Top 7 Privileged Access Management Solutions

Updated on January 2, 2026.

Summary: Privileged Access Management (PAM) is essential to securing today’s complex IT environments, as organizations rapidly adopt multi-cloud infrastructures, DevOps practices and hybrid work models. Yet, complexity remains a major barrier – 68% of IT leaders say their current PAM solution includes unnecessary features they rarely use. This blog provides a comparative analysis of seven leading PAM platforms: KeeperPAM, CyberArk, Delinea, BeyondTrust, One Identity, StrongDM and HashiCorp Vault. For each platform, we break down the key advantages and limitations, providing an honest assessment of what these solutions do well and where they may fall short.

1. KeeperPAM®

KeeperPAM is a cloud-native PAM solution that consolidates password vaulting, secrets management, session recording and Just-In-Time (JIT) access. Designed for modern IT environments, KeeperPAM operates on a zero-knowledge and zero-trust architecture, ensuring complete encryption of credentials and sessions. It enables secure, agentless access to remote infrastructure via Keeper’s zero-trust gateway and enforces least privilege across all Windows, Linux and macOS endpoints through Keeper’s Endpoint Privilege Manager via agents. With seamless integrations into Identity Providers (IdPs), SIEMs and DevOps tools, KeeperPAM provides visibility, access control and compliance across hybrid, multi-cloud and on-prem environments.

Advanced features include credential-less session initiation, agentic AI threat detection and response, automatic password rotation, multi-protocol session recording, role-based access policies and support for modern protocols such as SSH, RDP, HTTPS and database tunnels.

KeeperPAM Pros	KeeperPAM Cons
Zero-knowledge, zero-trust architecture FedRAMP High and GovRAMP Authorized Unified PAM platform with rapid, agentless deployment and optional agent-based endpoint privilege management Seamless integration with over 100 IAM, DevOps, SIEM and ITSM tools	As a modern entrant to the PAM space, KeeperPAM is not yet featured in major analyst quadrants but is rapidly gaining adoption across industries

KeeperPAM pricing

Keeper is transparent about its pricing, which is publicly available – unlike many competitors. KeeperPAM is priced at $85 per user/month, with a minimum of 5 users.

2. CyberArk

CyberArk is a widely recognized PAM provider offering credential vaulting, session recording, endpoint privilege enforcement and secrets management. Its architecture is built around a centralized vault that must be online to function and uses a multi-component setup, including Password Vault Web Access (PVWA), Central Policy Manager (CPM) and Privileged Session Manager (PSM), which can add deployment and management complexity. CyberArk is not zero-knowledge, meaning it retains access to encrypted data and relies on network connectivity for secure operations. Secrets management is handled through multiple products: Conjur for DevOps automation and Workforce Password Manager (WPM) for end-user credential storage. These tools operate separately and can require dedicated infrastructure, integrations and manual configuration.

CyberArk Pros	CyberArk Cons
Includes behavioral analytics and logging tools designed to detect privileged account misuse Offers credential checkout, session recording and integration with SIEMs and ITSMs Available as CyberArk Self-Hosted, CyberArk SaaS and CyberArk Endpoint Privilege Manager	Not zero-knowledge; CyberArk has access to encrypted customer data Requires the installation of multiple components, making the platform not seamless Deployment complexity often requires professional services Secrets management tools like Conjur are infrastructure-heavy and slow to deploy Typically cannot be used by non-technical users

CyberArk pricing

CyberArk uses a quote-based pricing model, and is not transparent with their pricing. Licensing depends on the number of users, selected modules and deployment model. Additional costs often include infrastructure, maintenance and professional services.

3. Delinea

Delinea (formerly ThycoticCentrify) offers a modular PAM suite that includes Secret Server, Privilege Manager and DevOps Secrets Vault. These components can be deployed on-premises or via the cloud. Delinea integrates with Azure AD, Okta, ServiceNow, Splunk and popular DevOps pipelines. However, CLI support across the suite is fragmented, limited primarily to DevOps Secrets Vault, which is a separately licensed tool and not fully integrated with the rest of the platform. Professional services are often required for deployment and customization, and the system may involve multiple interfaces due to its modular structure.

Delinea Pros	Delinea Cons
Offers multiple deployment options: on-premises, hybrid and cloud Integrates with major identity providers, ITSM platforms and some DevOps tools Supports basic vaulting, password rotation and policy-based access control	Requires professional services for most deployments CLI support is fragmented and limited to DevOps Secrets Vault Secrets are static and rotated on schedules; no native support for dynamic secrets Session recording has duration limits and setup complexity (e.g., RabbitMQ required) Interface and management complexity due to post-merger product integration

Delinea pricing

Delinea follows a modular pricing structure, and is not transparent with their pricing. Licensing varies based on selected products and deployment type. Each module may incur additional costs.

4. BeyondTrust

BeyondTrust offers PAM through distinct products such as Password Safe and Privileged Remote Access, which address different aspects of privileged access. Password Safe focuses on credential vaulting and session recording, while Privileged Remote Access supports secure third-party access. These tools are not unified and operate with separate interfaces and login workflows. Their integration is limited to API-based connections, which require configuration and maintenance. 

BeyondTrust is not a zero-knowledge platform and relies on centralized storage with traditional architectural models. Although FedRAMP Authorized, it is not GovRAMP Authorized. Single Sign-On (SSO) integrations can be complex and often require professional services. The platform’s session monitoring requires multiple components and can involve dedicated infrastructure.

BeyondTrust Pros	BeyondTrust Cons
Supports credential vaulting, session recording and endpoint privilege management Available as both cloud and on-prem deployments Offers role-based access and compliance auditing	Fragmented architecture with multiple separate tools and interfaces SSO configuration is complex and may require professional services No zero-knowledge encryption Session recording setup may require additional infrastructure Secrets management and password access workflows can be less intuitive for end users integration

BeyondTrust pricing

BeyondTrust uses a quote-based pricing model and is not transparent with their pricing. Licensing varies based on modules deployed, infrastructure scale and required services. Maintenance and professional services are often necessary for deployment and support. Costs can increase with scale and include licensing for Password Safe, Privileged Remote Access and Endpoint Privilege Management.

5. One Identity

One Identity Safeguard offers PAM capabilities via hardware and virtual appliances that support credential vaulting, session recording and behavioral analytics. The platform is designed for high-assurance deployments but depends on appliance-based infrastructure, which may limit flexibility in cloud-native environments. It integrates with One Identity Manager for centralized identity governance and policy enforcement. However, its architecture typically requires greater setup and maintenance compared to cloud-native PAM platforms.

One Identity Pros	One Identity Cons
Supports privileged session recording and behavioral analytics Compatible with One Identity Manager for identity governance	Lacks zero-knowledge encryption and cloud-native agility Appliance-based deployment adds hardware and operational overhead Integrations often require additional One Identity components Session recording and secrets management workflows can require customization and services Less intuitive for non-technical end users and broader business teams

One Identity pricing

One Identity uses an appliance-plus-license pricing model and is not transparent with their pricing. Costs typically include physical or virtual appliances, user licenses and support contracts. Professional services are frequently required for deployment and integration.

6. StrongDM

StrongDM is a cloud-based access management solution that facilitates secure, centralized access to infrastructure such as databases, servers, Kubernetes clusters and cloud environments. It uses a proxy-based architecture to route user sessions through secure gateways without exposing credentials directly to end users. This setup supports Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) and session-level logging.

The platform integrates with identity providers such as Okta, Azure AD and Google Workspace, and can stream logs to external SIEM platforms. StrongDM includes features like ephemeral credential handling, session logging and just-in-time access. It does not provide traditional password vaulting or visual session replay and is primarily designed to support cloud-forward and DevOps-centric environments.

StrongDM Pros	StrongDM Cons
Unified access proxy for databases, servers, Kubernetes and web apps Real-time session logging, role-based access and ephemeral credentials Easy SSO integration and automated provisioning via IdPs Lightweight client with native tool support	No traditional password vault or credential rotation tools No screen-recorded session replay (text-based logging only)

StrongDM pricing

StrongDM follows a per-user subscription pricing model. The Essentials plan starts at $70 per user/month (billed annually). This plan includes access to core infrastructure types, but doesn’t include the additional fees for the number of systems or connectors.

7. HashiCorp Vault

HashiCorp Vault is a secrets management system designed for infrastructure and DevOps teams. It provides identity-based access controls, dynamic secrets, policy-driven access enforcement and encryption-as-a-service. Vault supports integrations with cloud providers, Kubernetes and CI/CD pipelines, and exposes APIs and plugins for extensibility.

HashiCorp Pros	HashiCorp Cons
Well-suited for DevOps and automation use cases, including ephemeral secrets Offers detailed policy controls and audit logs for compliance Supports dynamic secrets, identity-based tokens and database credential rotation	Requires DevOps or infrastructure expertise to deploy and maintain securely Lacks session monitoring, privileged user workflows and full vault governance Most useful when paired with other tools to achieve full PAM functionality

HashiCorp Vault pricing

HashiCorp Vault offers both a free open-source version and a commercial enterprise edition. Enterprise pricing is usage-based and quote-driven, with costs depending on advanced features such as namespaces, HSM integration and governance modules.

Choosing the right PAM solution

Selecting the right PAM solution is a critical decision that can impact your organization’s security posture, compliance readiness and IT efficiency. To avoid investing in bloated or misaligned technology, organizations must take a focused, criteria-driven approach when choosing a PAM solution. Here are some criteria to keep in mind:

• Ensure the PAM solution aligns with your environment: Choose a solution that’s built for the way your organization operates today, not how it did a decade ago. If your infrastructure is cloud-first or hybrid, opt for a cloud-native PAM platform that supports zero-trust and zero-knowledge security models by design.
• Prioritize simplicity and usability: A PAM solution is only effective if your team can deploy and use it efficiently. Look for platforms that offer fast onboarding, an intuitive interface and flexible integrations with your existing tools.
• Focus on core capabilities, not excess features: Avoid feature overload by concentrating on six essential capabilities:
  • Granular access control with least-privilege enforcement
  • JIT access provisioning
  • Session monitoring, recording and auditing
  • Password vaulting and automated credential rotation
  • Passkey and passwordless authentication support
  • Broad user protection – not just for admins, but for every employee
• Evaluate scalability and total cost of ownership: Consider how well the solution will scale across your entire organization. Can it support users beyond IT and security teams? Does it reduce the burden on your staff or require dedicated administrators to maintain? Look for solutions that deliver enterprise-grade security without the high cost and complexity of legacy on-prem PAM systems.
• Ensure regulatory and compliance support: If your organization is subject to regulations like HIPAA or PCI DSS, choose a PAM solution that simplifies compliance through detailed session logging, reporting and alerts.

Ultimately, the right PAM solution is one that strengthens security without adding operational headaches. It should integrate seamlessly, scale easily and deliver only the features your team truly needs – no more, no less.

Experience modern PAM with Keeper’s zero-trust platform

Legacy PAM systems can be slow to deploy, hard to manage and costly. KeeperPAM offers a modern, cloud-first alternative designed to help teams move fast while staying secure. Start your free trial today or request a demo to learn more about KeeperPAM.