# Multi-factor authentication for small business buyers: 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 small B2B company. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/identity/multi-factor-authentication/2026-10/smb

This is the permanent record of the October 2026 Edition, published October 1, 2026 and superseded since.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/smb/index.md

**Standing:** Cisco Duo leads with 40% of first choices; verdict clear leader. 72 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) | 40% | 3% | 68 |
| 2 | [Microsoft Entra ID](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/microsoft-entra-id/index.md) | 29% | 0% | 52 |
| 3 | [Google Workspace 2-Step Verification](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/google-workspace-2-step-verification/index.md) | 7% | 0% | 18 |
| 4 | [Okta Verify](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/okta-verify/index.md) | 7% | 29% | 41 |
| 5 | [Microsoft Authenticator](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/microsoft-authenticator/index.md) | 4% | 8% | 26 |
| 7 | [JumpCloud Protect](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/jumpcloud-protect/index.md) | 1% | 0% | 29 |
| 8 | [Auth0](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/auth0/index.md) | 1% | 9% | 11 |
| 14 | [Google Authenticator](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/google-authenticator/index.md) | 0% | 14% | 35 |
| 15 | [YubiKey](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/yubikey/index.md) | 0% | 9% | 22 |
| 16 | [Authy](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/authy/index.md) | 0% | 18% | 22 |

Rank is by share of first choices among all 59 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: no first choice
- GPT-5.4 mini: Cisco Duo, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Microsoft Authenticator
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: Cisco Duo, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Google Workspace 2-Step Verification, YubiKey
- Perplexity Sonar: Cisco Duo; alternatives Auth0, Descope, Microsoft Entra ID, WorkOS
- Grok 4.20: Cisco Duo; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, Microsoft Entra ID
- Mistral Small: Microsoft Entra ID, Okta Verify; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, LoginRadius
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo, Okta Verify
- Llama 4 Maverick: no first choice
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: Cisco Duo; alternatives Google Advanced Protection, LastPass MFA, Microsoft Authenticator
- Kimi K2: Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo, JumpCloud Protect
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: Cisco Duo, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator, Okta Verify
- MiniMax M2.5: LastPass MFA, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, Okta Verify
- GPT-6 Luna: Google Workspace 2-Step Verification, Microsoft Entra ID; alternatives Cisco Duo
- Muse Glimmer 30B: Cisco Duo; alternatives JumpCloud Protect, Microsoft Authenticator, Microsoft Entra ID

## Sources the answers cite

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

- expertinsights.com: 43 answers, 43 citations
- encomputers.com: 34 answers, 34 citations
- miniorange.com: 32 answers, 38 citations
- duo.com: 28 answers, 53 citations
- aimultiple.com: 27 answers, 33 citations
- rippling.com: 23 answers, 24 citations
- securityboulevard.com: 22 answers, 24 citations
- cisa.gov: 20 answers, 29 citations

Pages named in the most answers:

- https://expertinsights.com/identity-and-access-management/the-top-multi-factor-authentication-mfa-solutions-for-business (43 answers)
- https://encomputers.com/2024/05/best-multi-factor-authentication-small-businesses (34 answers)
- https://rippling.com/blog/mfa-providers (22 answers)
- https://aimultiple.com/mfa-solutions (20 answers)
- https://cofes.com/mfa-solutions (20 answers)
- https://frontegg.com/guides/multi-factor-authentication-solutions (20 answers)
- https://miniorange.com/blog/mfa-providers (19 answers)
- https://plivo.com/blog/best-multi-factor-authentication-solutions-for-business (17 answers)
- https://techrepublic.com/article/best-multi-factor-authentication-solutions (17 answers)
- https://gbhackers.com/best-mfa-compared (16 answers)

## Warned against

- Okta Verify: 12 of 41 labels negative. "you should avoid standalone MFA subscriptions (like Okta or CyberArk) which cost \$3–\$10+ per user/month" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, budget prompt)
- Google Authenticator: 5 of 35 labels negative. "TOTP Apps Without Additional Protections (e.g., Google Authenticator, Microsoft Authenticator in basic mode) ... Risk Level: Medium — Use with caution for admin accounts" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, negative prompt)
- Authy: 4 of 22 labels negative. "Authy is no longer recommended for new deployments." (GLM 4.7 FlashX, negative prompt)
- RSA SecurID: 3 of 3 labels negative. "Overly Complex, Legacy Enterprise Systems (e.g., On-Premises PKI or RSA) ... Avoid heavy, complex, on-premises MFA infrastructure." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, negative prompt)

## Movement since September 2026

Floor: 11 points of share, measured on the calibration repeat.
Same leader: Cisco Duo at 43%.

- Okta Verify: 2% to 8%, +6. Inside the floor by 5 points · rank 6 → 3 of 56.
- Google Authenticator: 5% to 0%, −5. Inside the floor by 6 points · rank 4 → 13 of 56.
- Cisco Duo: 45% to 43%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 1 of 56, unchanged.
- Microsoft Entra ID: 30% to 28%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 2 of 56, unchanged.
- Microsoft Authenticator: 7% to 5%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 3 → 4 of 56.
- JumpCloud Protect: 0% to 2%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 12 → 6 of 56.
- Auth0: 0% to 2%, +2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 14 → 7 of 56.
- Authy: 2% to 0%, −2. Inside the floor by 9 points · rank 8 → 15 of 56.
- Google Workspace 2-Step Verification: 3% to 3%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 5 of 56, unchanged.
- LastPass MFA: 2% to 2%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 7 → 8 of 56.
- YubiKey: 0% to 0%, ±0. Inside the floor by 11 points · rank 13 → 14 of 56.

## 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.