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Cybersecurity · head to head

Entrust Identity as a Service vs NICE Actimize

Entrust Identity as a Service logo

Entrust Identity as a Service

Cybersecurity

Workforce and customer authentication from a certificate authority

From
$2/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
NICE Actimize logo

NICE Actimize

Cybersecurity

Financial crime, risk and compliance suite for regulated institutions

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Entrust Identity as a Service the application integration catalogue is smaller than that of the dedicated identity vendors, so uncommon SaaS applications more often need custom SAML configuration rather than a template.; NICE Actimize modules are licensed separately, so a bank that starts with AML and later needs fraud and surveillance faces three negotiations and a bill that compounds rather than a suite price.
  • They diverge on capability: Entrust Identity as a Service covers Multi-factor authentication, NICE Actimize covers Suspicious activity monitoring.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Entrust Identity as a Service and NICE Actimize actually diverge.

Attributes where Entrust Identity as a Service and NICE Actimize differ
AttributeEntrust Identity as a ServiceNICE Actimize
Starting price$2/monthOn request
Pricing modelPer user per monthquote
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Android, Windows, LinuxWeb, Linux, Windows

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Entrust Identity as a Service

  • Multi-factor authentication
  • Single sign-on
  • Adaptive authentication
  • Passwordless login
  • Credential lifecycle
  • Derived PIV credentials
  • Directory integration

Only in NICE Actimize

  • Suspicious activity monitoring
  • Watchlist filtering
  • Customer due diligence
  • Payment fraud detection
  • Markets surveillance
  • Case management
  • X-Sight marketplace

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Entrust Identity as a Service

  • A government agency needing derived mobile credentials from an existing PIV smart card estatenot NICE Actimize
  • A bank that must support hardware tokens for corporate treasury users alongside push authentication for staffnot NICE Actimize
  • An organisation already buying Entrust certificates that wants credential issuance and authentication from one vendornot NICE Actimize
  • A defence supplier required to use certificate-based authentication that mainstream cloud identity products handle poorlynot NICE Actimize

NICE Actimize

  • A bank under a regulatory consent order that needs a monitoring system with an audit trail examiners already recognisenot Entrust Identity as a Service
  • A broker dealer required to implement trade surveillance covering both orders and trader communicationsnot Entrust Identity as a Service
  • A regional bank outgrowing spreadsheet-based sanctions screening and needing documented model governancenot Entrust Identity as a Service
  • A payments firm needing real time fraud scoring on faster payments alongside batch AML monitoringnot Entrust Identity as a Service

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Entrust Identity as a Service

  • The application integration catalogue is smaller than that of the dedicated identity vendors, so uncommon SaaS applications more often need custom SAML configuration rather than a template.
  • Developer experience for customer identity use cases is behind the specialists, and teams building consumer signup flows will find the APIs and documentation less complete.
  • Advanced capabilities including adaptive authentication and credential management sit above the published entry price, so the two dollar figure rarely reflects what a regulated buyer actually spends.
  • There are two overlapping products, Identity as a Service and Identity Enterprise, and choosing wrongly at the start means a migration later rather than a licence change.
  • Identity governance, access certification and privileged access are not covered, so an organisation with audit-driven access review requirements needs a second vendor alongside it.

NICE Actimize

  • Modules are licensed separately, so a bank that starts with AML and later needs fraud and surveillance faces three negotiations and a bill that compounds rather than a suite price.
  • Tuning and model validation are consultant-heavy, and the services spend over a deployment often exceeds the first year licence cost.
  • The older on premises deployments carry batch-oriented architecture that makes true real time decisioning harder than in newer cloud native rivals.
  • Rule and model changes go through a controlled release process, so a bank reacting to a new fraud typology may wait weeks for a change that a modern platform would ship in days.
  • Because it is the incumbent at so many institutions, criminals have a good working understanding of what the standard rule sets detect, and undifferentiated out of the box configurations catch predictable behaviour.

Pricing, plan by plan

Entrust Identity as a Service

$2/month
  • Workforce Standard$2/month
    • Multi-factor authentication
    • Single sign-on
    • Directory integration
  • Higher tiers$undefined/month
    • Adaptive risk-based authentication
    • Certificate and smart card credential management
    • Derived PIV credentials

NICE Actimize

On request
  • NICE Actimize$undefined/year
    • Licensed per module, not as one suite
    • Scaled by institution asset size or transaction volume
    • On premises or Actimize cloud deployment

Which should you pick?

Choose Entrust Identity as a Service if

  • You need multi-factor authentication.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, Windows, Linux.
  • You also want single sign-on.
Entrust Identity as a Service review

Choose NICE Actimize if

  • You need suspicious activity monitoring.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Windows.
  • You also want watchlist filtering.
NICE Actimize review

Questions people ask

Is Entrust Identity as a Service or NICE Actimize better?
Neither clearly leads. Entrust Identity as a Service starts at $2/month and NICE Actimize at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Entrust Identity as a Service or NICE Actimize?
Entrust Identity as a Service starts at $2/month and NICE Actimize at On request.
Does Entrust Identity as a Service or NICE Actimize run on more platforms?
Entrust Identity as a Service runs on Web, iOS, Android, Windows, Linux. NICE Actimize runs on Web, Linux, Windows.
What is Entrust Identity as a Service best used for?
Entrust Identity as a Service is most often used for a government agency needing derived mobile credentials from an existing piv smart card estate, a bank that must support hardware tokens for corporate treasury users alongside push authentication for staff, an organisation already buying entrust certificates that wants credential issuance and authentication from one vendor, a defence supplier required to use certificate-based authentication that mainstream cloud identity products handle poorly. Of those, a government agency needing derived mobile credentials from an existing piv smart card estate and a bank that must support hardware tokens for corporate treasury users alongside push authentication for staff are not what NICE Actimize is typically brought in for.
What can Entrust Identity as a Service do that NICE Actimize cannot?
Entrust Identity as a Service covers Multi-factor authentication, Single sign-on, Adaptive authentication, Passwordless login. NICE Actimize covers Suspicious activity monitoring, Watchlist filtering, Customer due diligence, Payment fraud detection.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Entrust Identity as a Service: Is MFA included or extra?

Multi-factor authentication is included in the workforce bundles rather than sold separately, which is not true of every competitor. Adaptive risk-based authentication sits in higher tiers.

NICE Actimize: Is Actimize one product?

No. It is a family of separately licensed modules covering AML, fraud, due diligence and surveillance. You buy what you need and each has its own price.

Entrust Identity as a Service: Does it do identity governance?

No. Access certification, role mining and joiner-mover-leaver governance require a separate product such as SailPoint or Saviynt.

NICE Actimize: Can it run in the cloud?

Yes, Actimize offers cloud deployment, though a large share of the installed base still runs on premises for data residency reasons.

Entrust Identity as a Service: Why choose this over Okta or Entra ID?

Almost always because of PKI, smart cards or derived credentials. Without that requirement the mainstream platforms are the stronger general purpose choice.

NICE Actimize: Who owns it?

NICE Ltd, an Israeli company listed on Nasdaq. Actimize is its financial crime division.

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