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Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration vs Sophos Email 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
7.4
Users found Microsoft Defender for Office 365 cost-effective, citing improved protection, time efficiency, and savings in security management.
Sentiment score
7.8
Check Point Harmony boosts ROI with enhanced security, reducing breaches and costs while improving productivity and protecting data.
Sentiment score
8.7
Sophos Email delivers significant ROI by improving efficiency, reducing costs, and enhancing security, particularly benefiting government contracts.
It has also decreased our time to detection and response by about 15 to 20 percent.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers knowledgeable support, though escalation delays and outdated documentation can affect resolution speed.
Sentiment score
7.1
Check Point Harmony Email support receives mixed reviews; some praise responsiveness while others mention slow response and inefficiencies.
Sentiment score
6.4
Sophos Email's customer support receives mixed reviews, praised for basic help but criticized for delays with complex issues.
Customer service and support have been fantastic.
Customer support is of high quality.
I would rate customer support eight out of ten.
Support issues exist with the Check Point company itself, not necessarily the product.
When I reported a problem with our firewall, they acted promptly and delivered another piece of equipment.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is scalable, adaptable, and integrates seamlessly, supporting medium to large enterprises efficiently.
Sentiment score
8.2
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration is a highly scalable, cloud-based platform, ideal for businesses of all sizes.</p>
Sentiment score
7.3
Sophos Email is highly scalable, supporting diverse user numbers, but faces challenges with licensing costs and technical enhancements.
I would rate the scalability of Check Point Harmony Email and Collaboration as nine out of ten, indicating high scalability.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is highly rated for stability, featuring strong performance and rare minor network issues.
Sentiment score
8.0
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration is highly stable, offering reliable uptime, robust security features, and efficient cloud-based performance.</p>
Sentiment score
8.1
Sophos Email is a highly stable and reliable tool crucial for daily operations, rated 7-10 by users.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 requires improvements in antivirus, scalability, integration, interface, threat intelligence, and licensing transparency.
Check Point Harmony needs project management, performance, scalability improvements, better integration, threat detection, technical support, and reduced deployment costs.
Sophos Email needs better security, user interface, support, cloud integration, email filtering, setup, compatibility, and reporting features.
The main area for improvement is simplifying the implementation and rollout process.
I would reduce the cost.
Check Point should integrate with features available in Barracuda - like more advanced threat management.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 pricing varies; often costly for SMBs but competitive for enterprises, with added licensing complexities.
Check Point Harmony offers flexible per-user licensing, competitive features, and negotiable rates, appealing to growing companies.
Sophos Email pricing is seen as affordable and cost-effective, especially for large deployments, with mixed feedback on costs and discounts.
Money-wise, it is a part of the Office 365 suite, making it slightly more expensive compared to Trend Micro.
I consider the pricing to be a bit expensive, similar to other solutions.
The pricing is lower compared to what I used before.
The pricing is reasonable, rated five out of ten for affordability.
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price since they also seek to make a profit.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 provides comprehensive email protection with seamless Microsoft integration, enhancing threat management and data security.
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration offers robust threat protection, seamless Office 365 integration, and efficient data security for enterprises.</p>
Sophos Email offers comprehensive email security with advanced features, AI integration, and user-friendly management for efficient threat protection.
It ranks the threats and allows us to prioritize those hitting us the hardest, such as email threats.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is now part of a centralized tenant for my entire group.
The protection and scanning of emails are also appreciated, as they secure everything in the email spectrum.
The most valuable feature is spam detection and phishing site prevention, which Microsoft couldn't catch, yet Check Point does.
Check Point Harmony Email and Collaboration offers online support and has tight integration with Microsoft.
The spam reduction feature in Sophos Email provides comfort when using it.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
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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)
Check Point Harmony Email &...
Ranking in Email Security
7th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (5th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (11th)
Sophos Email
Ranking in Email Security
10th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
Office 365 Protection (2nd)
 

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 Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration is 4.8%, up from 3.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Email is 2.3%, down from 2.7% 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.
Rahul Kamble. - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers complete detection and simple management and is a user-friendly solution
It's very effective as a solution to prevent mobile app threats. It has a mobile MDX, mobile detection, and response session. As a comprehensive solution, Check Point offers a very granular and best-in-class experience. Compared to competitors like Fortinet, Trend Micro, Palo Alto, and Cisco, Check Point provides a superior solution according to both the MITRE and Gartner frameworks. For example, in a recent attack simulation, Check Point only allowed ten malicious emails through, while Fortinet allowed 1500 and Cisco allowed 1800. Check Point's email attack ratio is nearly 0.10%, while others range from 1% to 3%. This demonstrates Check Point's superior email filtering capabilities. Check Point's email cleaning ratio is 99.9%, significantly higher than the 98%, 95%, or 93% of its competitors. Moreover, Check Point Harmony Email incorporates AI technology within its security features. Harmony Email & Collaboration (HEC) provides full protection and addresses zero-day files. It's the best solution available, as others don't offer protection against zero-day attacks and rely on signature-based solutions. HEC is truly the best option.
NaveedAli - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides good identity proxy features, but sandboxing and spam control features could be improved
Sophos gives you a feature set to manage your on-premises firewall on the cloud. I just integrated my on-premises firewall into the cloud, and I can manage the tool through the cloud as well if needed. I recommend using Sophos Email as a proxy. For email gateways, I advise choosing mature products with rich feature sets, like Trend Micro or CrowdStrike. The solution's integration with other tools is very simple. I easily integrated Sophos Email with my Active Directory. My organization needs a WAF with a limited feature set, which we use through Sophos. Purchasing additional WAF will be costly, but I get sandboxing and WAF features free of cost with Sophos, which is included in the license. Overall, I rate the solution a seven 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
18%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Healthcare Company
5%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Retailer
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 is your primary use case for Check Point Harmony Email & Office?
We are using Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration to protect our organization from phishing attacks. For exa...
What do you like most about Check Point Harmony Email & Office?
The product offers good and easy integration capabilities with other products.
What do you like most about Sophos Email?
The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Email?
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price...
What needs improvement with Sophos Email?
Email installation could be more user-friendly so that it can be done without involving the partner. If made more use...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
Check Point CloudGuard, Check Point CloudGuard SaaS , Check Point Harmony Email & Office
Sophos Email Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Helvetia, Denham Capital, Daymark Solutions, Neopharm Group
Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration vs. Sophos Email and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
847,646 professionals have used our research since 2012.