for customers."
"The use of dynamic role-based access controls enhances our organization's cloud security as it is part of the controls that we require to meet our TFL obligations."
"CyberArk Secure Cloud Access offers unmatched security features, essential for critical sectors like finance and banking."
"We were partners and a Tier 1 partner with CyberArk Secure Cloud Access, so the support was very high."
"It has saved us a lot of time and work. It helped us to reorganize some of our service lines, so we could be more efficient. For example, on our open system server team, we had 15 people building servers, now we have two."
"We provided the ability to request virtual machines to our end users. Before, this was a very manual process, which took engineers to do. Now, it's an automated process."
"The most valuable feature of VMware Aria Automation is the versatile automation and deployments."
"Even with the virtualization, it would take us at least three or four days to create a VM. With vRA we have brought that down to seven minutes. The solution has helped increase infrastructure, agility, speed of provisioning, time to market, application agility. Everything got super fast."
"It has reduced provisioning time from roughly three to six weeks to about an hour on a private cloud, and about 25 minutes on public cloud."
"Salt lets you run commands on hundreds of servers at once; and sync up software, tools, and scripts across your infrastructure."
"For a few years, when we needed a server, it took us three months to deliver one, and now we can bring one up in approximately 15 minutes."
"The most valuable features are how it takes what we used to do in the same process as manual steps and automates them, such as creating servers, and it's self-service for creating your own virtual machine."
 

Cons

"CyberArk Secure Cloud Access has limitations in support for on-premise teams. When issues arise with the VPN portal or the frontend, the admin team must directly engage the vendor, which can be time-consuming."
"The customization of CyberArk Secure Cloud Access could be improved because I found scenarios where I could not provide the correct configuration due to insufficient options available."
"CyberArk Secure Cloud Access involves substantial effort when performing on-premises deployments."
"The efficacy of the solution is more or less specific to particular use cases rather than generic use cases."
"I find the pricing definitely expensive, and it is something that we are debating as to whether we will continue longer term with CyberArk, but at the moment, it is the platform that is there and it is being rolled out to meet our TFL obligations, so it will continue, but there is significant discussion around the cost of the licenses."
"We do not utilize the orchestration capabilities."
"The most important thing that we missed in vRanger was the possibility to mount several images instantaneously and present it so we can run it immediately."
"Once you get in there and start to understand the product, it is more intuitive. However, for somebody coming in from the outside, it takes a while to understand it."
"The initial setup is very complex because we have a bunch of customization workflows. They were built-in features that we had to program as code with Orchestration."
"I will say the VRA has its problems. We have had issues with stability."
"It was a complex setup. We had to use the consultant from VMware to make the solution work well."
"It needs to be more dynamic with variable customization to make new workloads more reliable. It also needs to be faster."
"The online documentation is lackluster at best."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The cost of the solution is reasonable for us. Although it is relatively high, we prioritize stability and integration over cost."
"There is confusion between licensing levels. There are three different licensed versions of vRealize Automation, and there are different things which can happen in each of them."
"From a budget point of view, the pricing is a bit on the higher side."
"The tool is expensive since it is an enterprise product."
"It is pricey for what you get."
"The pricing for this solution is roughly 20% lower than the competitive products in the market."
"I would rate it high because, compared to other solutions, VMware’s pricing is quite expensive. VMware products have become significantly more costly in recent years, leading to higher costs."
"This is an expensive product and the high price is starting to become an issue for us."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business33
Midsize Enterprise24
Large Enterprise130
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CyberArk Secure Cloud Access?
The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for CyberArk Secure Cloud Access is that the setup cost initially will be higher as it needs to be integrated with different applications that...
What needs improvement with CyberArk Secure Cloud Access?
The customization of CyberArk Secure Cloud Access could be improved because I found scenarios where I could not provide the correct configuration due to insufficient options available. I understand...
What is your primary use case for CyberArk Secure Cloud Access?
As a distributor, I sell CyberArk Secure Cloud Access to partners and then to customers. I don't have the products deployed in production. I maintain a lab that I use for presentations and demos. I...
What's the difference between VMware vRA (automation) and vROps (operations)?
vROP is a virtualization management solution from VMWare. It is efficient and easy to manage. You can find anything you need from the software interface. It provides complete visibility over applic...
Is there any way to try VMware Aria Automation for free?
When it comes to VMware Aria Automation, you have three choices for free runs: Hands-on Lab (HOL) Advanced lab A free trial I cannot describe in detail the second and third options as my company ...
Which sectors can benefit the most from VMware Aria Automation?
I was looking at VMware Aria Automation case studies recently and I got the impression that three main kinds of companies were using it most often: Social organizations Financial institutions and ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware vRealize Automation, vRA, VMware DynamicOps Cloud Suite, SaltStack
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Rent-a-Center, Amway, Vistra Energy, Liberty Mutual
Find out what your peers are saying about CyberArk Secure Cloud Access vs. VMware Aria Automation and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
885,311 professionals have used our research since 2012.