# Multi-factor authentication: what AI models recommend, October 2026

Gane Index, October 2026 Edition. Asked as "MFA solution" and as "multi-factor authentication tool", six framings each, to fourteen models with search on, on behalf of a mid-market B2B company. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/identity/multi-factor-authentication/2026-10

This is the permanent record of the October 2026 Edition, published October 1, 2026 and superseded since. The current standing: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/identity/multi-factor-authentication/index.md

**Standing:** Cisco Duo leads with 47% of first choices; verdict clear leader. 60 first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts.

## First-choice share

| Rank | Product | Share | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | [Cisco Duo](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/cisco-duo/index.md) | 47% | 6% | 63 |
| 2 | [Microsoft Entra ID](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/microsoft-entra-id/index.md) | 30% | 0% | 46 |
| 3 | [Okta Verify](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/okta-verify/index.md) | 13% | 14% | 57 |
| 5 | [Microsoft Authenticator](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/microsoft-authenticator/index.md) | 2% | 19% | 21 |
| 6 | [OneLogin MFA](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/onelogin-mfa/index.md) | 2% | 0% | 12 |
| 9 | [YubiKey](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/yubikey/index.md) | 0% | 0% | 27 |
| 10 | [Ping Identity](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/ping-identity/index.md) | 0% | 0% | 14 |
| 11 | [JumpCloud Protect](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/jumpcloud-protect/index.md) | 0% | 0% | 13 |
| 12 | [Auth0](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/auth0/index.md) | 0% | 10% | 10 |
| 68 | [Authy](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/authy/index.md) | 0% | 43% | 14 |
| 77 | [Google Authenticator](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/google-authenticator/index.md) | 0% | 53% | 32 |

Rank is by share of first choices among all 77 products named; products with the same share are tied, and the order among them carries no meaning. The table lists those with at least 10 labels.

## Each model's first choice on the direct prompt

- Claude Haiku 4.5: Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify
- GPT-5.4 mini: Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo, Okta Verify
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: Cisco Duo; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify
- Perplexity Sonar: Cisco Duo; alternatives Okta Verify, OneLogin MFA, WorkOS
- Grok 4.20: Cisco Duo; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, Microsoft Entra ID
- Mistral Small: Cisco Duo, Okta Verify; alternatives Microsoft Entra ID
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: Cisco Duo, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives JumpCloud MFA
- Llama 4 Maverick: no first choice
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo, Okta Verify, YubiKey
- Kimi K2: Cisco Duo; alternatives Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: Cisco Duo; alternatives JumpCloud MFA, Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify, OneLogin MFA
- MiniMax M2.5: Cisco Duo; alternatives Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify
- GPT-6 Luna: Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo, Okta Verify
- Muse Glimmer 30B: Cisco Duo; alternatives Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify, PingOne MFA, SafeNet Trusted Access

## Sources the answers cite

70 of 84 answers came back with a source list, from 14 of 14 models. Sites named in the most answers:

- expertinsights.com: 36 answers, 36 citations
- frontegg.com: 27 answers, 27 citations
- aimultiple.com: 24 answers, 27 citations
- miniorange.com: 24 answers, 26 citations
- duo.com: 23 answers, 30 citations
- mojoauth.com: 20 answers, 22 citations
- checkthat.ai: 18 answers, 21 citations
- gbhackers.com: 17 answers, 18 citations

Pages named in the most answers:

- https://expertinsights.com/identity-and-access-management/the-top-multi-factor-authentication-mfa-solutions-for-business (36 answers)
- https://frontegg.com/guides/multi-factor-authentication-solutions (27 answers)
- https://aimultiple.com/mfa-solutions (19 answers)
- https://miniorange.com/blog/mfa-providers (19 answers)
- https://checkthat.ai/answers/what-are-the-best-multi-factor-authentication-solutions (17 answers)
- https://gbhackers.com/best-mfa-compared (17 answers)
- https://rippling.com/blog/mfa-providers (14 answers)
- https://mojoauth.com/blog/top-mfa-tools-secure-identity (13 answers)
- https://plivo.com/blog/best-multi-factor-authentication-solutions-for-business (13 answers)
- https://techrepublic.com/article/best-multi-factor-authentication-solutions (13 answers)

## Warned against

- Google Authenticator: 17 of 32 labels negative. "What to avoid - DIY authenticator apps (e.g., Google Authenticator only) – no central management or revocation." (DeepSeek V4 Flash, paraphrase prompt)
- Authy: 6 of 14 labels negative. "Twilio Authy (SMS-heavy): Suffered breaches exposing user data/phone numbers." (Grok 4.20, negative prompt)
- Okta Verify: 8 of 57 labels negative. "While many popular commercial MFA apps (Okta, Microsoft Auth, Duo) offer push notifications where you click "Approve," this method has evolved into a vulnerability known as MFA Fatigue" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, negative prompt)
- Cisco Duo: 4 of 63 labels negative. "Duo and Okta are established options, though their pricing is typically quote-based rather than simple low-cost self-serve pricing" (GPT-5.4 mini, budget prompt)

## Movement since September 2026

Floor: 11 points of share, measured on the calibration repeat.
Same leader: Cisco Duo at 48%.

- Okta Verify: 9% to 15%, +6. Inside the floor by 5 points · rank 3 of 69, unchanged.
- Cisco Duo: 43% to 48%, +5. Inside the floor by 6 points · rank 1 of 69, unchanged.
- Microsoft Entra ID: 30% to 26%, −4. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 2 of 69, unchanged.
- Microsoft Authenticator: 6% to 2%, −4. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 4 → 5 of 69.
- Google Authenticator: 4% to 0%, −4. Inside the floor by 7 points · rank 5 → 69 of 69.
- OneLogin MFA: 0% to 2%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 23 → 6 of 69.
- Ping Identity: 2% to 0%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 6 → 11 of 69.
- Authy: 2% to 0%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 7 → 29 of 69.
- YubiKey: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 10 → 9 of 69.
- JumpCloud Protect: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 11 → 10 of 69.
- RSA SecurID: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 12 → 19 of 69.

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, October 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/it.