Help CenterHere’s a breakdown of the pricing for Microsoft Entra External ID and Microsoft Entra ID (Workspace Tenant) options, which differ based on how external identities and internal identities are managed.
1. Microsoft Entra External ID (External Tenant)
Microsoft Entra External ID (formerly Azure AD B2B) allows you to manage external identities and provide access to your applications, services, and resources without creating new accounts for external users.
- Pricing: External identities in Microsoft Entra External ID are typically charged based on monthly active users (MAUs).
- First 50,000 MAUs per month: Free
- 50,000+ MAUs per month:
- $0.00325 per MAU for authentication using standard credentials (e.g., Azure AD, Microsoft account, Google, SAML).
- $0.0055 per MAU if the user is using multi-factor authentication (MFA) or Conditional Access policies.
- How it Works:
- You are only charged for the number of unique external users accessing your resources each month.
- Pricing applies only to active users (users who authenticate during the month).
- Example: If you have 55,000 external users:
- The first 50,000 are free.
- For the remaining 5,000 users, the charge would be 5,000 × $0.00325 = $16.25 per month for users using standard credentials.
2. Microsoft Entra ID (Workspace Tenant)
Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD or Azure Active Directory) is primarily used for managing internal users, devices, and applications within an organization. Pricing here depends on the tier of Entra ID you choose.
- Free Tier:
- Basic identity and access management for up to 500,000 internal objects.
- Suitable for smaller organizations or those with minimal access management needs.
- Cost: Free
- Microsoft Entra ID P1:
- Includes features like self-service password reset, multi-factor authentication (MFA), Conditional Access, and integration with on-premises directories.
- Ideal for organizations that need enhanced security for internal identities but do not require advanced governance features.
- Cost: Approximately $6 per user/month.
- Microsoft Entra ID P2:
- Provides all features of P1, plus advanced identity protection, privileged identity management (PIM), risk-based Conditional Access policies, and identity governance.
- Suitable for large enterprises or organizations with strict compliance needs.
- Cost: Approximately $9 per user/month.
Choosing the Right Option:
- Microsoft Entra External ID is more cost-effective for organizations that need to provide external users (such as partners, contractors, or clients) with access to resources, as it is priced based on active external users rather than the total number of users in the system.
- Microsoft Entra ID (Workspace Tenant) is designed for internal identity management, with pricing based on the number of internal users in your organization. The decision between P1 and P2 depends on your organization's need for advanced features like identity governance, risk detection, and privileged identity management.
Example Pricing Scenarios:
- Small Company Collaborating with External Partners:
- 30,000 external users accessing your systems.
- Cost: Free (under 50,000 MAUs).
- Medium Company with 10,000 Internal Users:
- Using Microsoft Entra ID P1 for internal identity management.
- Cost: 10,000 × $6 = $60,000 per month.
- Large Enterprise with 120,000 External and 5,000 Internal Users:
- 120,000 external users (with 70,000 exceeding the free tier).
- External users cost: 70,000 × $0.00325 = $227.50 per month.
- 5,000 internal users on Microsoft Entra ID P2.
- Internal users cost: 5,000 × $9 = $45,000 per month.
Conclusion:
- Microsoft Entra External ID: Perfect for businesses that need to engage with a large number of external partners or clients with minimal internal overhead, offering a free tier for the first 50,000 users and flexible pricing based on active usage.
- Microsoft Entra ID (Workspace Tenant): Designed for organizations looking to manage internal users, devices, and applications. P1 and P2 plans offer varying levels of security, compliance, and governance features depending on organizational needs.