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Barracuda Email Protection vs SonicWall Email Security comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Sponsored
Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
48
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (11th)
Barracuda Email Protection
Ranking in Email Security
13th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Email Archiving (3rd), Office 365 Protection (4th)
SonicWall Email Security
Ranking in Email Security
32nd
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 13.1%, down from 19.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Barracuda Email Protection is 2.5%, up from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonicWall Email Security is 0.5%, down from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

Tolu Omolaja - PeerSpot reviewer
Great URL scanning and attachment scanning, but I would like more proactive threat analysis
The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning. URL scanning involves an automatic scan of links and emails. When a user clicks on a link within an email, the system promptly checks the link's safety. If the link is deemed safe, access is granted automatically. However, if it is flagged as unsafe, we receive feedback and notification to caution us about the potentially harmful link. At this point, we are presented with the option to proceed or return. I have personally witnessed the system identify a few unsafe links, making this the primary advantage of using the solution. The second crucial aspect is the scanning of attachments. When an email containing an attachment arrives, we receive a notification of the new email, along with information that the attachment is being scanned for threats. This additional layer of security provides peace of mind for our organization. While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers numerous features, these two stand out as particularly impressive and valuable to us.
LeeMiles - PeerSpot reviewer
Very good threat protection, spam filtering, and cloud backups
Considering it integrates with Azure, I would like to be able to effectively set up policies where people are by default included in certain settings. For instance, for email quarantine, I can't set up a global setting. Users must go through an induction session where I guide them in configuring quarantine alerts rather than having default settings based on group membership. This seems like an oversight since they already use Active Directory details. They should assign policies based on group membership, which configures these settings by default.
Constantnos Achilleos - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides strong email filtering and threat intelligence but pricing needs improvement
I work with SonicWall Email Security SonicWall Email Security uses multi-layer cloud security. It filters emails before they come to my provider, such as Office 365. It has real-time threat intelligence and provides strong data loss prevention. Additionally, it filters emails before they reach my…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The initial setup is straightforward. You just add the license, click it, and then you can set up the rules. It is quite simple."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is data backups that we can provide through ticket requests."
"The most valuable feature is protection against malicious links, fishing, and impersonation. You can train people to be aware of these threats, but they're not always careful. When they're using their phones between meetings, they click on a link, and it's game over."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365's most valuable features are safe attachments and safe links."
"It also gives the vulnerability status according to the versions you have selected. Let's say you have Google Chrome. It mentions the versions it has, and it updates. Within two hours of an update, it is reflected in the dashboard. That's really nice to have."
"The technical support is good and quick to resolve issues."
"Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of various email campaigns, pinpointing where they emanate from, and identifying the individuals within our organization who are affected."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is its spam filter."
"The most valuable features of Barracuda Email Protection are flexibility and customization."
"The most valuable features are security and ease of use."
"The most valuable aspect includes attempts to spoof or compromise domains from external sources."
"The product is easy to deploy and maintain."
"The beauty of Barracuda Email Protection is that it is easy to manage and simple to deploy."
"We now have a secondary backup of Office 365 that's much easier to retrieve compared to Microsoft. If someone deletes something in Office 365, we can get it back within Office 365, but it's difficult. Barracuda is much easier. There is a lot less management needed using Barracuda. The management becomes much easier for Office 365 and it's no longer on-prem, so there are fewer hours managing on-prem devices, servers, and things of that nature. We don't have network appliances anymore for the backup of our information."
"The solution's most valuable feature is impersonation detection."
"We check the reports sometimes to see that frequent attacks and malicious emails are being blocked by the solution."
"The most valuable features are the anti-spam, anti-phishing, anti-virus, and anti-spoofing."
"There are no wasted extras and the interface is really simple."
"The product is easy to manage in terms of configurations."
"Setup was easy. It took about 30 minutes."
"SonicWall Email Security uses multi-layer cloud security."
"The most valuable feature of SonicWall Email Security is the blocking of emails using keywords. If there are any particular keywords in the subject, that we want to block from receiving from a particular person we can do it. Additionally, the blocking of emails is easy. we can release that one and we can block some of the keywords also like that."
"The anti-spam aspect of the solution is its most valuable feature."
"SonicWall Email Security uses multi-layer cloud security."
 

Cons

"This product's effectiveness could be improved, in terms of detecting unwanted spam or even malware between the emails, compared to other products."
"The GUI is sometimes slow to fetch the device report and could be improved."
"They have moved features from one console to another. Things have been moved around in the interface and it takes me time to find where certain features are."
"The changes to customer service, specifically the new model for support agreements, are not favorable."
"Configuration at the mid-level could be improved for the support team."
"The XDR dashboard has room for improvement."
"There is room for improvement in terms of reporting."
"About eight months ago, we started to measure the quantity of phishing and spam that we have been receiving, and it has been increasing a lot. That means that protection for our email is not as good as we were expecting."
"There is room for improvement, particularly in reaching out to technical support during deployment."
"Considering it integrates with Azure, I would like to be able to effectively set up policies where people are by default included in certain settings."
"The solution's reporting mechanism is a little poor and could be improved."
"The product must enable bulk user management."
"Considering it integrates with Azure, I would like to be able to effectively set up policies where people are by default included in certain settings."
"The policies are set up in Barracuda by default; we don't have any control over them."
"Barracuda Email Protection needs better reporting and more robust integration with security awareness training platforms and third-party solutions."
"The customer service and support could be improved if the support were available directly in Europe. Currently, the support is often managed from India, so we sometimes need to wait due to the time zone difference. It would be quicker and better if the support were provided by European staff."
"The protection level for email security isn't 100%. I'm still getting some spam and junk mail."
"The pricing could be improved."
"There could be definition updates included in the subscription."
"SonicWall Email Security could improve by making the file blocking and the release feature easier to use"
"We would like to see more information on a dashboard about what is happening when it comes to spamming and malware."
"The platform's control panel needs enhancement."
"They should integrate the solution with third-party platforms."
"They need well-trained partners in Nigeria."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution could be better by simplifying the business model of their licensing. It was hard to figure out how to get the licensing done for the environment, initially."
"Microsoft Defender is expensive. I typically recommend it only if clients have the budget. Otherwise, I would suggest an alternative."
"I was working in the government and it was too expensive for us to use our Microsoft products."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comes with Microsoft Windows. It is free with the operating system."
"The pricing has become expensive."
"Compared to other brands, Microsoft Defender for Office 365's pricing is competitive."
"I know that the product is incredibly expensive."
"Defender for 365 comes in various plans and licenses, along with other Microsoft security solutions. Purchasing this kind of package or security bundle gives good value for money, and that's what I recommend."
"The product is expensive."
"Price-wise, this product is middle-of-the-road."
"Barracuda licensing model is good."
"The solution's pricing is moderate, where it is neither cheap nor expensive."
"Despite a list price possibly around $40 per user, their market price allows customers to easily buy the solution."
"We didn't have to pay a lot for the solution because we got it from a good vendor with a good user volume."
"We pay annually. They never charged us for anything else. And they were quite a bit under that $20,000 mark. It was $19,074. And they've been pretty good about not skyrocketing the price or anything like that. It has gone up. It's gone up to $24,000 in 2020."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."
"The overall price of SonicWall Email Security should be reduced and there should be an option to purchase one or two licenses more instead of their current policy of bulk increases only. There should be more flexibility in the licensing model. Each license cost approximately $33 annually."
"I rate the application’s pricing a five out of ten."
"We have a two-year license subscription and the price is very high."
"When compared with Cisco, it is very well priced. Cisco is very expensive."
"Our customers purchase the solution's yearly license."
"The platform offers a yearly license."
"The cost is cheaper than Sophos. I would rate it as five out of ten."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
17%
Construction Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Healthcare Company
6%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Wholesaler/Distributor
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of variou...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
I don't have detailed specifics on pricing, setup cost, or licensing.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
I am generally satisfied with how it currently is. If I could improve anything, I would reduce the cost.
What do you like most about Barracuda Email Protection?
Barracuda Email Protection is easy to deploy and maintain. It doesn't require a specialized resource to manage this t...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Barracuda Email Protection?
Their list price is too high, but in India, the selling price is affordable at around $10 per user per year. Despite ...
What needs improvement with Barracuda Email Protection?
Considering it integrates with Azure, I would like to be able to effectively set up policies where people are by defa...
What do you like most about SonicWall Email Security?
According to our customers, the product's most valuable feature is the ability to detect spam and reduce phishing ema...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
Barracuda Essentials
Dell SonicWALL Email Security Platform, SonicWall Hosted Email Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
ACT Government, Acumen Group, AGIP, Delta Dental Plans Association, Desai/Nasr Consulting Engineers, Inc., Equinox Information Systems
Star Kay White, Locala Community Partnerships
Find out what your peers are saying about Barracuda Email Protection vs. SonicWall Email Security and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
844,944 professionals have used our research since 2012.