Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud

Open-source search and analytics engine at any scale

Microsoft Entra ID vs Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud: Full Comparison (2026)

Pricing, features, scores, and a clear verdict on which one is right for you.

The bottom line

Microsoft Entra ID positions itself as "microsoft entra id" while Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud goes after "open-source search and analytics engine at any scale" — so the right pick depends on which problem you're actually solving. Both use freemium pricing, but Microsoft Entra ID charges per seat while Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud charges per gb — a meaningful difference for larger teams.

At a glance

	Microsoft Entra ID	Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud
Our score	84/100	77/100
Starting price	Free	Free
Free tier	Yes	Yes
Best for	Microsoft Entra ID	Open-source search and analytics engine at any scale

Pricing comparison

Microsoft Entra ID

Free tier available

FreeFree

P1$6/mo

P2$9/mo

Pricing verified 2026-04-16

Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud

Free tier available

Self-hosted (Open Source)Free

Elastic Cloud Starter$95/mo

Enterprise$null/mo

Pricing verified 2026-04-16

Calculate your cost

How many developers?10

1500

Microsoft Entra IDCustom

Contact sales

Contact sales — exceeds available plans

Elasticsearch / Elastic CloudUnknown

Contact sales

Try Microsoft Entra ID free →Try Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud free →

Feature comparison

core

Feature	Microsoft Entra ID	Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud
SSO	Yes	No
MFA	Yes	No
Conditional Access	Yes	No
SCIM provisioning	Yes	No
Azure app integration	Yes	No
Full-text search	No	Yes
Aggregations/analytics	No	Yes
Geo search	No	Yes
Vector search (kNN)	No	Yes
Multi-tenancy	No	Yes

advanced

Feature	Microsoft Entra ID	Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud
Identity Protection	Yes	No
Privileged Identity Management	Yes	No
Access reviews	Yes	No
Verified ID	Yes	No
Workload identity	Yes	No
ML models	No	Enterprise
Anomaly detection	No	Enterprise
ELSER (semantic search)	No	Yes
Cross-cluster search	No	Yes
Watcher (alerting)	No	Yes

integrations

Feature	Microsoft Entra ID	Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud
Microsoft 365	Yes	No
Azure	Yes	No
Salesforce	Yes	No
AWS	Yes	Yes
Okta	Yes	No
Kibana	No	Yes
Logstash	No	Yes
Beats	No	Yes
GCP	No	Yes
Kubernetes	No	Yes

Ratings breakdown

Microsoft Entra ID

Ease of use

7/10

Value for money

10/10

Features

9/10

Support

8/10

Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud

Ease of use

5/10

Value for money

8/10

Features

9/10

Support

6/10

What the data tells us

Key capabilities you'd miss

Choosing Microsoft Entra ID means going without Full-text search, Aggregations/analytics, Geo search (which Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud offers). Choosing Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud means losing SSO, MFA, Conditional Access. These are the features that typically drive the final decision — check whether your workflow depends on any of them before committing.

What company size tells you

Microsoft Entra ID (10000+ employees) has the engineering bench to ship features across many fronts but may iterate slower on individual requests. Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud (1,000+ employees) typically ships faster on its core product but may lag on peripheral features. Consider which matters more for your roadmap.

Choose Microsoft Entra ID if...

You want a free tier to get started
You value powerful features over simplicity
Getting strong value for money is a priority

Try Microsoft Entra ID free →

Choose Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud if...

You want a free tier to get started
You value powerful features over simplicity
Getting strong value for money is a priority

Try Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud free →

Frequently asked questions

Is Microsoft Entra ID or Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud better?

Microsoft Entra ID scores 84/100 compared to Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud's 77/100 on VendorVS. However, the best choice depends on your needs — Microsoft Entra ID excels at ease of use (7/10) while Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud scores 5/10.

How much does Microsoft Entra ID cost compared to Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud?

Microsoft Entra ID starts at free (free tier available). Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud starts at free (free tier available). Microsoft Entra ID is the more affordable option.

Does Microsoft Entra ID or Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud have a free plan?

Yes, both Microsoft Entra ID and Elasticsearch / Elastic Cloud offer free tiers, so you can try each before committing to a paid plan.

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