Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance comparison

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance

July 2025

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Helped 867,676 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

ROI

Sentiment score

6.7

Microsoft Defender XDR provides high ROI by consolidating security tools, streamlining operations, and enhancing security, despite licensing costs.

Sentiment score

7.6

Microsoft Purview Data Governance offers significant returns with improved data management, cost savings, and enhanced compliance and risk mitigation.

We can quarantine and isolate a device within minutes.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Information Security Analyst at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees

Microsoft Defender XDR has saved me at least 50% of my time.

Kunle Oluwadiya

House security operator at Cypress Creek Renewables

Ever since we turned on the M5 feature set back in June, we have seen a reduced number of potentially malicious clicks and faster alerting when incidents occur.

reviewer2595618

Senior System Engineer at a sports company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Clients benefit from using a one-stop-shop solution, increasing their visibility across different platforms.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions

Customer Service

Sentiment score

6.2

Microsoft Defender XDR's support is timely and responsive, yet smaller organizations experience slower, less effective assistance than larger ones.

Sentiment score

5.9

Microsoft Purview Data Governance support is generally positive, but users report varied experiences based on responsiveness, expertise, and resources.

You get stuck in low-level support for way longer than you should, instead of them escalating the issue up the chain.

Darrell Carr

Enterprise Application Engineer at a legal firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

It's critical to escalate SEV B issues immediately to a domestic engineer.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Infrastructure engineer at Cetera Financial Group

Once issues are escalated to the second or third layer, the support is much better.

Ankit-Joshi

Cyber Security Engineer at a financial services firm with 1-10 employees

Overall, it doesn't meet our expectations.

Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

They're skillful people who know what they're doing in their space.

reviewer2596413

Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees

I have a dedicated team as a government agency, and Microsoft assists us promptly.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

7.6

Microsoft Defender XDR scales well for various organizations, efficiently supporting growth and flexibility despite some network deployment challenges.

Sentiment score

7.9

Microsoft Purview Data Governance efficiently handles scalable data sources in Azure, though challenges exist with network load and data ingestion.

Microsoft Defender XDR shows tremendous scalability, much more so than on-premises solutions.

Infrastructure engineer at Cetera Financial Group

Microsoft Defender XDR scales pretty well.

Information Security Analyst at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees

It is suitable for enterprise-level deployment but has room for improvement.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Security manager at Accenture

With automation, you can label five documents or 50,000 with the same amount of clicks.

reviewer2596413

Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees

It allows for one-to-one connections with different types of servers, either cloud-based like AWS, or physical servers.

Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees

The product is scalable and works across multi-cloud and multi-platform environments.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

8.0

Microsoft Defender XDR is praised for high stability, reliable performance, minimal issues, frequent updates, and prompt issue resolution.

Sentiment score

7.5

Microsoft Purview Data Governance is generally stable and reliable, though minor bugs and occasional lag may occur.

The service has remained consistently online, with any issues isolated to specific components, suggesting a well-designed and modular architecture.

reviewer2595618

Senior System Engineer at a sports company with 5,001-10,000 employees

The services within our ecosystem have been reliable, meeting their SLAs.

Infrastructure engineer at Cetera Financial Group

It provides high-fidelity signals.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Information Security Analyst at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees

It can take seven days to 24 hours to determine whether a policy is effective.

Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions

Microsoft Purview Data Governance is absolutely fine in terms of stability.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender XDR requires enhancements in speed, integration, automation, AI, ease-of-use, and industry-specific threat intelligence.

Microsoft Purview needs better integration, enhanced features, clearer documentation, and improved system configuration for complex environments.

The licensing process needs improvement and clarification.

reviewer2595324

Owner at a consultancy with 11-50 employees

Improvements are needed in automated response capabilities.

Security manager at Accenture

Some inconsistencies exist between blades, which could be improved for a more seamless user and UI experience.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Infrastructure engineer at Cetera Financial Group

It's essential to know if a feature isn't working due to missing licenses.

Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions

There are some problems with DLP rules, and it would be great if the security around DLP could be expanded.

reviewer2596326

Cloud Security Specialist at a aerospace/defense firm with 10,001+ employees

A watermark feature or similar tools to help enhance security for end users could be added.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender XDR pricing is seen as complex but fair, with high costs alleviated in bundled Microsoft 365 packages.

Microsoft Purview Data Governance offers competitive pricing and cost control benefits, appealing to enterprises with existing Microsoft licenses.

There are certainly savings when using Microsoft Defender XDR, which can range from 30%, 40%, and even up to 50%.

Clay Bowlin

Director, Sales at a tech vendor with 201-500 employees

I would rate the pricing as eight out of ten, indicating it is a reasonable cost for the product.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Security manager at Accenture

Microsoft purposefully obfuscates this through marketing ploys to hide costs.

reviewer2595618

Senior System Engineer at a sports company with 5,001-10,000 employees

The feature might be available in the console, but it won't work without the proper license, creating confusion.

Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions

Microsoft Purview Data Governance is quite affordable compared to other market solutions, which have high initial costs.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees

I'm not exactly sure how much our license costs, but it is very expensive.

reviewer2700351

Senior IT Security Risk & Compliance Analyst at a government with 501-1,000 employees

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender XDR integrates tools for comprehensive security, offering threat detection, automation, identity protection, and enhanced efficiency.

Microsoft Purview ensures data security, compliance, and efficiency with integration, data cataloging, lineage tracking, and multi-platform connectivity.

With Microsoft threat intelligence information, it detects various types of threats, including insider attacks, malicious content, and data exfiltration.

Security manager at Accenture

This allows us to secure our systems in advance and proactively improve security, rather than waiting for incidents to occur.

A Roy

Works at Hometrack

Once we have it on the security dashboard, we can see a real-time storyline.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender XDR report

Information Security Analyst at a educational organization with 10,001+ employees

It provides a comprehensive view of the entire ecosystem's threats and compliance in real time.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

The sensitivity labeling is the most valuable feature because it is the foundation for automating the encryption process and ensuring proper data handling across the organization.

reviewer2596413

Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees

Microsoft Purview Data Governance has helped my company by finding insider risks, ensuring data loss prevention, and achieving compliance to make sure everybody is compliant.

reviewer2700351

Senior IT Security Risk & Compliance Analyst at a government with 501-1,000 employees

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender XDR

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

5th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

102

Ranking in other categories

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (5th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (2nd)

Microsoft Purview Data Gove...

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

8th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Governance (1st)

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender XDR is 6.5%, up from 5.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Data Governance is 4.6%, down from 5.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Defender XDR	6.5%
Microsoft Purview Data Governance	4.6%
Other	88.9%

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

MohtesanShaikh

Business Development Executive at TechnoFirrm

Experience improves security management and simplifies threat protection

I have created automated investigations, and while they work, they operate rather slowly in the Microsoft portal. If I automate something, it takes considerable time; if I do it manually, I can complete it in a quarter of the time. The automation response being slow is the main concern; when an incident occurs or if I run a remediation, it takes significant time to complete the remediation. There are some limitations regarding the scalability of Microsoft Defender XDR with specific licensing. For SMB customers, there is only Microsoft Defender for Business, and if they want more features such as XDR features and automation investigation or incident response, they need to purchase Defender for Endpoint. We are currently using the EDR.

Read full review

It helps us by reporting on and auditing leaks and breaches

Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

One important feature is data security, which both end users and the organization seek. Microsoft Purview offers data protection across a multi-cloud and multi-platform environment. It's critical that Purview connects to iOS, Mac, and Android. We could only secure some of our data if it only covered Windows. It provides a comprehensive view of the entire ecosystem's threats and compliance in real time. It's very easy to use. Purview's compliance features are crucial. We have to match some cases in other countries to our own to comply with the policies, procedures, and regulatory frameworks here.

Read full review

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867,676 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	46
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	37

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	20
Midsize Enterprise	13
Large Enterprise	30

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft 365 Defender?

Microsoft Defender XDR provides strong identity protection with comprehensive insights into risky user behavior and potential indicators of compromise.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft 365 Defender?

The pricing for Microsoft Sentinel operates on a pay-as-you-go model based on data ingestion. I recall that Defender XDR pricing is based on the number of endpoints.

What needs improvement with Microsoft 365 Defender?

For Microsoft Defender XDR ( /categories/extended-detection-and-response-xdr ), there is currently no ability to reset passwords for on-premises accounts, which is a key challenge. Incident managem...

What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Purview?

It is designed to seamlessly connect to various data sources, which is particularly beneficial for our customers who primarily use Microsoft technologies.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Purview?

Microsoft Purview Data Governance is quite affordable compared to other market solutions, which have high initial costs. It allows for a cost-effective start with negligible initial cost. However, ...

What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Purview?

There should be more clarity about the costing, particularly how the cost is calculated, especially when utilizing health reports and quality features. Additionally, adding more tools around data q...

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Compared 7% of the time

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Product Reports

Download Microsoft Defender XDR product report

Microsoft Defender XDR

August 2025

Microsoft Purview Data Governance

August 2025

Microsoft Purview Data Governance report

Download Microsoft Purview Data Governance product report

Also Known As

Microsoft 365 Defender, Microsoft Threat Protection, MS 365 Defender

Microsoft Purview, MS Azure Purview

Overview

Microsoft Defender XDR is a comprehensive security solution designed to protect against threats in the Microsoft 365 environment.

It offers robust security measures, comprehensive threat detection capabilities, and an efficient incident response system. With seamless integration with other Microsoft products and a user-friendly interface, it simplifies security management tasks.

Users have found it effective in detecting and preventing various types of attacks, such as phishing attempts, malware infections, and data breaches.

Watch the Microsoft demo video here: Microsoft Defender XDR demo video.

Microsoft

The new Microsoft Purview portal offers an enhanced governance experience, serving as a unified platform for managing and governing data across various sources, including Azure, Microsoft 365, on-premises, and multicloud environments. Designed to streamline governance, compliance, risk, and security efforts, the new portal provides a user-friendly interface and unlocks advanced features like live view and preset scans. Existing users of Microsoft Purview can upgrade to this enhanced experience, gaining access to improved user interface, enhanced capabilities, and consolidated management of data assets. Additionally, the upgrade sets the stage for future developments, including account consolidation and fine-grained access control.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Accenture, Deloitte, ExxonMobil, General Electric, IBM, Johnson & Johnson and many others.

Information Not Available