The best privileged access management tool depends on what you're protecting: a password vault suits shared admin accounts, endpoint privilege tools suit laptops with local admin rights, and infrastructure access tools suit servers and Kubernetes. Ten options follow in no particular order.
Admin accounts are the keys attackers want most. Privileged access management, or PAM, is how you keep those keys in a locked drawer: vaulted passwords, temporary elevation, recorded sessions and a clear trail of who did what.
The ten tools below are listed alphabetically and in no particular order, from open source platforms you can host yourself to suites from the biggest identity vendors. Every description comes from the vendor's own site, read this week. If your team still shares passwords in spreadsheets, start with my guide to open source password managers and work up from there.
PAM tools at a glance
In the free plan column, Yes means the tool's own site names a free plan, a free version, a free tool or an open source edition. Trial only means a time-limited trial. Not stated means the pages I read named neither, even where there's a button inviting you to try it.
| Tool | Type | Good for | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admin By Request | Endpoint privilege and remote access tool | Removing local admin rights safely | Yes |
| BeyondTrust Password Safe | Privileged password and session manager | Vaulting privileged passwords | Not stated |
| Delinea Secret Server | Enterprise password vault for PAM | Ransomware and cyber insurance readiness | Trial only |
| Heimdal | PAM inside a wider security platform | Simple deployment for smaller IT teams | Trial only |
| JumpServer | Open source PAM platform | Self-hosting PAM on open source | Yes |
| Palo Alto Networks | Enterprise identity and PAM suite | Joining PAM with network and endpoint security | Not stated |
| Segura | Identity security platform | Privilege elevation plus DevOps secrets | Not stated |
| StrongDM | Zero trust privileged access platform | Developer access to databases and servers | Not stated |
| Teleport | Infrastructure identity platform | Access to servers, Kubernetes and AI infrastructure | Yes |
| WALLIX | European PAM and identity vendor | Meeting NIS2 and DORA requirements | Trial only |
Ten privileged access management tools to consider
Admin By Request
Best for: IT teams that want to take away everyday local admin rights and approve elevation requests, with a free plan to try it.
BeyondTrust Password Safe
Best for: Security teams that want privileged account passwords vaulted, rotated and tied to recorded sessions from a long-standing identity security brand.
Delinea Secret Server
Best for: Organisations that want a privileged password vault to cut ransomware attack paths and support cyber insurance readiness, with a free trial.
Heimdal
Best for: Smaller IT teams that want shared admin passwords gone and unauthorised installs blocked without a heavy enterprise rollout.
JumpServer
Best for: Technical teams that want an open source privileged access platform they can install and run on their own servers.
Palo Alto Networks
Best for: Large enterprises that want privileged access controls joined up with identity, endpoint and network security from one big vendor.
Segura
Best for: Teams that want endpoint privilege elevation, multi-cloud access and secrets for CI/CD tools handled by one identity platform.
StrongDM
Best for: Engineering-led companies that want privileged access to work from the terminal and IDE developers already use every day.
Teleport
Best for: Platform teams that want one identity layer for classic and AI infrastructure, backed by an active open source community.
WALLIX
Best for: European organisations that want privileged account control with built-in compliance support for rules such as NIS2, GDPR and DORA.
Vault, elevation or infrastructure access?
PAM covers three different jobs, and few businesses need all of them on day one. A vault stores and rotates the passwords for shared admin accounts, such as the domain admin or the root login on a database. Endpoint privilege management takes local admin rights away from everyday users and lets them ask for elevation when they need to install something. Infrastructure access tools give engineers short-lived access to servers, clusters and cloud consoles without handing out permanent keys.
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Work out which of those is your biggest gap. A small business with a handful of laptops gets more from removing local admin rights than from an enterprise vault. A software company with production servers probably needs infrastructure access first.
What the NCSC says about admin work
The NCSC's guidance on secure system administration tells organisations to use privileged access management and to carefully control who, where, when, why and how people perform system administration.
That list of five questions is a handy brief for any PAM project. Who is allowed to do admin work? From which devices? At what times? For what reason? And by what route? If you can't answer those yet, the tool won't answer them for you.
Questions to ask before you choose
- Which admin accounts are shared today, and who knows their passwords?
- Do staff have local admin rights on their own laptops?
- Will we need sessions recorded for audits or insurers?
- Does it cover cloud consoles and servers as well as Windows machines?
- Can engineers get access from the terminal tools they already use?
- How long does a typical rollout take for a team our size?
Signs you've outgrown shared admin passwords
- Nobody knows who changed a setting. Shared accounts hide the person behind the change.
- A leaver still knows the root password. Rotation is the only real fix.
- Admin rights are the default. Everyday users don't need them to do their jobs.
- Suppliers log in with permanent accounts. Temporary access is safer.
Do you make privileged access management software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
My plain advice on choosing a PAM tool
Start by listing every account that can change your systems, then pick the tool that removes the riskiest one first. For many small teams that's local admin rights on laptops. For engineering-led companies it's long-lived server keys. You don't need a full suite to make a big difference.
Run a short pilot with the people who do admin work every day. If the new process is slow, they'll find a way round it, and that workaround becomes your next risk. My notes on building a strong security culture explain why the people side matters as much as the tool.
Frequently asked questions
What is privileged access management?
It's the set of tools and rules that control accounts with elevated rights, such as admin and root accounts, through vaulting, temporary access and session records.
Is PAM the same as a password manager?
No. A password manager stores everyday logins for staff. PAM controls admin accounts, adds approvals and time limits and keeps an audit trail of what was done.
Are there free or open source PAM tools?
Yes. Some tools in the table name a free plan or an open source edition on their own site. Check the free plan column for each one.
Do small businesses need PAM?
Any business where staff have admin rights can benefit. Removing local admin rights from everyday laptops is often the simplest first step.
What is just-in-time access?
It's access granted only for the time someone needs it, then removed automatically, so there's no standing admin account for an attacker to steal.
How does PAM help with cyber insurance?
Insurers often ask how admin accounts are protected. A PAM tool gives you evidence of vaulting, approvals and recorded sessions to point to.
