Cloud Equivalents

Identity & access management

IAM Access Analyzer vs Microsoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews)

Microsoft maps IAM Access Analyzer to Microsoft Entra access reviews (part of Entra ID Governance).

Access Analyzer is automated policy analysis, while access reviews are periodic human attestations. Entra Permissions Management, Microsoft's former multicloud permissions analyzer, retired November 1, 2025.

Partial match Use it to: Spot unused permissions and resources shared outside the organization, and trim access to least privilege.

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Side-by-side comparison

Find excessive, unused, or external access: AWS vs Azure side by side
AspectAmazon Web ServicesMicrosoft Azure
ServiceIAM Access AnalyzerMicrosoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews)
LifecycleGenerally availableMicrosoft Entra Permissions Management, the former multicloud CIEM product, retired November 1, 2025.
What it isFinds resources shared externally or internally, identifies unused roles, keys, and permissions, validates policies, runs custom policy checks, and generates least-privilege policies from CloudTrail activity.Identity lifecycle workflows, entitlement management, and recurring access reviews of group memberships, app assignments, and role assignments.
Pricing modelExternal access analysis is free. Unused and internal access analysis and custom policy checks are billed.Access reviews need Entra ID P2 or Entra ID Governance licenses.
DocsIAM Access Analyzer docsMicrosoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews) docs
Pricing pageIAM Access Analyzer pricingMicrosoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews) pricing
ExamsSCS-C03SC-300

Key differences

  • Method. Access Analyzer uses automated reasoning to find external and internal access paths, flags unused roles, keys, and permissions, and validates policies. Access reviews ask owners or managers to confirm who still needs access.
  • Automated analysis on Azure. The closest automated counterpart is the cloud infrastructure entitlement management (CIEM) capability in the Defender CSPM plan, which assesses identity and access permissions across Azure, AWS, and GCP.

Pricing summary

Pricing models only. No prices are quoted because they change by region and over time.

AWS
External access analysis is free. Unused and internal access analysis and custom policy checks are billed. IAM Access Analyzer pricing →
Azure
Access reviews need Entra ID P2 or Entra ID Governance licenses. Microsoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews) pricing →

Certification exam mapping

ExamProviderLevelStatus
AWS Certified Security – Specialty SCS-C03AWSSpecialtycurrent
The current code (SCS-C03) is taken from the exam-prep link on the official certification page. Simplified Chinese, Spanish (Latin America), and Portuguese (Brazil) versions retire after Dec 31, 2026.
Microsoft Certified – Identity and Access Administrator Associate SC-300AzureAssociatecurrent
English version will be updated on Oct 28, 2026.

Relevance is based on each exam's published scope, not a line-by-line objective match. Check the official study guide.

Verification notes

  • Entra Permissions Management retired November 1, 2025. Some older study material still maps Access Analyzer to it.

FAQ

What is the Azure equivalent of IAM Access Analyzer?

Microsoft maps IAM Access Analyzer to Microsoft Entra access reviews (part of Entra ID Governance). Access Analyzer is automated policy analysis, while access reviews are periodic human attestations. Entra Permissions Management, Microsoft's former multicloud permissions analyzer, retired November 1, 2025.

How does pricing compare between IAM Access Analyzer and Microsoft Entra ID Governance (access reviews)?

AWS: External access analysis is free. Unused and internal access analysis and custom policy checks are billed. Azure: Access reviews need Entra ID P2 or Entra ID Governance licenses. Check the official pricing pages for current rates.

Which certification exams cover this topic?

AWS Certified Security – Specialty (SCS-C03); Microsoft Certified – Identity and Access Administrator Associate (SC-300).

Related comparisons

Official sources