Same-subcategory comparison

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network AccessvsMicrosoft Entra Private Access

Compare buyer fit, pricing, capability depth, and purchase constraints within one buying category. A higher score is not a universal winner.

Comparison summary

How to choose

These conclusions apply to this subcategory and the buyer conditions shown here. They do not make one product universally better.

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access

Consider when

Mid-market and enterprise organizations modernizing private application access from broad VPN to least-privilege ZTNA
Cisco-centered environments using ISE, Duo, Secure Firewall, Catalyst or Meraki SD-WAN, XDR, Splunk, or Security Cloud Control

Check before choosing

Organizations requiring transparent self-service pricing or an entry below 50 covered users
Buyers seeking a self-hosted ZTNA control plane or a deployment without cloud service dependence

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Microsoft Entra Private Access

Consider when

Microsoft Entra-centered enterprises replacing legacy VPN access
Hybrid and multicloud private application estates requiring per-app segmentation

Check before choosing

Clientless-only private application access
Branch-to-private-resource connectivity without endpoint clients

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Dimension	Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access	Microsoft Entra Private Access
Pricing and trial	Secure Private Access Essentials Requires quote · per covered user · custom quote · minimum 50 covered users Secure Private Access Advantage Requires quote · per covered user · custom quote · minimum 50 covered users Secure Private Access Essentials and Secure Private Access Advantage are the two core ZTNA purchase packages. Both are licensed per covered user with a 50-user minimum, and Cisco Commerce calculates the quote from user count and term. Standard subscription term choices are 12, 36, and 60 months; annual and full-term prepaid billing choices are described, but they are not collapsed into one inferred commitment or payment state. Enhanced software support is required through a separate support SKU, with Premium available as an upgrade. Secure Internet Access combinations, User Protection Suite access, trials, add-ons, and attached Experience Insights are not additional SPA plans. Combined Secure Internet Access and Secure Private Access: Cisco permits SIA and SPA to be combined within one Secure Access subscription when both use the same Essentials or Advantage tier. This broader SSE acquisition adds internet and SaaS security and is not another SPA plan; no combined-package offer is repeated here. Cisco User Protection Suite: The User Protection Suite provides Cisco Secure Access alongside Duo and Email Threat Defense, with additional endpoint and ISE products in Advantage. It is a broader suite route rather than a duplicate Secure Private Access edition. Full profile	Microsoft Entra Private Access $5.00 USD · per user · per month · billed annually · one-year commitment · Users who also hold Microsoft Entra ID P1 or Microsoft Entra ID P2 The exact standalone offer is USD 5 per user per month, paid yearly with an annual commitment. Users also need Microsoft Entra ID P1 or P2. Microsoft Entra Suite and Microsoft 365 E7 can provide Private Access entitlement through broader packages, but they are not Private Access plans and their prices are not used here. No usage charge or public implementation fee is stated. Microsoft Entra Suite: A broader identity and network access suite that includes Private Access alongside Internet Access, ID Governance, ID Protection, and Verified ID premium capabilities. It requires Microsoft Entra ID P1 and is not an edition of Private Access. Microsoft 365 E7: A broader Microsoft 365 package that includes Microsoft Entra Private Access. Its package price and other entitlements are outside this exact-product profile. Full profile
Best for	Mid-market and enterprise organizations modernizing private application access from broad VPN to least-privilege ZTNA Cisco-centered environments using ISE, Duo, Secure Firewall, Catalyst or Meraki SD-WAN, XDR, Splunk, or Security Cloud Control Distributed organizations with private applications across on-premises data centers, public clouds, and multiple regions	Microsoft Entra-centered enterprises replacing legacy VPN access Hybrid and multicloud private application estates requiring per-app segmentation Organizations applying identity, device, risk, location, and multifactor controls to legacy protocols
Not for	Organizations requiring transparent self-service pricing or an entry below 50 covered users Buyers seeking a self-hosted ZTNA control plane or a deployment without cloud service dependence Buyers that require every legacy, peer-to-peer, or non-ZTNA application to use application-proxy access rather than VPNaaS	Clientless-only private application access Branch-to-private-resource connectivity without endpoint clients Organizations without Microsoft Entra ID P1 or P2
Source check	98/100	99/100
Key features	Application-specific private access with deny-by-default, identity-aware policy Client-based ZTNA for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, and ChromeOS scope documented by Cisco Clientless HTTP and HTTPS access in both SPA packages Browser-based SSH and RDP in Secure Private Access Advantage Per-session access with continuous endpoint posture checking	Quick Access for defined private IP ranges and fully qualified domain names Per-app TCP and UDP access with destination, port, and protocol segments Application-level Conditional Access and adaptive least-privilege policy Global Secure Access clients for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS Outbound private network connectors with connector-group isolation
Cons	No public numeric price, currency, renewal amount, implementation amount, or support price is available The 50-covered-user minimum and required separate support SKU raise the entry threshold Term and billing choices are quote configuration states and should not be treated as one universal commitment	The USD 5 per-user Private Access license is not the full identity cost because every user also needs Microsoft Entra ID P1 or P2. Current Private Access traffic requires a Global Secure Access endpoint client and cannot be acquired from remote networks. Universal Continuous Access Evaluation is currently supported only by the Windows client
Category buying score	79	80Higher category-fit score
Rank	#4	#3
Context	Security & Privacy / Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software	Security & Privacy / Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software
Least-privilege access	88Deny-by-default, contextual least-privilege policy and per-session continuous posture checking enforce application-specific access instead of network-wide reach for private apps that fit the ZTNA model.	86Per-app destination, port, and protocol definitions paired with Conditional Access adaptive policies let administrators grant only the private resources each user and device context should reach.
Identity and device trust	83Integrates natively with identity infrastructure and continuous posture assessment, though advanced authentication features like Duo require separate licensing.	85The service is identity-centric and integrates with Microsoft Entra Conditional Access, but each user also needs Microsoft Entra ID P1 or P2, so the trust model depends on the broader Entra licensing stack.
Application coverage	76ZTNA covers private applications reachable through client and clientless HTTP/HTTPS paths across on-premises, cloud, and multi-region designs, Advantage adds browser SSH and RDP, and remaining non-ZTNA applications are expected to use separate VPNaaS.	82The service reaches hybrid and multicloud private resources over TCP and UDP, including private DNS and SSO, while IP-based tunneling is limited to ranges outside the endpoint local subnet and FQDN acquisition may require disabling secure DNS.
User experience and performance	74Multi-platform Secure Client access, clientless browser paths, and choice of cloud or supported local enforcement give flexible user connectivity options, while quantified latency or experience outcomes are not established inside the core SPA capability set.	72Users obtain private-resource connectivity through installed Global Secure Access clients with SSO, but continuous access evaluation that can revoke sessions mid-use is available only on Windows today.
Security and resilience	84Outbound-only Resource Connectors, deny-by-default application access, continuous posture checks, and multi-region design options reduce inbound exposure and support resilient private-access architectures for covered applications.	80Utilizes outbound connector-group isolation to avoid opening inbound ports, though resilient deployments require manual implementation of multiple Windows Server connector hosts.
Administration and integrations	82Simplifies multi-tenant administration through MultiOrg capabilities and integrates directly with Cisco security ecosystems like ISE and SD-WAN.	84Administration stays inside the Global Secure Access area of Entra and extends into Microsoft Graph, Log Analytics, Azure Monitor, and Microsoft Sentinel for policy and telemetry operations.
Support and total cost	57Quote-priced per-covered-user licensing, a 50-user minimum, required separate support SKU, and no published numeric price or renewal figures keep total cost opaque and raise the commercial entry threshold for smaller or self-serve buyers.	63The standalone offer is USD 5 per user per month billed annually under a one-year commitment plus mandatory Entra ID P1 or P2, while support-specific pricing, implementation fees, renewal terms, and free-trial duration remain unpublished.
Full profile	Full profile	Full profile

Comparison summary

Most material score differences

These are the stored dimension rationales returned with each score. They explain the buyer conditions behind the gap without speculating about hidden model reasoning.

Application coverage

6 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 76/100: ZTNA covers private applications reachable through client and clientless HTTP/HTTPS paths across on-premises, cloud, and multi-region designs, Advantage adds browser SSH and RDP, and remaining non-ZTNA applications are expected to use separate VPNaaS.
Microsoft Entra Private Access · 82/100: The service reaches hybrid and multicloud private resources over TCP and UDP, including private DNS and SSO, while IP-based tunneling is limited to ranges outside the endpoint local subnet and FQDN acquisition may require disabling secure DNS.

Support and total cost

6 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 57/100: Quote-priced per-covered-user licensing, a 50-user minimum, required separate support SKU, and no published numeric price or renewal figures keep total cost opaque and raise the commercial entry threshold for smaller or self-serve buyers.
Microsoft Entra Private Access · 63/100: The standalone offer is USD 5 per user per month billed annually under a one-year commitment plus mandatory Entra ID P1 or P2, while support-specific pricing, implementation fees, renewal terms, and free-trial duration remain unpublished.

Security and resilience

4 pts

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access · 84/100: Outbound-only Resource Connectors, deny-by-default application access, continuous posture checks, and multi-region design options reduce inbound exposure and support resilient private-access architectures for covered applications.
Microsoft Entra Private Access · 80/100: Utilizes outbound connector-group isolation to avoid opening inbound ports, though resilient deployments require manual implementation of multiple Windows Server connector hosts.

Research basis

This page uses stored product facts, official evidence, and category scoring rationales. It is not an account-based hands-on test, and third-party user ratings are not folded into the category buying score.

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access: Fact confidence: 98% · Fact checked: 2026-08-12
Microsoft Entra Private Access: Fact confidence: 99% · Fact checked: 2026-08-12

More tools

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) Software

Add more tools from the same subcategory to this comparison. The page keeps up to 6 tools.

Cloudflare Access

Cloudflare Access is a cloud-delivered zero trust network access product for identity- and device-aware access to self-hosted, SaaS, private-network, and non-web applications.

Twingate

Twingate is a cloud-managed zero trust network access service that uses endpoint Clients and outbound Connectors to provide identity- and device-aware access to private, public, cloud, and on-premises Resources.

Microsoft Entra Private Access

Microsoft Entra Private Access is an identity-centric zero trust network access service for per-app and broad private-resource access across on-premises, hybrid, and multicloud environments.

80Compared

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access

Cisco Secure Access Zero Trust Network Access is the private-application access capability sold through Cisco Secure Private Access Essentials and Advantage, with client-based and clientless access, continuous posture checks, contextual least-privilege policy, and cloud or local enforcement.

79Compared

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access

Palo Alto Networks Prisma Access is a cloud-delivered secure access service edge platform that applies least-privilege access, continuous trust verification, and ongoing security inspection to private, internet, and SaaS application traffic.

Akamai Enterprise Application Access

Akamai Enterprise Application Access is a cloud-delivered Zero Trust Network Access service that terminates user sessions in the cloud and brokers least-privilege access to private applications through outbound-only connectors. It supports clientless browser access and EAA Client access, device-posture policy, global edge transport, centralized reporting, SIEM feeds, and APIs while keeping Akamai's internet security, MFA, microsegmentation, WAAP, DDoS protection, browser security, connectors, and services in their proper product or component boundaries.

Netskope One Private Access

Netskope One Private Access is Netskope's current ZTNA product for direct, policy-controlled access to private applications across data centers, private clouds, public clouds, remote users, campuses, and selected OT and IoT environments. It supports managed-device access through Netskope One Client and clientless browser access, with Publishers connecting application environments to Netskope's cloud service.

Zscaler Private Access

Zscaler Private Access is a cloud-delivered ZTNA service that brokers direct connections between authorized users and named private applications without placing users on the network. Current standalone packages cover managed-device access through Client Connector and browser-based access for unmanaged and third-party users, with advanced segmentation, inspection, isolation, resilience, and data controls packaged separately.

Fortinet FortiSASE ZTNA

Fortinet FortiSASE provides agent-based and agentless zero trust access to private applications through its Secure Private Access capabilities, with identity, device context, application policy, and continuous posture checks.

#10

Chrome Enterprise Premium

Chrome Enterprise Premium is Google's current integrated secure enterprise browsing, data protection, and zero trust application access offer; it was formerly named BeyondCorp Enterprise.

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