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Microsoft Defender for Business vs Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 6, 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
8.2
Microsoft Defender for Business boosts ROI with increased productivity, cost savings, improved security, and enhanced business opportunities.
Sentiment score
5.7
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise offers significant ROI, reducing manual tasks, aiding compliance, and securing data against cybercrime threats.
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.
The value I see in Microsoft Defender for Business is in its ability to track and respond to application usage and security threats through its CASB and automation features, which are cost-beneficial.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.4
Microsoft Defender for Business offers prompt support but lacks efficiency, with slower resolutions and mixed user satisfaction ratings.
Sentiment score
6.5
Symantec Endpoint Security support is responsive but inconsistent post-acquisition, with European and African customers facing significant challenges.
It is rated ten out of ten for its quality and assistance.
The onboarding support is exceptional, ensuring seamless integration and implementation.
Faster support is needed for endpoint security solutions.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.1
Microsoft Defender for Business is praised for scalability, with high ratings, despite configuration challenges across sectors like IT and government.
Sentiment score
6.5
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise is highly scalable, adaptable for various business sizes, but challenges include licensing cost and extension compatibility.
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
7.8
Microsoft Defender for Business is stable and reliable, with minimal downtime and occasional bugs, maintaining user satisfaction.
Sentiment score
8.5
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise is stable and reliable, despite occasional performance issues with Windows updates and full scans.
No customer complaints about its functionality or reliability.
Although it generally works, there are occasional issues and errors that sometimes require a complete system format to rectify.
Threat detection capabilities could be improved.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender for Business needs enhancements in reporting, integration, support efficiency, and pricing, with user-friendliness and communication issues.
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise needs enhanced features, user-friendliness, performance improvements, better support, and more comprehensive threat coverage at a competitive price.
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.
There can be improvements in the user interface to make it more intuitive.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender for Business offers cost-effective pricing within Office 365 Premium, valued for features and nonprofit discounts, despite some competitors.
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise offers a 60-day trial, with annual costs from $70-$100 per user, varying by features.
Single-year pricing remains good.
The pricing is quite affordable at the enterprise level with no extra expenses noted.
The package with Business Premium is good for what you get for the price.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Business provides scalable, cost-effective security with AI-powered threat detection, easy integration, and user-friendly features.
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise provides advanced threat protection, scalability, AI integration, and user-friendly management for comprehensive and efficient security.
The threat detection capabilities are robust, with a dedicated research team and a continuously updated threat feed.
Its vulnerability management is regarded as one of the best in the industry.
The most effective features of Microsoft Defender for Business include its threat detection and response capabilities in managing vulnerabilities and ransomware attacks.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Busi...
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
25th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
Microsoft Security Suite (15th)
Symantec Endpoint Security ...
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
26th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Business is 1.9%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise is 0.4%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
 

Featured Reviews

Syed Abid  - PeerSpot reviewer
Advanced threat protection secures diverse workloads with cost-effective deployment
If I need logs and don't have local storage bundled with Defender, I need to add workspace and log analytics, which is costly for storing logs of 2 GB, 5 GB, 10 GB. A default storage of 5 GB for logs should be included with Defender. There are limitations in whitelisting folders and files, and the whitelisting feature for Defender threat protection was deprecated. A straightforward feature for this should be added.
WAKKAS AHMAD - PeerSpot reviewer
The real-time visibility is excellent because it uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to detect advanced threats
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise helps us meet regulatory requirements for payment card industries. We must use next-generation antivirus to comply with PCI regulations. The solution protects our network environment, data, and devices. Symantec is an innovative solution. They're always upgrading the product, and the signatures are constantly updated on the cloud side, and the signatures update on my machine three or four times. Symantec stays ahead of novel viruses and malware using machine learning and next-generation technology It helps us adopt a multilayered approach to security that incorporates behavioral analysis to detect threats that a signature-based solution can't protect us against. I rate Symantec's Endpoint Security Enterprise Single Agent System an eight out of ten for attack surface reduction, attack prevention, and breach prevention. A single breach can impact the company's reputation. The return on investment is always great because we are confident that Symantec will protect our users and data. Symantec Global Intelligence Network helped us reduce false positives by 20 to 30 percent, so we aren't spending as much time investigating these alerts. This frees up resources to do something else. Two of our people working on Symantec also have other responsibilities.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Retailer
7%
Government
6%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

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?
Microsoft Defender for Business offers the best pricing option in the market and is very cost-effective.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Business?
The areas where Microsoft Defender for Business could improve include the support, installation process, and wiki. I should be able to find solutions to issues quickly without having to delve too d...
What do you like most about Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise?
The tool is a secure and stable workstation for checking antivirus. The alerting feature helps us see alerts and is easy to control. The main benefit we derive from using Symantec Endpoint Security...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Business vs. Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
847,625 professionals have used our research since 2012.