Active Directory Federation Services VS Microsoft Entra ID
As of 30 October 2026, Microsoft Entra ID is named by 4,691 companies and Active Directory Federation Services by 189; Active Directory Federation Services skews to companies under 200 people (28% vs 34%), Microsoft Entra ID to companies over 1,000 (34% vs 50%).
As of 30 October 2026 · refreshed daily · counts move as websites, DNS and career sites are re-read.
The website-and-DNS footprint is not comparable between a marketing suite and a CRM: Active Directory Federation Services's script and mail records show on hundreds of thousands of small sites, Microsoft Entra ID rarely leaves a trace outside its own apps. Compare on the job-posting numbers; use the footprint for reach.
- Active Directory Federation Services: 2–200 employees
- 28%
- Microsoft Entra ID: 2–200 employees
- 34%
- Active Directory Federation Services: 1,000+ employees
- 50%
- Microsoft Entra ID: 1,000+ employees
- 34%
- Postings per company, 90 days
- 2.6 · 2.9
- Website or DNS footprint
- 0 · 1,236,162
Who chooses which
Share of each tool's companies in every segment. "Leans" marks a gap of more than two points.
| Segment | Active Directory Federation Services | share | Microsoft Entra ID | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-10 employees | 9 | 5% | 213 | 5% | even |
| 11-50 employees | 22 | 12% | 456 | 10% | even |
| 51-200 employees | 21 | 11% | 910 | 19% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| 201-500 employees | 31 | 16% | 844 | 18% | even |
| 501-1000 employees | 12 | 6% | 630 | 13% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| 1001-5000 employees | 46 | 24% | 865 | 18% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| 5001-10000 employees | 14 | 7% | 245 | 5% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| 10,001+ employees | 34 | 18% | 507 | 11% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| Self-employed | – | – | 21 | 0% | outside top 12 |
| Segment | Active Directory Federation Services | share | Microsoft Entra ID | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology & software | 85 | 45% | 1,475 | 31% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| Business & finance services | 36 | 19% | 972 | 21% | even |
| Manufacturing & industry | 20 | 11% | 722 | 15% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| Public, community & associations | 11 | 6% | 204 | 4% | even |
| Health care | 10 | 5% | 200 | 4% | even |
| Utilities & infrastructure | 6 | 3% | 197 | 4% | even |
| Media & content | 5 | 3% | 95 | 2% | even |
| Property & construction | 4 | 2% | 208 | 4% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| Commerce & trade | 3 | 2% | 193 | 4% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| Consumer services & leisure | 3 | 2% | 141 | 3% | even |
| Hospitality & travel | 3 | 2% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Transport, logistics & rental | 2 | 1% | 120 | 3% | even |
| Automotive | – | – | 92 | 2% | outside top 12 |
| Segment | Active Directory Federation Services | share | Microsoft Entra ID | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 96 | 51% | 2,619 | 56% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| France | 15 | 8% | 115 | 2% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| United Kingdom | 15 | 8% | 366 | 8% | even |
| Canada | 11 | 6% | 169 | 4% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| Belgium | 8 | 4% | 49 | 1% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| Germany | 7 | 4% | 514 | 11% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| Switzerland | 5 | 3% | 64 | 1% | even |
| Sweden | 5 | 3% | 57 | 1% | even |
| Singapore | 3 | 2% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Australia | 2 | 1% | 92 | 2% | even |
| Brazil | 2 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Spain | 2 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Netherlands | – | – | 114 | 2% | outside top 12 |
| India | – | – | 53 | 1% | outside top 12 |
| Austria | – | – | 44 | 1% | outside top 12 |
| Segment | Active Directory Federation Services | share | Microsoft Entra ID | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IT operations & business systems | 463 | 63% | 10,381 | 63% | even |
| Software engineering | 90 | 12% | 1,986 | 12% | even |
| Sales | 29 | 4% | 279 | 2% | Active Directory Federation Services |
| Engineering (non-software) | 18 | 2% | 408 | 2% | even |
| Customer service & success | 10 | 1% | 311 | 2% | even |
| Data & AI | 6 | 1% | 567 | 3% | Microsoft Entra ID |
| Product, program & project management | 5 | 1% | 252 | 2% | even |
| Skilled trades and field service | 2 | 0% | 28 | 0% | even |
| Unclassified | 2 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Administration & office | 1 | 0% | 18 | 0% | even |
| Finance & accounting | 1 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| General management & consulting | 1 | 0% | 80 | 0% | even |
| Facilities cleaning and security | – | – | 25 | 0% | outside top 12 |
| Legal, compliance & risk | – | – | 22 | 0% | outside top 12 |
The companies behind each column
Companies using Active Directory Federation Services →
Companies using Microsoft Entra ID →
Identity ranked →
Quote the sentence with the date and the link. The numbers change daily; the link always shows the current ones.
Microsoft Entra ID is named by 4,691 companies in job postings and Active Directory Federation Services by 189; 212 name both. (Breaknorm, 30 October 2026, https://breaknorm.co/compare/active-directory-federation-services-vs-microsoft-entra-id)
Read from the source, not self-reported
Every number on this page can be traced to a page we crawled or a posting we read. Full methodology →
- Job postingsRead hourly from career sites. A tool counts when the employer's own text names it as the team's system; both tools can count for one company.
- Website and DNSScripts and embeds on the company's pages, plus SPF, DKIM, MX and CNAME records of its domain that point at the vendor.
- SegmentsCountry, size and industry from the company profile built from its website.
- Not a reviewNo ratings, prices or feature claims. For those, read the vendors.
Active Directory Federation Services vs Microsoft Entra ID: questions
Which is more used, Active Directory Federation Services or Microsoft Entra ID?
By companies naming it in their own job postings, Microsoft Entra ID (4,691) over Active Directory Federation Services (189). By website-and-DNS footprint, Microsoft Entra ID (1,236,162 vs 0), because its scripts and mail records sit on many small company sites.
Who chooses Active Directory Federation Services?
28% of Active Directory Federation Services companies have 2 to 200 employees, against 34% for Microsoft Entra ID. 50% of Active Directory Federation Services companies have over 1,000 employees, against 34% for Microsoft Entra ID.
Do companies run both?
212 companies name both in their postings, usually Active Directory Federation Services in marketing and Microsoft Entra ID in sales, or during a migration.
Where do these numbers come from?
From the employer's own text in job postings read hourly from career sites, and from scripts found on company websites in our crawl. No vendor data, no surveys.
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Every company on either tool,
with the person who owns it
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