How Akeyless and Azure Key Vault differ on scope, key custody, deployment and cost.
| Akeyless | Azure Key Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | SaaS vault | Cloud KMS |
| Scope | Secrets, keys, PKI, PAM | Keys, secrets, certificates |
| Deployment | SaaS + hybrid gateway | SaaS (Azure) |
| Key custody | Distributed Fragments Cryptography — no single complete key exists | Premium tier: FIPS 140-2 Level 2/3 HSMs; Managed HSM available |
| How it works | Key material is split into fragments held in separate places and never assembled, so operations happen without a whole key existing anywhere — including on Akeyless infrastructure. Delivered as SaaS with an optional on-premise gateway, which removes the cluster you would otherwise run. | One service holding three different things: cryptographic keys, arbitrary secrets and TLS certificates. Standard is software-protected, Premium is HSM-backed, and Managed HSM gives a single-tenant pool. Certificate lifecycle is included, which the other clouds keep separate. |
| Pricing* | Free tier; enterprise by quote | Metered per operation; Premium adds HSM |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Licence | — | — |
| Best for | Vault capability without running Vault | Microsoft-centric estates |
Choose Akeyless for vault capability without running vault. Choose Azure Key Vault for microsoft-centric estates.
* Published list pricing (vendor pricing pages, August 2026).