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Most buyers should pick Duo.
Duo is the lower-cost starting point: its pricing page lists a free plan for up to 10 users and Essentials at $3 per user monthly. Okta Starter is $6 per user monthly, billed annually, with no free plan listed. Pick Duo for phishing-resistant MFA and brokering access from existing identity sources. Pick Okta when you need broader workforce, customer, partner, or AI-agent identity products. Okta's higher tiers and add-ons need a closer quote check; several prices aren't published.
01Side by side
| Duo | Okta | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $3/user/month; annual rate not published | $6/user/month, billed annually |
| Free plan | Free for up to 10 users | No free plan listed |
| Best for | Security-first MFA and access brokering | Workforce, customer, partner, and AI-agent identity |
| Core strength | Phishing-resistant MFA and access brokering | Workforce, customer, and AI-agent identity |
| Learning curve | No learning-curve detail published | No learning-curve detail published |
| Integrations & data | Brokers existing identity sources; Essentials includes unlimited applications | Universal Directory; add-on prices not published |
| Team/seat costs | License increments: 10 below 100 users; 25 above | Annual workforce billing; add-on prices not published |
| Support | Review support score: 5/10; details unclear | Review support score: 5/10; details unclear |
Duo Choose Duo if
- Choose Duo if you want a free plan for up to 10 users.
- Choose Duo if phishing-resistant MFA is your priority.
- Choose Duo if you need to broker access from existing identity sources.
Okta Choose Okta if
- Choose Okta if you need workforce and customer identity products.
- Choose Okta if partner and AI-agent identities are in scope.
- Choose Okta if its broader identity suite fits your needs and budget.
02Pricing compared
Duo is cheaper at the listed entry point. Its pricing page lists Duo Free for up to 10 users and Duo Essentials at $3 per user per month. For organizations under 100 users, licenses are purchased in increments of 10; above 100, increments of 25 apply. Duo also lists Advantage at $6 and Premier at $9 per user monthly. Annual prices are not published.
Okta Starter is $6 per user per month, billed annually, and includes SSO, MFA, Universal Directory, and five Workflows. Core Essentials is $14 and Essentials is $17 per user monthly, also billed annually. Professional and Enterprise prices are not published. Okta’s Customer Identity Enterprise base platform is listed at $3,000 per month. Both offer a 30-day free trial; Okta has no free plan listed. Check add-on and higher-tier costs before comparing totals.
03Features and depth
Duo covers MFA, directory, SSO, identity intelligence, and access brokering. Its Essentials plan lists Duo Directory, phishing-resistant MFA, passwordless authentication, SSO, and unlimited applications. Advantage adds Cisco Identity Intelligence, session theft protection, Active Directory Defense, and risk-based authentication. Premier adds VPN-less remote access and device trust. Duo also describes Agentic IAM, but the published pricing details do not specify its plan or price.
Okta’s listed scope spans workforce, customer, partner, and AI-agent identities. Starter includes SSO, MFA, Universal Directory, and five Workflows; higher plans add features such as lifecycle management, access governance, device access, and identity threat protection. Okta also lists customer identity products, API access management, and partner federation, with some options sold as add-ons. The practical distinction: Duo can secure access through identity sources you already use, while Okta lists a wider range of identity products. Several Okta prices and add-on costs are not published.
04Ease of use and learning curve
There isn’t enough published information here to say which product is easier to set up or learn. Duo lists an integrated directory and says it can broker access from identity sources an organization already uses. That may suit teams looking to add access security without replacing their existing identity source, but setup details aren’t provided.
Okta’s Workforce plans list five Workflows at Starter and Core Essentials, and 50 at Essentials. Its wider product and add-on catalog may call for more decisions about scope and cost; the published information does not establish how much work implementation takes. The Okta review flags migration effort as something to check, but offers no specific time or process. Ask both vendors about migration, integrations, and support for your current identity setup before switching.
Questions people ask
Who is Okta’s biggest competitor?
The published product information does not identify Okta’s biggest competitor, so we can’t name one as a fact. This comparison covers Duo as an alternative for MFA, SSO, and access management. Whether it competes directly with Okta for your needs depends on which identity products and capabilities you require.
Why would someone use Duo Mobile?
Duo’s pricing page includes a free authenticator app with its free plan, and Duo’s product information emphasizes MFA, including phishing-resistant methods on Essentials. Someone may use Duo Mobile as part of that authentication setup. The published material does not detail its specific app functions or supported authentication flows.
How much is Duo per month?
Duo Free costs $0 for up to 10 users. Paid plans are listed per user per month: Essentials is $3, Advantage is $6, and Premier is $9. Annual prices are not published. For fewer than 100 users, licenses are purchased in increments of 10, according to the pricing information.
Is Duo a good authenticator?
Duo is worth considering if phishing-resistant MFA is a priority: its Essentials plan lists phishing-resistant MFA and passwordless authentication, and Duo includes a free authenticator app with its free plan. The published review rates its features and value well, but user sentiment and support less strongly. Fit depends on your identity requirements.