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Defender by One Identity vs Google Authenticator comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 8, 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

Cisco Duo
Sponsored
Ranking in Authentication Systems
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
176
Ranking in other categories
Single Sign-On (SSO) (5th), Access Management (5th), ZTNA as a Service (2nd), Cisco Security Portfolio (1st), Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (1st), AI Data Analysis (7th)
Defender by One Identity
Ranking in Authentication Systems
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Google Authenticator
Ranking in Authentication Systems
14th
Average Rating
9.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Authentication Systems category, the mindshare of Cisco Duo is 3.7%, down from 7.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Defender by One Identity is 1.7%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Google Authenticator is 0.9%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Authentication Systems Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Duo3.7%
Defender by One Identity1.7%
Google Authenticator0.9%
Other93.7%
Authentication Systems
 

Featured Reviews

Charles Slaustas - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Mahesh Malve - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Business Development Associate at DigitalTrack Solutions ind pvt ltd
Advanced analytics have strengthened privileged access security and reduced incident response time
While One Identity Defender is a strong solution overall, there are a few areas where I feel it could be improved. One area is the user interface and dashboard customization. Although it is functional, making it more modern and allowing deeper customization would improve the user experience, especially for quick monitoring. Another improvement could be in reporting flexibility. While it provides good reports, having more custom report building options and easier export features would be helpful for different compliance and manageability needs. From an integration perspective, while One Identity Defender works well with core systems, having more out-of-the-box integrations with modern cloud services and SaaS platforms would reduce the need for custom configuration. In terms of support, the overall support is good, but faster response times for critical issues and more detailed troubleshooting documentation would help teams resolve problems more efficiently.
Balogun Peter - PeerSpot reviewer
Digital Magazine Manager at OMC System
Strong security has protected my online accounts and keeps my access safe across platforms
In my opinion, the best feature Google Authenticator offers is the way it generates the code every one minute or thereabout, and the code keeps changing, which enhances security. I am very sure nobody can have access to my accounts without Google Authenticator. Google Authenticator has impacted my organization positively as I have first-hand assurance that nobody is breaking into any of our accounts or websites, and it saves a lot. It gives you that assurance; it makes you feel very safe. The security is top notch, and it is even amazing that it works without the internet. What is really measurable is that we do not get our things compromised now. It is more secure; it provides comfortability knowing that my account is safe, and I feel more secure.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The two-factor login is great. I receive a message and just have to press okay."
"The Verified Duo Push feature is valuable. It gives an extra level of security beyond just the regular push."
"The flexibility is the most valuable feature. We use it for the app on the phone. When we're at different locations, the phone is usually there, so we can use that. It has just been a very flexible option."
"The features I value most about Cisco Duo are the push notification and the ability to select how I want to authenticate, and I primarily use the push method."
"The most valuable feature of Cisco Duo for us is the multi-factor authentication."
"With respect to our users feeling safe, secure, supported, and included, Duo Security is among the best solutions that we have ever used."
"I love Duo Security's push notifications. It's simple, fast, and secure. From the user's perspective, the solution is seamless. The security aspect is great."
"The features of Cisco Duo have benefited our organization in terms of security level because before, it was not secure—anybody could get your password and log in—however, with that second layer of defense, it helps us and helps our community."
"We find that the product scales very well."
"If you decide to activate this solution, your infrastructure will be centered around flexibility."
"It's very fast, and it's easy to use because it's integrated with Active Directory."
"We have definitely seen a positive ROI from using One Identity Defender, as our security team now spends about twenty to thirty percent less time on manual log analytics and investigations because the system automatically highlights high-risk activities, and we did not need to increase team size despite growing infrastructure as the tool helps us handle more security events with the same team."
"One Identity Defender has good network protection."
"One Identity Defender has positively impacted our organization by improving overall security through the addition of MFA, which reduces the risk of unauthorized access and makes user authentication more controlled and reliable."
"Google Authenticator has helped save money, save time, and maintain reputation because of the security it provides."
"Google Authenticator has positively impacted my organization by improving security and productivity."
"The security is top notch, and it is even amazing that it works without the internet."
 

Cons

"There is another issue with removing the application from your computer. It is difficult to remove the application on Windows."
"However, I know that sometimes integrating it with the Linux environment is a bit of a pain."
"Integration between Duo Security and FTDs needs improvement. Integrating Next Generation Firewall safety with Duo Security currently requires a proxy agent between Active Directory and the appliance. It's an additional factor that we need to think about. It would be great to have direct integration with FTD so that we don't have to worry about middleware products. For the rest of the Cisco Secure solutions, the APIs need improvement."
"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."
"Integration was probably the toughest part for us with Cisco Duo, as with any new product."
"I think Cisco Duo can be improved by integrating it more with developer tools; there is not a lot in terms of developer tooling with respect to authenticating to command line toolsets."
"General announcements when new features come out with Cisco Duo should be broadcasted to customers who are using it, which might bring more accessibility to their documents so users can be more in tune with updates."
"The only challenge is finding the right person sometimes. From what I've seen, being a named account is a big deal."
"The login capabilities could be better."
"One Identity Defender is a strong product, but there are a few areas where it can be improved."
"Maybe it could provide support for more web applications. It seems more focused on IIS web applications."
"The only reason it is not a ten is because response time can sometimes be slower for complex or escalated cases."
"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."
"I deduct one mark due to the lack of a backup and restore option."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is affordable for what's coming to the table with it, but in this day and age, the cost is looked at under a microscope, and companies need to very finely define what is needed versus what is critical. In some cases, it might not be cost-effective for a company to have it. In a lot of other cases, it is the cost of doing business."
"It's very simple. Its price is fair. We use the hardware tokens as well. You get what you pay for. In terms of licensing, Cisco has very complicated products, but Duo Security was surprisingly easy."
"I rate the product pricing a seven out of ten."
"It was very reasonable."
"Duo Security's pricing is good, fair, and very comparable to today's market."
"Price wise, it's not cheap, but it's not expensive at all either. It's in the middle."
"I believe the licensing model is excellent as it offers flexibility to our customers, allowing them to adopt a crawl, walk, or run approach."
"Their pricing model is a little bit weird. Currently, there is no price advantage in signing up for yearly contracts. There are no additional costs to the standard licensing costs."
Information not available
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Outsourcing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
21%
Comms Service Provider
13%
Construction Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
21%
Construction Company
16%
Government
8%
Outsourcing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business66
Midsize Enterprise29
Large Enterprise93
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise1
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 Du...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Duo Security?
Regarding the pricing, what actually happened was that we got the product purchased through our HQ, so the costing as...
What needs improvement with Duo Security?
I do not have a straight answer for how Cisco Duo can be improved at this time. With the implementation that we are g...
What needs improvement with One Identity Defender?
One Identity Defender is a strong product, but there are a few areas where it can be improved. First, the user interf...
What is your primary use case for One Identity Defender?
One Identity Defender strengthens identity and access security through MFA, helping us ensure that only authorized us...
What advice do you have for others considering One Identity Defender?
My advice for others looking into using One Identity Defender would be first to clearly define your use case, especia...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Authenticator?
Google Authenticator is the best; everything is okay regarding pricing, setup cost, and licensing.
What needs improvement with Google Authenticator?
There is always room for improvement, and I just want to see Google Authenticator keep getting better. But for now, I...
What is your primary use case for Google Authenticator?
My main use case for Google Authenticator is for security purposes, to safeguard my different accounts or application...
 

Also Known As

Duo Security
No data available
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Bakersfield Police Department, Village of Westmont, Illinois
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Defender by One Identity vs. Google Authenticator and other solutions. Updated: November 2026.
921,523 professionals have used our research since 2012.