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Microsoft Entra External ID vs WSO2 Identity Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 27, 2025

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

Microsoft Entra External ID
Ranking in Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM)
5th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (9th), Microsoft Security Suite (17th)
WSO2 Identity Server
Ranking in Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM)
10th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Entra External ID is 5.0%, down from 6.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WSO2 Identity Server is 3.0%, up from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Entra External ID5.0%
WSO2 Identity Server3.0%
Other92.0%
Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM)
 

Featured Reviews

FS
Consultant at Artifield
Offers strong identity unification but needs better customization
Microsoft Entra External ID can be improved with additional features, specifically customizable flexibility and a customizable user interface for the login dialog. Currently, the login dialog has very limited customization options, which only include font styles, colors, text messages, or brand icons. Last month, Entra ID introduced some customizable features in their login dialog, but this does not apply to Microsoft Entra External ID, indicating a significant gap between the two. In theory, Entra External ID can support many external identity providers where custom login dialogs could be integrated, potentially via SSO feature coordination, although I have not yet confirmed this. Hence, enhanced customizable login options and the ability to use attribute password logins are critical features that are required for Microsoft Entra External ID to gain dominance in the authentication market.
Ritesh_Shah - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Solution Architect at Hewlett Packard Enterprise
Utilizing key management and seamless single sign-on integration for enhanced user profile management
WSO2 Identity Server's key management feature stands out as a particularly impactful feature for enhancing security. Additionally, from a user perspective, the self-user portal and user profile management capabilities are highly valuable. It allows users to manage their profiles, change passwords, and offers a self-care portal type of functionality. The single sign-on capability integrates seamlessly with various platforms, including Google, Facebook, LDAP, and Active Directory, which supports rapid product launches.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Microsoft Entra External ID offers numerous advantages; there's no need to maintain anything on-premises, which results in a significant IT infrastructure cost saving."
"When it comes to Microsoft Entra External ID, Microsoft itself is the best distributor."
"The impact of having multiple authentication types available significantly helps with security practices using Microsoft Entra External ID."
"The fact that it is quite integrated into the entire Microsoft environment makes it quite easy to use."
"It's similar to using a Microsoft account to create accounts on other websites. We are also using Microsoft Entra to monitor which applications our guests are using. This allows us to filter, block, or adjust permissions for these applications as needed for our collaborators."
"The experience has been rather good; there are other possibilities, but we made the choice to go with Microsoft, and we have a good experience with that."
"The most valuable feature for me is the firewall capabilities."
"The positive impact of Microsoft Entra External ID on my organization is that it enhances ease of use for the administrative side."
"The solution gets the job done, and we don't have to do the main configuration."
"The single sign-on procedure itself, as well as the ability to connect to external user sources such as Microsoft Active Directory and LDAP servers, are the solution's most valuable features."
"The keystore feature has been most valuable for us."
"Some of the valuable features of the solution are the easy integration with processes, such as Single Sign-On. Overall WSO2 is straightforward and does not need customization."
"The product's initial setup phase is easy."
"The product provides easy integration between API manager and IT server components."
"I use this solution to generate keystores and certifications and link these with project development in our company."
"We are able to use this tool to better secure next generation data centers, which use software defined networks."
 

Cons

"The problem with Microsoft products is that they often cater to enterprise-level needs, which can be too costly for medium-sized businesses."
"There have been a couple of times when it was unavailable because of Microsoft issues, but other than that, I don't remember any problems."
"A common concern among the customers I visit is the unpredictability of Microsoft's costs at every renewal. This is really bothersome for the customer, and I would say it is the worst element I have seen in these years."
"The support engineers are not as skilled as our engineers. When they say something would not work, or there is no solution, we usually hear that Microsoft would not support this."
"I would like to see faster synchronization."
"There have been a couple of times when it was unavailable because of Microsoft issues, but other than that, I don't remember any problems."
"The only problem that you might face with Microsoft now is their complex licensing model."
"The cost is very high."
"The high availability architecture has to be improved."
"This solution does not have BPM workflows already integrated, we had to integrate the BPM module externally. They do not provide full-featured auditing and certification modules out of the box."
"I found the initial setup to be very complex."
"This solution does not have BPM workflows already integrated, we had to integrate the BPM module externally."
"First, improvements have to been made in the high availability architecture. This has to do with the master-slave replication, and how the load balancing is handled between the identity servers."
"Sometimes working with the code is difficult because I search for documentation about the code and how to work with the code, which is where I believe they should improve, by providing some documentation on how to work with the code."
"The solution could improve its development from a user perspective."
"This solution requires extensive knowledge to be used effectively as certain areas of its use are not user friendly."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We don't pay separately for Microsoft Entra External ID as it's part of our Microsoft Exchange subscription."
"At this time we are working with the open-source version."
"I rate the product price an eight out of ten. There is a need to pay more for the extra features provided by the solution."
"We have to take their support, but that is a minimal charge if I'm comparing it to other identity managers."
"I have found the solutions license is priced competitively compared to others."
"WSO2 Identity Server is not an expensive solution."
"They should bring in some good pricing models to host the marketplace."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
7%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Transportation Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Entra External ID?
Microsoft is flexible in the pricing for the product, so I cannot say that it is expensive, but definitely they are flexible in the price lists and their ways of doing payments.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Entra External ID?
Not really at the moment, but perhaps when we go deeper into using Microsoft Entra External ID, we may experience some things we may not prefer. However, up to now, we have not encountered anything...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Entra External ID?
When I say identity, I mean Microsoft Entra External ID. We have been using Microsoft Entra External ID since the beginning of 2022. I am using it as a client. The purposes for using Microsoft Entr...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for WSO2 Identity Server?
The pricing is currently the same as the API Manager, so it's not surprising. Since we used it primarily for SSO and the self portal, there were no additional pricing concerns.
What needs improvement with WSO2 Identity Server?
Currently, all required features are supported. If new use cases for artificial intelligence arise, it could be beneficial to incorporate those. However, for our current projects, WSO2 Identity Ser...
What is your primary use case for WSO2 Identity Server?
We deployed WSO2 Identity Server to fulfill our single sign-on (SSO) requirements. Whenever we implement the API Manager, instead of using the API Manager's inbuilt key manager, we use WSO2 Identit...
 

Also Known As

Azure Active Directory External Identities
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Nutanix, ELM, AlmavivA, BDigital, StubHub, M-creations, MedVision360
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Entra External ID vs. WSO2 Identity Server and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
885,311 professionals have used our research since 2012.