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Idira Endpoint Privilege Manager vs Symantec Privileged Access Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 2, 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

Idira Endpoint Privilege Ma...
Ranking in Privileged Access Management (PAM)
7th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
38
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Compliance (4th), Anti-Malware Tools (11th), Application Control (6th), Ransomware Protection (5th)
Symantec Privileged Access ...
Ranking in Privileged Access Management (PAM)
15th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
53
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Privileged Access Management (PAM) category, the mindshare of Idira Endpoint Privilege Manager is 2.4%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Privileged Access Manager is 1.8%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Privileged Access Management (PAM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Idira Endpoint Privilege Manager2.4%
Symantec Privileged Access Manager1.8%
Other95.8%
Privileged Access Management (PAM)
 

Featured Reviews

Sumit Chavan - PeerSpot reviewer
Lead Consultant at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees
Helps secure the infrastructure and control users with admin rights
There are many features that are currently missing. A customization option is required for certain policies. For instance, if we need to stop PowerShell scripting, we have to create a different policy for that. Being able to create a sub-level policy within a top-level policy would be good. Currently, no user-based policy option is available inside the EPM console. We can only create computer-based policies. The database is available, but there is a drawback in not being able to create local groups on the EPM console. We only have to depend on Active Directory. This limits infrastructure security as we depend on the Active Directory team to manage user groups. If they remove any users, we lose control. If we could create groups locally and block them or set specific policies, we would have more control. Local endpoint management is missing from the EPM site. Moreover, there is an issue with policies not running as expected when we make enhancements. We have to find multiple ways to whitelist applications or enhance policies.
Muzi Lubisi - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior technical Consultant at CA Africa
Secure management of sensitive servers and seamless applications with direct linking
The credential injection feature is highly valued, particularly for RDP sessions. A majority of customers use it for RDP, and a couple for Linux servers. The broader capabilities, including access to multiple systems, web-based applications, and clustering, have never posed an issue. The threat analytics aspect is also a robust feature that analyzes all pertinent information.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It identifies the original source, and all instances of malicious applications in the environment."
"CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager (EPM) 's most valuable feature is its ability to manage user application privileges and protect against ransomware attacks by controlling access to specific files and applications."
"Product-wise we don't face that many issues, and basic integration of users and assigning them the rules and other stuff like that is, compared to other options, very straightforward."
"We were able to reduce the number of privileged accounts by 50%, which helped to simplify our privileged access management environment."
"The most valuable feature is that their database is completely encrypted and protected with multiple layers."
"It offers great performance."
"CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager has significantly improved our security posture by preventing virus incidents and restricting users from downloading unwanted applications."
"You can use it to strip users of their local admin rights and, at the same time, elevate applications for them."
"It gives you list of servers, so you can see which users have access to which servers. This is really useful, so we can make sure nobody is getting extra access than what is needed."
"When we started analyzing different products, CA was really good."
"Manager user/admin’s password, so it’s more secure and password will be changed on time."
"It has been reliable down the line with new features and updates."
"The credential injection feature is highly valued, particularly for RDP sessions."
"It will provide us with more security."
"It's easy to use and easy to configure."
"CA PAM is the least expensive option than most and is easy to deploy."
 

Cons

"The solution's pricing could be better."
"The solution can be complex to use at times."
"We have had some major issues with the tool, but we have worked with the R&D teams and we have worked with support. There is room for improvement, especially on response times. But they're working on it and they're doing the best they can."
"It was complex to introduction the product to the end-users and the technical team."
"My recommendation for improvement is to add functionality for when users request access to an application. There's a pop-up UI, but it's not very customizable. I suggest creating a UI where we can write scripts or use SDKs to enhance it. This could automatically create tickets in a system like ServiceNow when users request an application. If a manager approves, we could automatically push policies to those users."
"CyberArk should consider whitelisting important applications like PowerShell and DLL that are currently not allowed due to some malicious content."
"A customization option is required for certain policies. For instance, if we need to stop PowerShell scripting, we have to create a different policy for that. Being able to create a sub-level policy within a top-level policy would be good."
"One area that has room for improvement is in managing the credentials for network devices."
"Be prepared to call tech support a lot because the documentation is almost worthless."
"We had some issues with the load balancing feature when configured for clustering."
"Technical support is average. They took a long time to provide good answers, only recommended to upgrade SW version which in some environments is not an option and they don’t even know if that will fix the problem."
"The accessibility and other issues were big blockers for our customer: The local accounts with AD integration multi-tenant deployment Java installation on the local machines; those three elements were the biggest blockers for our project when we used it, and we were always putting out fires to do that."
"Now, the reporting feature on CA PAM only shows the basic information in white-black table format."
"There is already a feature for that. It is not too great to use."
"There are currently other tools on the market which are much cheaper than PAM. They can do almost all of what PAM does, and even do it better."
"I believe continued expansion of integration to multiple systems including SSO and SAML technologies will provide a more-expansive, enterprise view of access orchestration, which will in turn strengthen the security of the environment."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product's license is easy to procure."
"The tool's pricing is reasonable for customers."
"I believe it's quite a reasonably priced solution. It's not very common to use CyberArk because it's a niche solution, but customers who are willing to control administrative accounts are willing to pay this money."
"I rate the solution's pricing an eight out of ten since the price can be too high for smaller businesses."
"The solution's pricing is reasonable compared to other vendors' products."
"CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager is slightly expensive, but costs can be negotiated to become more competitive."
"Pricing depends on how many devices you use. Right now, on-premise, it costs us a little, but it's worth it. It seems like the cloud solution is much more expensive. We got this solution one year ago, and it's like we bought the solution, and now they are not going to support it on-premise anymore. We are in the implementation phase, and we missed this, and we already paid for the licenses. This is wasted time from my perspective, and CyberArk should be more customer-friendly."
"The tool is priced high. I would rate its pricing an eight out of ten."
"The version we are using is affordable compared to BeyondTrust, which is maybe three to four times as expensive, but it depends on the features."
"They offer per-device, per-user, or monthly and yearly licensing models."
"Pricing is fair compared to other top vendors."
"I would prefer better licensing options for the 20-100 users we have at a given time."
"The prices are not low, but one can ask for a discount. It’s not the cheapest PAM solution."
"It is reasonably priced."
"Don’t go with an agent model. Don’t go with a model that has you buying a thousand different parts. Go with PAM that gives you everything, or you’ll just be paying costs of implementing another tool that PAM would have just given you up front."
"Cost-wise, CA was better compared to others in the market. ​"
report
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Construction Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
14%
Construction Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business18
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise19
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise30
 

Questions from the Community

Looking for recommendations and a pros/cons template for software to detect insider threats
This is an inside-out --- outside-in --- inside-in question, as an insider can be an outsider as well. There is no short answer other than a blend of a PAM tool with Behavioral Analytics and Endpo...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager?
I believe it's quite a reasonably priced solution. It's not very common to use CyberArk because it's a niche solution, but customers who are willing to control administrative accounts are willing t...
What needs improvement with CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager?
While CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager is a great tool, I believe the functionality could be wider. If it could work not only with permissions but also involve pure EDR tasks or User and Entity ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Privileged Access Manager?
Due to the nature of the solution, it is hard to gauge, but compared to competitors, the pricing is very good. I would rate it as an eight and a half out of ten.
What needs improvement with Symantec Privileged Access Manager?
Recent releases need improvement in webpage management. For instance, navigating through a webpage that acts like a wizard, where I proceed to the next page and enter more information, is not handl...
What is your primary use case for Symantec Privileged Access Manager?
With the customers that I have so far, I help them broker RDP sessions to sensitive servers, particularly those that manage aspects like physical access. I have also done it for backend databases, ...
 

Also Known As

Viewfinity
CA PAM, Xceedium Xsuite, CA Privileged Access Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
NEOVERA, Telesis, eSoft
Find out what your peers are saying about Idira Endpoint Privilege Manager vs. Symantec Privileged Access Manager and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,701 professionals have used our research since 2012.