Google Cloud Identity Platform
Customer identity and access management (CIAM) software
Identity management software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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Pay-as-you-go
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Free version
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- Information technology and software
- Healthcare and life sciences
- Media and communications
What is Google Cloud Identity Platform
Google Cloud Identity Platform is a customer identity and access management (CIAM) service used to add authentication and user account management to consumer-facing and partner-facing applications. It supports common sign-in methods (email/password, phone, and federated identity providers) and provides APIs and SDKs for web and mobile apps. The product is typically used by development teams building on Google Cloud that want managed identity components integrated with cloud-native tooling. It emphasizes developer integration, managed operations, and alignment with Google Cloud security and identity services.
Broad authentication method support
It supports multiple sign-in options including email/password, phone-based authentication, and federated login with external identity providers via standards-based protocols. This helps teams implement common CIAM patterns such as social login and passwordless/OTP flows without building core authentication from scratch. It also provides token-based authentication suitable for modern web and mobile architectures.
Managed service on Google Cloud
As a managed Google Cloud service, it reduces the operational burden of running identity infrastructure (scaling, availability, and routine service maintenance). It integrates with Google Cloud IAM and related cloud services for access control and service-to-service authorization patterns. This is useful for organizations standardizing on Google Cloud and seeking consistent identity controls across applications.
Developer-focused APIs and SDKs
It provides SDKs and APIs designed for application developers, enabling faster integration into web and mobile apps. The platform supports common identity workflows such as sign-up, sign-in, account linking, and session/token handling. This developer orientation can shorten implementation time compared with more admin-centric identity suites.
Google Cloud ecosystem dependency
The product fits best when applications and operations already run on Google Cloud. Organizations with multi-cloud or non-Google infrastructure may find integration and governance less straightforward than with vendor-neutral deployments. This can increase switching costs if identity becomes tightly coupled to Google Cloud services and tooling.
Limited deep CIAM suite features
Compared with full CIAM suites, advanced capabilities such as highly configurable registration journeys, complex identity orchestration, and extensive built-in fraud/risk controls may require additional services or custom development. Some organizations will need complementary products for adaptive authentication, identity proofing, or specialized compliance workflows. This can add architectural complexity for mature CIAM programs.
Customization can require engineering
While the service provides core authentication building blocks, tailoring end-to-end user experiences and policies often requires developer effort and careful implementation. Teams may need to build custom UI, workflow logic, and integrations for profile management, consent, and lifecycle events. This can be a constraint for organizations seeking primarily no-code or admin-configured identity experiences.
Plan & Pricing
Pricing model: Pay-as-you-go
Free tier/trial:
- Tier 1 authentication methods (Email, Phone, Anonymous, Social): 0–49,999 MAU are free (price $0 per MAU).
- Tier 2 providers (OIDC, SAML): 0–49 MAU are free (price $0 per MAU).
- For phone authentication / MFA SMS: first 10 SMS sent per day are not billed.
- No time-limited “trial” for Identity Platform is documented on the product pricing page.
Example costs (USD):
- Tier 1 (Email, Anonymous, Social, Phone):
- 0–49,999 MAU: $0 per MAU
- 50,000–99,999 MAU: $0.0055 per MAU
- 100,000–999,999 MAU: $0.0046 per MAU
- 1,000,000–9,999,999 MAU: $0.0032 per MAU
- 10,000,000+ MAU: $0.0025 per MAU
- Tier 2 (OIDC, SAML):
- 0–49 MAU: $0 per MAU
- 50+ MAU: $0.015 per MAU
- Phone / MFA SMS (per SMS sent): country/region-specific rates apply; example: United States = $0.01 per SMS (the product page provides a country-by-country table).
Other notes & minimum-paid-cost guidance:
- Inactive users are stored at no cost (only users who sign in during a month count as MAUs).
- The first non-zero Tier 1 charges begin at the 50,000 MAU bracket (50,000 MAU × $0.0055 = $275/month in USD for Tier 1 usage at exactly 50,000 MAU).
- For Tier 2 (federated OIDC/SAML) the first non-zero charge begins at 50 MAU (50 MAU × $0.015 = $0.75/month in USD for Tier 2 usage at exactly 50 MAU).
- Phone/MFA SMS pricing varies by country; the page lists per-SMS prices and notes the first ten SMS/day are free.
- Prices are shown in USD; if you pay in another currency, Cloud Platform SKU prices in your currency apply.
Discount options:
- Pricing is usage-based with volume tiers; Google Cloud also invites contacting sales for custom quotes and enterprise arrangements.
Seller details
Google LLC
Mountain View, CA, USA
1998
Subsidiary
https://cloud.google.com/deep-learning-vm
https://x.com/googlecloud
https://www.linkedin.com/company/google/
