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Microsoft Defender for Business vs Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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
Microsoft Defender for Business boosts productivity, saves up to 30% on budgets, and expands sales through integrated Microsoft services.
Sentiment score
7.4
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 enhances security, reduces costs, integrates effectively with Microsoft tools, and boosts productivity, offering significant ROI.
Using Microsoft Defender for Business results in cost reductions as it consolidates various features under one product, saving around 20% to 30% of the budget.
It is pretty good because it offers various features such as Exchange, OfficeSuite, OneDrive, and SharePoint.
It has also decreased our time to detection and response by about 15 to 20 percent.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.6
Microsoft's customer service is often seen as helpful but challenging to contact, with varied ratings and slow response times.
Sentiment score
7.0
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 support is praised for responsiveness, though some users note templated responses and outdated documentation.
It is rated ten out of ten for its quality and assistance.
There are challenges with the knowledge and experience of the support staff.
It is generally rated a seven out of ten for support skills and response time.
Customer service and support have been fantastic.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.2
Microsoft Defender for Business is highly scalable and reliable, effectively serving diverse industries despite potential configuration delays.
Sentiment score
8.1
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is highly scalable and easily accommodates thousands of users without performance issues, simplifying growth.
The cloud-based nature of the solution ensures high scalability.
The scalability of Microsoft Defender for Business is rated as ten, indicating it is very scalable.
In terms of scalability, I find Microsoft Defender for Business to be good and reliable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Microsoft Defender for Business offers reliable stability with minor issues, earning user ratings of eight to ten.
Sentiment score
7.8
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is reliable and stable, boasting 99.9% availability and prompt resolutions to minor bugs.
No customer complaints about its functionality or reliability.
Threat detection capabilities could be improved.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender for Business needs improvements in customization, integration, user interface, management, support, and multi-year contract pricing.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 requires enhancements in virus blocking, phishing detection, integration, scalability, support, and pricing transparency.
There can be improvements in the user interface to make it more intuitive.
Microsoft should provide batch management solutions with the application, integrating pass management with roles.
Features related to Advanced Persistent Threat detection vectors and cyber kill chain integrations are not available out-of-the-box.
I would reduce the cost.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender for Business offers comprehensive security with competitive pricing and integration benefits within Office 365 premium subscriptions.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is cost-effective for large enterprises but perceived as expensive for smaller businesses.
The package with Business Premium is good for what you get for the price.
I consider Microsoft Defender to be expensive, however, it offers considerable value for the features provided.
Single-year pricing remains good.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Business provides seamless security integration with AI-driven threat detection, user-friendly setup, and extensive monitoring capabilities.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 provides comprehensive protection with seamless integration, simplifying security management and safeguarding remote work environments.
The threat detection capabilities are robust, with a dedicated research team and a continuously updated threat feed.
The security features are valuable because they come with more capabilities that other licenses do not have, including the enterprise license like E3.
Its vulnerability management is regarded as one of the best in the industry.
It ranks the threats and allows us to prioritize those hitting us the hardest, such as email threats.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Busi...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
18th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (33rd)
Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
11th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
47
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Business is 2.9%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 2.3%, down from 3.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

Vincent Gagnon - PeerSpot reviewer
Better security with comprehensive features but has a high cost
I have a lot of clients and I use Microsoft Defender for Business when we have certain types of licenses. It comes with Microsoft Business Premium. However, it is not available for many of my clients due to the high license cost, which makes it difficult to sell. I have a couple of clients who use…
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.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Retailer
6%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Business?
A few things are valuable. One is the alerting we see when any kind of intrusion is happening, any kind of malware is being deployed across the endpoints, or any kind of suspicious activity is goin...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Business?
The package with Business Premium is good for what you get for the price. The standalone license's cost is a bit higher, and I would rate it as an eight out of ten for pricing.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Business?
It is not quick to make exclusions or specific configurations compared to other antiviruses on the market. It is less quick than Microsoft Defender or other antivirus solutions.
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 various email campaigns, pinpointing where they emanate from, and identifying the indi...
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.
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS Defender for Office 365
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Business vs. Microsoft Defender for Office 365 and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,640 professionals have used our research since 2012.