AWS IAM vs Okta

Overview

AWS IAM

Stacks1.2K

Followers819

Votes26

Okta

Stacks436

Followers828

Votes66

AWS IAM vs Okta: What are the differences?

Key Differences between AWS IAM and Okta

AWS IAM and Okta are both identity and access management (IAM) solutions, but they differ in several key aspects.

Authentication vs. Federation: AWS IAM focuses on authentication within the AWS environment, providing access control to AWS resources. On the other hand, Okta specializes in federation, offering a centralized identity management solution that enables single sign-on (SSO) access to multiple applications and services, including those outside of AWS.
Cloud vs. On-Premises: AWS IAM is a cloud-native IAM service provided by Amazon Web Services, designed specifically for managing access to AWS services. In contrast, Okta can be deployed both in the cloud and on-premises, making it suitable for organizations with diverse infrastructure needs.
Service Scope: While AWS IAM is primarily focused on managing access to AWS resources and services, Okta offers a broader range of features and integrations, allowing organizations to manage access across a variety of applications, third-party services, and even legacy systems.
Customization and Control: AWS IAM provides a high level of granularity and control over access policies, allowing administrators to define fine-grained permissions for specific AWS resources. Okta, on the other hand, offers more flexibility in terms of customization, enabling organizations to tailor their access policies and workflows to meet their unique requirements.
User Provisioning and Lifecycle Management: Okta excels at user provisioning and lifecycle management, providing features such as automated user creation, deactivation, and synchronization with various directories and applications. While AWS IAM does offer some user management capabilities, it is more focused on access control within the AWS ecosystem.
Pricing Structure: The pricing models for AWS IAM and Okta differ. AWS IAM is included as part of the overall AWS pricing package, where organizations pay for the AWS services they use. Okta, on the other hand, has its own pricing structure based on the number of users and the level of functionality required.

In summary, while AWS IAM is more focused on access control within the AWS environment and provides granular control over AWS resources, Okta is a comprehensive, centralized identity management solution that supports federation, user provisioning, and access management for a wide range of applications and services both within and outside the AWS ecosystem.

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Detailed Comparison

AWS IAM	Okta
It enables you to manage access to AWS services and resources securely. Using IAM, you can create and manage AWS users and groups, and use permissions to allow and deny their access to AWS resources.	Connect all your apps in days, not months, with instant access to thousands of pre-built integrations - even add apps to the network yourself. Integrations are easy to set up, constantly monitored, proactively repaired and handle authentication and provisioning.
Manage IAM users and their access - You can create users in IAM, assign them individual security credentials (i.e., access keys, passwords, and Multi-Factor Authentication devices) or request temporary security credentials to provide users access to AWS services and resources.;Manage IAM roles and their permissions - You can create roles in IAM, and manage permissions to control which operations can be performed by the entity, or AWS service, that assumes the role. You can also define which entity is allowed to assume the role.;Manage federated users and their permissions - You can enable identity federation to allow existing identities (e.g. users) from your corporate directory or from a 3rd party such as Login with Amazon, Facebook, and Google to access the AWS Management Console, to call AWS APIs, and to access resources, without the need to create an IAM user for each identity.	Community Supported Network;Comprehensive App Integrations;Proactive Network Support;Easy App Integration;Find Your Applications;Okta for One Application is Free
Statistics
Stacks 1.2K	Stacks 436
Followers 819	Followers 828
Votes 26	Votes 66
Pros & Cons
Pros 23 Centralized powerful permissions based access 3 Straightforward SSO integration Cons 1 No equivalent for on-premise networks, must adapt to AD 1 Cloud auth limited to resources, no apps or services	Pros 14 REST API 9 SAML 5 Protect B2E, B2B, B2C apps 5 SSO, MFA for cloud, on-prem, custom apps 5 Easy LDAP integration Cons 5 Pricing is too high 1 Okta verify (Multi-factor Authentication)

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HashiCorp Boundary

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Related Comparisons

AWS IAM vs Okta: What are the differences?

Key Differences between AWS IAM and Okta

AWS IAM and Okta are both identity and access management (IAM) solutions, but they differ in several key aspects.

Authentication vs. Federation: AWS IAM focuses on authentication within the AWS environment, providing access control to AWS resources. On the other hand, Okta specializes in federation, offering a centralized identity management solution that enables single sign-on (SSO) access to multiple applications and services, including those outside of AWS.
Cloud vs. On-Premises: AWS IAM is a cloud-native IAM service provided by Amazon Web Services, designed specifically for managing access to AWS services. In contrast, Okta can be deployed both in the cloud and on-premises, making it suitable for organizations with diverse infrastructure needs.
Service Scope: While AWS IAM is primarily focused on managing access to AWS resources and services, Okta offers a broader range of features and integrations, allowing organizations to manage access across a variety of applications, third-party services, and even legacy systems.
Customization and Control: AWS IAM provides a high level of granularity and control over access policies, allowing administrators to define fine-grained permissions for specific AWS resources. Okta, on the other hand, offers more flexibility in terms of customization, enabling organizations to tailor their access policies and workflows to meet their unique requirements.
User Provisioning and Lifecycle Management: Okta excels at user provisioning and lifecycle management, providing features such as automated user creation, deactivation, and synchronization with various directories and applications. While AWS IAM does offer some user management capabilities, it is more focused on access control within the AWS ecosystem.
Pricing Structure: The pricing models for AWS IAM and Okta differ. AWS IAM is included as part of the overall AWS pricing package, where organizations pay for the AWS services they use. Okta, on the other hand, has its own pricing structure based on the number of users and the level of functionality required.

AWS IAM vs Okta

Overview

AWS IAM vs Okta: What are the differences?