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Microsoft Configuration Manager vs Qualys Patch Management comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 15, 2025

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
1.0
Microsoft Configuration Manager boosts productivity and cost efficiency, crucial for device management with some Mac support challenges.
Sentiment score
8.3
Qualys Patch Management boosts security, reduces vulnerabilities by 80%, saves 90% time, and improves efficiency and resource allocation.
With Qualys, we can save around 70 percent of time and between 30 to 40 percent of money.
We have a 50 percent return on investment due to reduced operational complexity and increased efficiency in patching and detection.
We have achieved significant time savings of 90 percent, primarily due to comprehensive oversight and visibility of security issues.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.5
Microsoft Configuration Manager support is praised for higher tiers and Premier Support, while basic levels often face inefficiencies.
Sentiment score
7.4
Qualys Patch Management provides efficient support with quick resolutions, though users occasionally report delays or inconsistency in assistance.
The support team is experienced and responsive.
The support team is responsive and provides detailed information.
Whenever we raise a request and mention the priority of the ticket, they respond immediately via email or call.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.1
Microsoft Configuration Manager is scalable, adaptable, and effective for various environments, with high user ratings despite some limitations.
Sentiment score
8.5
Qualys Patch Management excels in scalability with high user ratings but may face challenges in cost and usability.
The product is suitable for our size, handling 800 devices.
It scales efficiently across different machines globally, ensuring patches are deployed smoothly.
Qualys Patch Management is a globally scalable product, easily handling increasing workloads and users.
They introduce new modules as needed, making Patch Management highly scalable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Configuration Manager is highly stable and reliable, with minor issues often related to system configuration rather than software.
Sentiment score
8.1
Qualys Patch Management is highly stable and reliable, with minimal downtime and effective management of rare technical issues.
There were misconfigurations by our team rather than issues with the product itself.
I would rate the stability of Qualys Patch Management nine point five out of ten.
The stability of Qualys Patch Management is impeccable.
Overall, it is reliable.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Configuration Manager requires enhancements in deployment, resource usage, integration, reporting, usability, remote management, scalability, and third-party support.
Qualys Patch Management needs better integration, accuracy, and support, faster deployments, and improvements in interface, reporting, and pricing.
There is a limitation where Qualys may not always offer solutions for remediation, particularly for end-of-life or end-of-service applications.
It would be better if Qualys Patch Management identifies whether the process has failed at the first instance and provides a retry button or retry mechanism, allowing retries for failed patches.
For critical options, they could make them red, green for medium, and blue for less significant options.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Configuration Manager is costly, especially for large enterprises, but offers automation benefits and potential negotiation discounts.
Qualys Patch Management is seen as cost-effective for its robust features and scalable pricing, despite varying opinions on support.
The setup cost is considered sufficient.
We get many more features at the same price as other solutions such as Microsoft SCCM.
The pricing is reasonable and less expensive than the previous tool.
We found it costly compared to other vendors.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Configuration Manager streamlines IT management with automation and integration, enhancing efficiency and security for large-scale infrastructures.
Qualys Patch Management offers automated patching, comprehensive reporting, and seamless integration, enhancing efficiency and asset management for multi-OS environments.
The product valuable for deployment recovery.
We leverage this functionality to deploy scripts that adjust registry values, effectively patching vulnerabilities and enhancing the security of our machines.
We have been able to apply workarounds for zero-day vulnerabilities efficiently.
It provides insight into the organization's security posture and keeps databases updated with new CVEs.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Configuration Man...
Ranking in Patch Management
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
82
Ranking in other categories
Server Monitoring (7th), Configuration Management (4th)
Qualys Patch Management
Ranking in Patch Management
4th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
34
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Patch Management category, the mindshare of Microsoft Configuration Manager is 12.8%, down from 17.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys Patch Management is 4.3%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Patch Management
 

Featured Reviews

MikeNelson2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Deployment recovery works well but requires configuration improvements
While I do not use the product frequently, many issues were due to configuration rather than the product itself. I cannot give an exact recommendation as it is not my area of responsibility. The team that uses it finds it adequate. It is presently good enough for us not to investigate other options. Overall, I rate the product a six out of ten.
Revathi VeeraRaghavan - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides a centralized platform for managing assets and vulnerabilities, enabling assessment, prioritization, and remediation
Qualys Patch Management system requires several improvements. Firstly, the inability to download asset patches and the lack of third-party application integration limit patch accessibility. Additionally, rollback options are unreliable, and pre-deployment patch testing is crucial. Reporting needs enhancement, particularly with group-based compliance percentages and clearer, VMDR-like reporting in the Patch Management module. Furthermore, detection speed should be improved, as patches are released 24 hours after QIDs are published. The user interface could be more functional, with dashboards for patch compliance visualization and simplified error code language. Finally, the Mac patch catalogue needs expansion, and automated workflows, policy enforcement, and testing procedures should be streamlined for seamless, user-independent operation.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
13%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...
How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...
What do you like most about SCCM?
One of the standout features of SCCM is its application management capabilities. It allows us to create packages efficiently and deploy them to specific groups within our network. This streamlined ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys Patch Management?
From a pricing perspective, I find Qualys to be a bit higher, but it is worth it. Compared to other tools, it is on the costly side, but I believe it is worth the investment.
What needs improvement with Qualys Patch Management?
Regarding improvements in Qualys Patch Management, I did not quite understand the downsides they were expecting. Initially, I was confused about where to find and how to use the available features....
What is your primary use case for Qualys Patch Management?
I am using Qualys Patch Management for two years, and everything is satisfactory from my side. Before purchasing Qualys Patch Management, we were already using Qualys VMDR and the cloud agent model...
 

Also Known As

Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Configuration Manager vs. Qualys Patch Management and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
861,524 professionals have used our research since 2012.