Active Directory VS LDAP
As of 30 October 2026, LDAP is named by 1,008 companies and Active Directory by 5,917; Active Directory skews to companies under 200 people (35% vs 36%), LDAP to companies over 1,000 (42% vs 35%).
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's script and mail records show on hundreds of thousands of small sites, LDAP rarely leaves a trace outside its own apps. Compare on the job-posting numbers; use the footprint for reach.
- Active Directory: 2–200 employees
- 35%
- LDAP: 2–200 employees
- 36%
- Active Directory: 1,000+ employees
- 35%
- LDAP: 1,000+ employees
- 42%
- Postings per company, 90 days
- 2.8 · 3.2
- Website or DNS footprint
- 0 · 0
Who chooses which
Share of each tool's companies in every segment. "Leans" marks a gap of more than two points.
| Segment | Active Directory | share | LDAP | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Self-employed | 36 | 1% | 7 | 1% | even |
| 2-10 employees | 262 | 4% | 55 | 5% | even |
| 11-50 employees | 693 | 12% | 136 | 13% | even |
| 51-200 employees | 1,103 | 19% | 167 | 17% | Active Directory |
| 201-500 employees | 1,002 | 17% | 125 | 12% | Active Directory |
| 501-1000 employees | 754 | 13% | 96 | 10% | Active Directory |
| 1001-5000 employees | 1,124 | 19% | 176 | 17% | even |
| 5001-10000 employees | 307 | 5% | 75 | 7% | LDAP |
| 10,001+ employees | 636 | 11% | 171 | 17% | LDAP |
| Segment | Active Directory | share | LDAP | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology & software | 1,896 | 32% | 533 | 53% | LDAP |
| Business & finance services | 1,089 | 18% | 200 | 20% | even |
| Manufacturing & industry | 945 | 16% | 90 | 9% | Active Directory |
| Health care | 341 | 6% | 19 | 2% | Active Directory |
| Commerce & trade | 266 | 4% | 23 | 2% | Active Directory |
| Utilities & infrastructure | 234 | 4% | 35 | 3% | even |
| Public, community & associations | 232 | 4% | 29 | 3% | even |
| Property & construction | 232 | 4% | 9 | 1% | Active Directory |
| Consumer services & leisure | 196 | 3% | 17 | 2% | even |
| Transport, logistics & rental | 151 | 3% | 18 | 2% | even |
| Automotive | 128 | 2% | 5 | 0% | even |
| Media & content | 125 | 2% | 25 | 2% | even |
| Segment | Active Directory | share | LDAP | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 3,282 | 55% | 650 | 64% | LDAP |
| Germany | 739 | 12% | 51 | 5% | Active Directory |
| United Kingdom | 348 | 6% | 53 | 5% | even |
| France | 220 | 4% | 44 | 4% | even |
| Canada | 194 | 3% | 27 | 3% | even |
| Australia | 93 | 2% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Netherlands | 82 | 1% | 11 | 1% | even |
| Switzerland | 78 | 1% | 10 | 1% | even |
| Austria | 76 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| India | 71 | 1% | 23 | 2% | even |
| Italy | 66 | 1% | 10 | 1% | even |
| Poland | 62 | 1% | 10 | 1% | even |
| Singapore | – | – | 11 | 1% | outside top 12 |
| Spain | – | – | 10 | 1% | outside top 12 |
| Segment | Active Directory | share | LDAP | share | Leans |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IT operations & business systems | 16,418 | 70% | 2,450 | 51% | Active Directory |
| Software engineering | 985 | 4% | 937 | 20% | LDAP |
| Engineering (non-software) | 937 | 4% | 127 | 3% | even |
| Customer service & success | 684 | 3% | 190 | 4% | even |
| Sales | 288 | 1% | 110 | 2% | even |
| Product, program & project management | 263 | 1% | 53 | 1% | even |
| Skilled trades and field service | 158 | 1% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Data & AI | 142 | 1% | 60 | 1% | even |
| General management & consulting | 64 | 0% | 21 | 0% | even |
| Administration & office | 60 | 0% | 8 | 0% | even |
| Arts media and entertainment | 40 | 0% | 6 | 0% | even |
| Finance & accounting | 38 | 0% | – | – | outside top 12 |
| Quality, safety & environment | – | – | 15 | 0% | outside top 12 |
| Construction and civil | – | – | 6 | 0% | outside top 12 |
The companies behind each column
Companies using Active Directory →
Companies using LDAP →
Identity ranked →
Quote the sentence with the date and the link. The numbers change daily; the link always shows the current ones.
LDAP is named by 1,008 companies in job postings and Active Directory by 5,917; 1,109 name both. (Breaknorm, 30 October 2026, https://breaknorm.co/compare/active-directory-vs-ldap)
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 vs LDAP: questions
Which is more used, Active Directory or LDAP?
By companies naming it in their own job postings, Active Directory (5,917) over LDAP (1,008). By website-and-DNS footprint, LDAP (0 vs 0), because its scripts and mail records sit on many small company sites.
Who chooses Active Directory?
35% of Active Directory companies have 2 to 200 employees, against 36% for LDAP. 35% of Active Directory companies have over 1,000 employees, against 42% for LDAP.
Do companies run both?
1,109 companies name both in their postings, usually Active Directory in marketing and LDAP 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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with the person who owns it
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