Small business▼−3Since September 2026: 35% → 33%, −3 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked.
33%from 35% in September 2026
Inside the floor by 8 pointsRank 2 of 51, unchanged
Microsoft · 13 categories · RankedMicrosoft Entra ID
544Judge labels
164First choices
50Negative labels
14 / 14Models named it
13Categories
October 2026 Edition. Every number here is derived from the raw labels under vendor table v2026-10.8, every buyer segment counted.
Best standing
49% in Workforce identity for enterprise buyers
Rank 1 of 44 in the mid-market standingendorsed leader
3 of 14 models made it the first choice on the direct prompt; 9% of its 67 labels there were negative.
What the models named instead of Microsoft Entra ID →By buyer segmentStrongest at enterprise.
Small business2 of 54
32%75 labels
endorsed leader
Mid-market1 of 44
46%67 labels
endorsed leader
Enterprise1 of 48
49%72 labels
endorsed leader
In workforce identity · each standing computed within its segment · bars are 0 to 100 · the accent bar is the product's own best reading
Standing by category
Every category where a model named Microsoft Entra ID for a mid-market B2B company. Share is first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts; rank is within every product named in that category.
| Category | Function | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Quadrant | Since September 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workforce identity and SSO | Identity and access | 46% | 1 of 44 | 9% | 67 | endorsed leader | ▲+6Since September 2026: 36% → 42%, +6 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Multi-factor authentication | Identity and access | 30% | 2 of 77 | 0% | 46 | endorsed leader | ▼−4Since September 2026: 30% → 26%, −4 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Identity governance | Identity and access | 6% | 7 of 76 | 22% | 9 | under 10 labels · led by Microsoft Entra ID Governance at 25% | ▲+6Since September 2026: 2% → 7%, +6 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Intelligent document processing | Data platform | 4% | 9 of 89 | 0% | 3 | under 10 labels · led by Nanonets at 32% | |
| Non-human identity management | Identity and access | 2% | 13 of 128 | 20% | 5 | under 10 labels · led by JumpCloud at 14% | |
| Identity threat detection and response | Identity and access | 0% | 18 of 105 | 0% | 8 | under 10 labels · led by Huntress Managed ITDR at 51% | |
| Microsoft 365 management | IT operations and endpoint | 0% | 42 of 149 | 29% | 7 | under 10 labels · led by CoreView at 20% | |
| Privileged access management | Identity and access | 0% | 68 of 73 | 60% | 5 | under 10 labels · led by Delinea Secret Server at 37% | ▼−2Since September 2026: 2% → 0%, −2 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Customer identity and access management | Identity and access | 0% | 28 of 70 | 25% | 4 | under 10 labels · led by Frontegg at 21% | ▼−2Since September 2026: 2% → 0%, −2 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Network access control | Network and edge | 0% | 31 of 111 | 0% | 3 | under 10 labels · led by Portnox Cloud at 35% | |
| Business password managers | Identity and access | 0% | 11 of 35 | 0% | 1 | under 10 labels · led by 1Password at 47% | =heldSince September 2026: 0% → 0%, ±0 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. |
| Remote support and remote access | IT operations and endpoint | 0% | 31 of 77 | 0% | 1 | under 10 labels · led by Splashtop Remote Support at 23% | |
| SaaS management platforms | IT operations and endpoint | 0% | 38 of 64 | 0% | 1 | under 10 labels · led by Torii at 34% |
Movement
Since September 2026, Microsoft Entra ID held within the floor in all thirteen categories: no change cleared 11 points.
Best category · Workforce identity · by segment
Mid-market▲+6Since September 2026: 36% → 42%, +6 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked.
42%from 36% in September 2026
Inside the floor by 5 pointsRank 1 of 38, unchanged
Enterprise=heldSince September 2026: 47% → 47%, ±0 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked.
47%from 47% in September 2026
Inside the floor by 11 pointsRank 2 → 1 of 46
All categories · Mid-market
| Category | September 2026 | Now | Change | Reading | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workforce identity | 36% | 42% | ▲+6Since September 2026: 36% → 42%, +6 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 1 of 44, unchanged |
| IGA | 2% | 7% | ▲+6Since September 2026: 2% → 7%, +6 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 16 → 7 of 76 |
| Document processing | 0% | 5% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 5% now. | New this edition | Rank 9 of 89, unchanged |
| MFA | 30% | 26% | ▼−4Since September 2026: 30% → 26%, −4 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 2 of 77, unchanged |
| NHI management | 0% | 3% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 3% now. | New this edition | Rank 13 of 128, unchanged |
| PAM | 2% | 0% | ▼−2Since September 2026: 2% → 0%, −2 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 9 → 68 of 73 |
| CIAM | 2% | 0% | ▼−2Since September 2026: 2% → 0%, −2 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 14 → 28 of 70 |
| ITDR | 0% | 0% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now. | New this edition | Rank 18 of 105, unchanged |
| M365 management | 0% | 0% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now. | New this edition | Rank 42 of 149, unchanged |
| NAC | 0% | 0% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now. | New this edition | Rank 31 of 111, unchanged |
| Password managers | 0% | 0% | =heldSince September 2026: 0% → 0%, ±0 points. Inside the 11-point floor: within noise. Read over the models both editions asked. | Within noise | Rank 17 → 11 of 35 |
| Remote support | 0% | 0% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now. | New this edition | Rank 31 of 77, unchanged |
| SaaS management | 0% | 0% | newNew since September 2026: not ranked then, 0% now. | New this edition | Rank 38 of 64, unchanged |
Shares here are read over the models both editions asked, so they can differ by a point or two from the standing above, which counts every model in this edition.
The floor is 11 points of share, measured: how far the models move a leader on their own when the same questions are asked twice with nothing changed. A larger change is movement; a smaller one is noise, and both are shown. Movement is read over the twelve models both editions asked; GPT-6 Luna, Muse Glimmer 30B joined this edition and are in the standing but not yet in the comparison. How the floor is measured · The editions
By model
How each model treated Microsoft Entra ID across every prompt where it was named for a mid-market B2B company. Fourteen models, six prompts per category.ShowHide
By model
How each model treated Microsoft Entra ID across every prompt where it was named for a mid-market B2B company. Fourteen models, six prompts per category.
ShowHide| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Negative | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Grok 4.20 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 14 |
| Mistral Small | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 8 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 4 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 22 |
| Kimi K2 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 12 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
By framing
Which of the six questions produced the naming. By model says how often; this says asked what. The first-choice count on the right carries the marks of the models that produced it.
FramingLabels by classFirst choices
Direct105 labels39
Paraphrase101 labels44
Comparative98 labels42not counted in share
Budget-constrained99 labels60
Scale-constrained69 labels21
Negative72 labels8not counted in share
First choiceAlternativeMentionNegative544 labels in all, every segment counted; 164 of the 214 first choices count toward share, since the comparative and negative framings do not. The bar is one segment per label class, to scale within the framing.
What the models said for it
Verbatim evidence the judge attached to positive labels.
“If you're a Microsoft shop (most B2B mid-market firms are): Microsoft Entra ID MFA using Conditional Access policies — it's the most cost-effective, deeply integrated solution” DeepSeek V4 Flash · MFA · direct prompt · first choice
“Bottom Line: For most small businesses with tight budgets, Microsoft Entra ID (if on M365) or OneLogin Basic ($3/user/month) offer the best balance of features and cost.” Qwen 3.7 Flash · Workforce identity · budget prompt · first choice
“Tier 1 (Integrated/Free-ish): Microsoft Entra (Azure AD) or Duo (Cisco). ... sticking with Microsoft's native offering is often the path of least resistance and lowest cost.” Qwen 3.7 Flash · MFA · scale prompt · first choice
“look at their native governance offerings (*Okta Identity Governance* or *Entra ID Governance*). This minimizes the need to buy and integrate a whole separate platform.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · IGA · scale prompt · first choice
And against it
Verbatim evidence attached to negative labels. A warning on a product with few labels is a warning; on a product with many, it is one voice among them.
“Azure AD followed in mid-2025. Any script utilizing cmdlets like `Connect-MsolService` or `Connect-AzureAD` is broken.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · M365 management · negative prompt · hard negative
“Deprecated/End-of-Life Tools (Avoid Immediately) ... Deprecated as of March 30, 2024” Kimi K2 · M365 management · negative prompt · hard negative
“Avoid "big fish" vendors (like CyberArk or Microsoft Entra ID) for now” Qwen 3.7 Flash · PAM · budget prompt · hard negative
“Platforms like Microsoft Entra or Okta can work well for lighter governance needs, but sources note they have gaps in deeper IGA capabilities” Perplexity Sonar · IGA · negative prompt · soft negative
Named alongside
The products named in the same answers as Microsoft Entra ID, over the 543 answers that named it. Took the first choice instead counts the answers where the other product was the first choice and Microsoft Entra ID was named but was not.ShowHide
Named alongside
The products named in the same answers as Microsoft Entra ID, over the 543 answers that named it. Took the first choice instead counts the answers where the other product was the first choice and Microsoft Entra ID was named but was not.
ShowHideProductSame answerTook the first choice insteadHead to head
A head-to-head page exists where both products are among a category's top eight. The other rows are the same fact without a page behind them, so they link to the product instead.
What carried it into the answer
The sites and pages cited by the answers that named Microsoft Entra ID. A fact about retrieval, not a lever on the model.
Citations exist only for the models that return a source list, five of the fourteen in this edition, so these counts come from 480 of the 543 answers that named Microsoft Entra ID and are not a share of its labels.
Domains cited
startwithidentity.com207
expertinsights.com181
securityboulevard.com163
cybersecuritynews.com129
okta.com115
siit.io115
checkthat.ai102
g2.com93
mojoauth.com91
miniorange.com90
1,286 of the 1,286 domain citations in answers naming Microsoft Entra ID came from somebody else's page.
Pages cited
Pages are listed as the models cited them.
Search and answers
Where Microsoft Entra ID stands in Google search beside where it stands in the models' answers.ShowHide
Search and answers
Where Microsoft Entra ID stands in Google search beside where it stands in the models' answers.
ShowHideIn search
Google, US estimates- Searches for its name, Google
- 12,100 a month (“microsoft entra id”)
- AI search demand for its name, est.
- 447 a month
- Its own site
- It sits on Microsoft's site (microsoft.com), so there are no site figures for it alone
In answers
This editionShare of first choices
46%
rank 1 of 44 in workforce identity
First choices
164
across its categories
- Named in
- 543 answers
- Its own site cited
- in 480 of the answers that named it
Search figures are US estimates from DataForSEO, read September 28, 2026; AI search demand is its modeled, directional estimate, not a count of queries to any assistant. The answers are this edition's. Two measurements side by side: neither is read as the cause of the other.
Names read as Microsoft Entra ID
What the judge wrote, as written, with how often. The vendor table decides that these count as Microsoft Entra ID; a claim can dispute any of them.
Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) 12Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) 10Microsoft Entra 9Microsoft Entra ID MFA 7Microsoft Entra MFA 4Entra ID 3Microsoft 3Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) MFA 3Microsoft Entra ID P1 2Azure AD & MSOnline PowerShell Modules 1Azure AD (Microsoft Entra ID) 1Azure AD (`AzureAD` / `AzureADPreview`) 1Azure AD Premium 1Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) & Microsoft Authenticator 1Microsoft (Entra + Defender XDR) 1Microsoft (Entra ID Protection + Defender) 1Microsoft Azure Active Directory 1Microsoft Defender / Entra ID 1Microsoft Entra (Azure AD) 1Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) + MFA 1Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) / Entra Privilege Identity Management (PIM) 1Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) MFA 1Microsoft Entra ID (Free Tier) 1Microsoft Entra ID (Free tier) 1
Follow Microsoft Entra ID
An email the morning each edition publishes: where this product moved, where it held, and by how much against the noise floor. One address, confirmed by a click; a stop link in every email.
Already following? Everything you follow, with a stop for each.
The company
Microsoft is the company behind Microsoft Entra ID.ShowHide
The company
Microsoft is the company behind Microsoft Entra ID.
ShowHideOn record
Company records- Also from Microsoft
- Microsoft 365, Microsoft 365 Admin Center, Microsoft 365 Administration, Microsoft 365 Backup, Microsoft 365 Compliance Center, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, Microsoft 365 DSC and 164 more
In its own words
Stated by the vendor, not checked- Positioning
- A cloud identity and access management (IAM) solution
- Price stated
- Microsoft Entra ID P1 $7.00 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft Entra ID P2 $10.00 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 Business Premium $22.00 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 E3 $39.00 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 E5 $60.00 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 Business Premium (no Teams) $18.79 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 E3 (no Teams) $30.45 user/month, paid yearly; Microsoft 365 E5 (no Teams) $51.45 user/month, paid yearly microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/identity-access/microsoft-entra-id
- Starting price
- 7.00 microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/identity-access/microsoft-entra-id
- Free plan or trial
- Microsoft Entra ID has a free edition; Try for free microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/identity-access/microsoft-entra-id
- Customers named
- Bridgestone EMEAULPGCDomino’s Pizza Enterprises Ltd.ElringKlinger
- Not stated on the pages read
- Integrations, certifications, hosting
What Microsoft Entra ID's own pages state, read October 5, 2026: microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/identity-access/microsoft-entra-id. A claimed page can correct any of them.
Is this your product?
Claim this page
Claiming is free and changes nothing in the data. A claimed page shows a verified contact who is told when each edition publishes and when Microsoft Entra ID's standing changes by more than the noise floor; the right to propose corrections to the vendor table, meaning names the judge wrote that should or should not read as Microsoft Entra ID, applied by version and listed in the change log; and a one-line description supplied by the vendor and marked as such.
What a new claim receivesHide what a new claim receives
A new claim receives the current edition's vendor brief for Microsoft Entra ID by email, built from the raw record of the edition. It shows:
- where Microsoft Entra ID is named, by buyer and by framing, and which cells hold its first choices;
- the claims the models make when they name it, ranked, with the strongest and the weakest quoted;
- its vocabulary against the segment leader's, and the pages the models cited;
- who was chosen in the answers that did not name Microsoft Entra ID, and every reason the record gives;
- a battlecard for each top rival: the head-to-head split, why they win, and the reservation quoted against them;
- one page of published figures cleared to show a buyer.
Badges
Wins only: a badge exists where Microsoft Entra ID is ranked in a category's top three this edition. Three sizes, one file each, light and dark; the code is under each.ShowHide
Badges
Wins only: a badge exists where Microsoft Entra ID is ranked in a category's top three this edition. Three sizes, one file each, light and dark; the code is under each.
ShowHideWorkforce identity and SSO
AI models recommend Microsoft Entra ID first in Workforce identity and SSO this edition. Each badge says so in the buyer's words, names the edition, and links to the standing. The next edition issues a new badge; this one stays true as a record of October 2026.
Wide · 320 × 104 Website, beside other badges
Square · 240 × 240 LinkedIn, slides
Compact · 200 × 56 Email signature, footer
Multi-factor authentication
Microsoft Entra ID is among the products AI models recommend first in Multi-factor authentication this edition. Each badge says so in the buyer's words, names the edition, and links to the standing. The next edition issues a new badge; this one stays true as a record of October 2026.
Wide · 320 × 104 Website, beside other badges
Square · 240 × 240 LinkedIn, slides
Compact · 200 × 56 Email signature, footer
Badges read on light and dark pages. Alt text carries the claim, the category, the edition and the index, so it stays a citation where the image does not load.