In this guide
Quick answer
Okta Workforce Identity costs $6 to $17 per user per month on annual contracts, with Professional and Enterprise quoted by sales and a $1,500 minimum on Starter. A 100-user company pays $7,200 a year on Starter or $20,400 on Essentials at list price, before negotiation.
Key takeaways
- Cheapest paid option: Starter at $6 per user per month, with a $1,500 annual minimum.
- Most teams need Lifecycle Management, which starts at Core Essentials for $14.
- Biggest hidden cost: the jump from Starter to Essentials, a 183% increase per user.
- Best way to save: true up users, then get an Entra ID quote before renewal.
Okta now publishes prices for its Workforce Identity suites, which makes the first number easy to find. The harder question is which suite you actually need, because the features most companies buy Okta for, like automated provisioning and adaptive MFA, are not in the cheapest plan.
This guide walks through each suite with prices checked on Okta's official pricing page, plus the costs that sit outside it.
How much does Okta cost?
Starter
$6
N/A monthly
Single Sign-On, MFA, Universal Directory, 5 Workflows, $1,500 minimum annual contract
Core Essentials
$14
N/A monthly
Everything in Starter plus Adaptive MFA, Lifecycle Management, Privileged Access, Access Governance, 50 Workflows
Essentials
$17
N/A monthly
Adaptive MFA, Lifecycle Management, Privileged Access, Access Governance, 50 Workflows
Professional and Enterprise
Custom
Device Access, Identity Threat Protection, ISPM, Sandbox; Enterprise adds API Access Management, Access Gateway, M2M tokens
Okta Workforce Identity (Starter, Core Essentials, Essentials, Professional, Enterprise). Source: www.okta.com, Prices verified 21 September 2026
Every Okta Workforce Identity suite is billed annually, and there is no monthly plan. Starter carries a $1,500 minimum annual contract, which at $6 per user covers about 21 users, so smaller teams pay the minimum regardless of headcount. Professional and Enterprise are priced by sales, and add-on products such as Okta for AI Agents and Advanced Server Access are sold separately on top of the suite.
What each Okta plan includes
| Feature | Starter | Core Essentials | Essentials | Professional | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSO, MFA, Universal Directory | Included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Workflows | 5 | 50 | 50 | Maximum | Maximum |
| Adaptive MFA and Lifecycle Management | Not included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Privileged Access and Access Governance | Not included | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Device Access, Identity Threat Protection, ISPM | Not included | Not included | Not included | Included | Included |
| Sandbox | Not included | Not included | Not included | Included | Included |
| API Access Management, Access Gateway, M2M tokens | Not included | Not included | Not included | Not included | Included |
Okta cost calculator
Your estimate
—
per year at list price
- per user per month
- —
- Billed
- —
- 3 years
- —
List prices only. Taxes, custom quotes and negotiated discounts are not included.
Hidden costs to budget for
| Scenario | Annual cost | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Starter, annual contract (100 users) | $7,200 | Headline price |
| IT needs automated provisioning, so Core Essentials (100 users) | $16,800 | +$9,600 |
| Essentials, Okta's most popular suite (100 users) | $20,400 | +$13,200 |
- $1,500 minimum on Starter. Starter has a $1,500 minimum annual contract, so a 10-person company pays the same as a 21-person one.
- Lifecycle Management sits above Starter. Automated onboarding and offboarding is the main reason teams buy Okta, and it is not in the $6 plan.
- Add-ons outside the suite. Okta for AI Agents, Advanced Server Access and other products are sold separately and can outgrow the suite cost.
- Workflow limits. Starter includes 5 Workflows and Essentials 50. Heavy automation pushes you toward Professional and its custom price.
- Mid-term user growth. Annual contracts are sized to a user count, so hires beyond it are added during the term at extra cost.
Which Okta plan should you choose?
- Starter. Choose if you need SSO and MFA for a small team and will provision users by hand.
- Core Essentials. Choose if you want automated joiner, mover, leaver provisioning at the lowest published price.
- Essentials. Choose if you want Okta's most popular suite with governance and privileged access included.
- Professional and Enterprise. Choose if you need identity threat protection, device access, a sandbox or API access management.
Is Okta worth the price?
Okta is worth the premium when identity is the backbone of your security program and you will use Lifecycle Management to automate offboarding. For SSO and MFA alone, Starter is reasonable, but companies already paying for Microsoft 365 should price Entra ID before signing.
You are likely overpaying if: You pay for Essentials but provision users by hand, your contract counts deactivated users, or you already own Entra ID P1 through Microsoft 365 and use Okta only for SSO.
How to pay less for Okta
- True up the user count. Deactivate and remove leavers, contractors and service accounts before renewal so the contract is sized to real users.
- Pick the lowest suite that covers Lifecycle. If provisioning is the need, compare Core Essentials at $14 with Essentials at $17 before accepting the popular tier.
- Price Microsoft Entra ID. Entra ID P1 lists at $7 per user per month and is included in some Microsoft 365 plans. That makes a credible competing quote.
- Time the negotiation. Vendr notes that buyers who negotiate during Okta's fiscal fourth quarter and evaluate alternatives tend to get better outcomes.
- Trade term for price. Vendr reports that multi-year Okta commitments commonly earn deeper discounts than one-year terms.
- Question add-ons. Before adding Okta for AI Agents or Advanced Server Access, check whether the need is already covered elsewhere in your stack.
Copy-ready renewal email
Hi [Okta account executive], Our Okta Workforce Identity renewal is on [renewal date]. We reviewed the tenant: [active users] of [contracted users] are active, and we use [features in use]. We want to renew [suite] for [target users] users on a [term] term, with any increase capped at [cap]. We are also pricing Microsoft Entra ID and JumpCloud. Can you share your best offer by [date]?
Okta alternatives and what they cost
| Tool | Entry price | Cheaper when |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Entra ID P1 | $7 per user per month (annual commitment) | You already run Microsoft 365, where Entra ID may be included |
| JumpCloud | $11 per user per month (SSO package, annual) | You want SSO, MFA and a password manager in one package |
| Microsoft Entra ID Free | Included with Microsoft 365 and Azure | Basic SSO for Microsoft-connected apps is enough |
The bigger picture: why Okta bills drift
Identity spend drifts because the user count only ever goes up. Contracts are sized at signing, contractors and service accounts get added, leavers are deactivated but not removed, and add-on products arrive mid-year while the annual renewal date sits in someone's inbox.
Device counts drift
Decommissioned endpoints stay licensed at renewal.
Licensed counts, owners and renewal dates per vendor in one place.
Multi-year terms auto-renew
Okta contracts renew before anyone re-benchmarks the price.
Contract management with renewal alerts
Alerts to the owner well before renewal, with terms on file.
Overlapping tools
Different teams pay for tools that do the same job.
Spend grouped by category shows overlap before the next renewal.
Vendor documents expire
Certificates, insurance and DPAs go stale between audits.
Document expiry tracked across the vendor lifecycle.
Invoices drift from the quote
True-ups and add-ons appear that nobody approved.
AP automation with PO matching
Invoices matched to POs and receipts before payment.
The bottom line
Buy Starter if you only need SSO and MFA, move to Core Essentials or Essentials when you want provisioning automated, and leave Professional for security teams that will use it. Before each renewal, reconcile active users against the contract and bring an Entra ID quote. Zapro is built to run that renewal routine for every vendor, Okta included.
Okta pricing FAQs
How much does Okta cost per user?
Okta Workforce Identity Starter costs $6 per user per month, Core Essentials $14 and Essentials $17, all billed annually. Professional and Enterprise are priced by sales. Starter has a $1,500 minimum annual contract, so very small teams pay the minimum.
Is there a free version of Okta?
No. Okta has no free Workforce Identity plan, but it offers a free trial so you can test SSO, MFA and Universal Directory before buying. After the trial, the cheapest option is Starter at $6 per user per month billed annually.
How much is Okta Enterprise?
Okta does not publish Enterprise pricing; it is quoted by sales. Vendr reports a median annual Okta contract of $44,612 across more than 1,000 deals, with totals ranging from $10,819 to $226,202 depending on users and products.
Can you get a discount on Okta?
Yes, through negotiation. Vendr reports average savings of about 14% off initial quotes. Levers include an accurate user count, a multi-year term, timing near Okta's fiscal year end and a credible competing quote from Microsoft Entra ID.
Is Okta cheaper billed annually?
Okta Workforce Identity is only sold on annual billing, so there is no monthly price to compare. The savings come from choosing the right suite and negotiating term length and user count rather than from the billing cycle.
What is the cheapest alternative to Okta?
If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Azure, Microsoft Entra ID Free is included, and Entra ID P1 lists at $7 per user per month. JumpCloud's SSO package costs $11 per user per month billed annually and bundles MFA and a password manager.
