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Malwarebytes vs Symantec Endpoint Security Complete comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 9, 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

Malwarebytes
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
15th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Symantec Endpoint Security ...
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
38th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) category, the mindshare of Malwarebytes is 1.7%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Endpoint Security Complete is 0.4%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
 

Featured Reviews

Anas Anas - PeerSpot reviewer
Effective threat predictions, simple to deploy, and light on resources
Malwarebytes's initial setup is simple. It is easy to deploy and configure the policies and the configuration. I deployed Malwarebytes for one customer and I did it in under two days. They had approximately 50 users, it took approximately an hour. The steps I took for the implementation were downloading the Malwarebytes management console from the site, installing it, then running the discovery tool, scanning my network, and checking all of the PCs on my network. It's already pre-configured, you don't need to configure anything. The only configuration that I did on the administration console was some of the exclusion from the scan. This is the only rule that I have created. I rate the initial setup of Malwarebytes a ten out of ten.
Livin Sunil - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides comprehensive protection with a need for a more intuitive interface
Security Complete comes with antivirus plus EDR, which is a convergence of antivirus and EDR. I have both the antivirus and EDR features constantly, allowing my team's customers to conduct detailed analyses of where attacks have occurred or if any malicious files are present, which devices or files have been targeted. It provides a greater level of view, making it easy for my team to mitigate those particular attacks.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The installation process is very easy, especially since it is on the cloud."
"It is a stable solution."
"The behavior-based detection is very nice, and it combats zero-day threats by looking for anomalous behaviors."
"The most valuable features of Malwarebytes are the EDR and the complete feature set provided."
"This solution helps us by providing central management of anti-malware and anti-exploit functionality."
"When it comes to frontend protections, it has some of the best definitions. In addition, they do traditional signature and heuristic detection a lot better than Microsoft and some other players in that space."
"It allows us to have better knowledge of the way people use the tool and how we can improve their workflows."
"The protection is really good with Malwarebytes. It's also user friendly and quite easy to set up."
"The solution prevents any damage from viruses and provides risk mitigation for virus threats."
"The feature I like the most is the Adaptive Protection... And it does not negatively affect users' activities because we can adapt it and allow binaries that are executed regularly, while forbidding those that are not executed within the company."
"The solution's most important feature is its reliability. It is not heavy on the workstation."
"One feature I found most valuable in Symantec Endpoint Security Complete is the firewall feature on the endpoint. The firewall feature helps users handle virus outbreaks."
"The tool's performance is good. It provides efficient updates quickly, even before threats are encountered in our environment. We've been using this solution for the last fifteen years and have found it very good. It helps to prevent ransomware attacks. We are already using its antivirus and firewall solutions. It has asset management and XDR features."
"Setting up Symantec is straightforward. Our DevOps team handled the installation, so I wasn't involved, but it wasn't that complicated. They are competent people with certifications in anti-virus management. They didn't need any training or help from the vendor."
"I like that Symantec can update directories."
"In reference to zero-day attacks, we immediately get signatures from the Symantec site. That is good."
 

Cons

"The product is a little bit more expensive than the other brands."
"There is room for improvement in the way it is deployed, in terms of being able to distribute it. Right now we have to get our hands on a machine to deploy it. It would be nice if there was an easier system."
"We have noticed that when the solution is doing the scanning, all the scanning activities make the device heavier. It slows down your machine."
"The stability and performance of the solution are areas with shortcomings that need improvement."
"The free version is effective, however, the paid version is pricey compared to it."
"Malwarebytes can improve its network database. Malwarebytes can scan the files and registry. It can scan the system with a light agent. It will not impact the performance of your PC. You can do the full scan and database scan using the EDR, and the RAM and CPU consumption will not increase."
"The EPP solution lacks the sophisticated artificial intelligence required for automating reports and letting you know about things in real-time. It stops a suspicious activity in real-time, but it doesn't let you know in real-time. You have to look at a report, and then you find out that something is wrong. You have to manually kick off a scan. With the Advanced EDR solutions, Malwarebytes has the ability to alert you in real-time, but they still don't do automatic remediation or quarantining of devices. That is something that you still have to do manually. So, the endpoint protection piece, which is just like their basic endpoint protection, lacks AI. For the advanced detection and response piece, there is an add-on that comes with it, but it still doesn't go far enough in terms of automatic remediation of viruses. It won't separate that virus from your network if something happens. You have to manually go there and do it."
"The product has major problems in almost every facet of setup and use including setup, configuration, lack of functionality, lack of stability, false positives, questionable reporting, inability to protect from randsomeware and poor technical support and development."
"Symantec Endpoint Security Complete could improve by integrating more easily with other Symantec security products."
"The solution's support is not available over the weekends. We also need to have the DLP, endpoint security, and encryption integrated into one agent."
"Installation and packaging for Symantec Endpoint Security Complete should be improved. Its console is also confusing, so that's another area for improvement."
"The solution should include automatic updates."
"They could improve the user interface."
"The deployment of Symantec components could be improved."
"The Threat Defense for Active Directory feature has a problem in that it is not possible to deploy it within a hybrid management architecture... we would have to migrate all the infrastructure to be managed by the cloud to deploy this feature, so we have not deployed it."
"The product’s scalability must be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost may be something in the ballpark of $20-25 a year per computer."
"I believe the retail price is between $40 and $50 per copy."
"I would say that it's affordable. It costs much less than Sentinel One, CrowdStrike, or anything of that nature. But, at the same time, you are getting what you pay for. So I would say it's one of the best when you're comparing traditional NextGen AVs like Webroot that aren't the best in the bunch."
"The licensing is per seat, with clients being a little less expensive than servers. If we need more licenses, we can accomplish that within a day. As Malwarebytes adds new features to their product, such as DNS filtering and a patching module, they want to charge us more even though we're a premium user, which isn't ideal."
"We expect to pay $1,000 USD a month, depending on the number of users."
"Malwarebytes is a cost-effective product."
"It is expensive."
"The price of Malwarebytes is in the middle range compared to other vendors."
"I'm recommending going with three-year licensing, rather than the yearly licensing option for this product."
"In terms of costs, Symantec Endpoint Security Complete has become costlier compared to how much it was in the past. The cost of the product is very high now. The customer needs to pay extra for additional features, but not for technical support. For example, if you need an email gateway or if you are looking for URL filtering, you have to pay extra, and that's where the costs for Symantec Endpoint Security Complete become higher."
"Symantec Endpoint Security Complete is not expensive."
"License renewal is not a straightforward process. I have a three-year subscription. It takes a long time to renew the license after three years. It is not proactive on that. The solution is expensive for the coverage that it does. I have to include other products to complement the protection that Symantec Endpoint Security Complete does not cover. We have to pay 18 euros. There are no additional support or maintenance costs."
"It's cost-effective and well-suited for smaller to midrange companies."
"The product's pricing is dependent on partnership levels. The solution's price is competitive compared to other solutions."
"The pricing is good. It's good value for the money."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
University
12%
Government
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
20%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Malwarebytes?
Ten times a day, improved signatures will be downloaded, so it is very up-to-date in terms of malware experience.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Malwarebytes?
Malwarebytes is a bit pricey for some regions, such as Ukraine, since it's priced in US dollars. I prefer to use the paid version, and I am a pay-to-play person.
What needs improvement with Malwarebytes?
There are no built-in backups or integrated backup options, which could be an opportunity. The free version is effective, however, the paid version is pricey compared to it. Other customers have me...
What do you like most about Symantec Endpoint Security Complete?
The solution prevents any damage from viruses and provides risk mitigation for virus threats.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Symantec Endpoint Security Complete?
Symantec Endpoint Security Full/Complete license is not expensive and advise using the full feature.
What needs improvement with Symantec Endpoint Security Complete?
They could improve the user interface. Currently, everything is pretty good, however, when it comes to the Maniac and Protection, there could be enhancements.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Knutson Construction
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Malwarebytes vs. Symantec Endpoint Security Complete and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
839,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.