Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Trivy comparison

Microsoft and Aqua Security are both solutions in the Container Security category. Microsoft is ranked #7 with an average rating of 8.1, while Aqua Security is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.6. Microsoft holds a 6.2% mindshare in Container Security, compared to Aqua Security’s 4.9% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Aqua Security users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Read 87 Microsoft Defender for Cloud reviews

20,963 Views
6,499 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

Trivy

Read 12 Trivy reviews

5,344 Views
5,344 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Trivy

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Trivy both compete in the security tools category. Microsoft Defender for Cloud seems to have an advantage in environments using Microsoft products due to its integration with Microsoft services, while Trivy is preferred for its open-source nature and seamless integration into CI/CD pipelines.

Features: Microsoft Defender for Cloud offers comprehensive security features, enhancing visibility in Microsoft environments, providing alerts, and suggesting best practices. Trivy provides seamless CI/CD integration, scans images and repositories, and detects vulnerabilities across various environments, making it highly adaptable for developers.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Defender for Cloud could improve false positive reduction, user experience for non-technical users, and pricing transparency. Trivy may expand its static and report output functionalities, especially in runtime scanning and SIEM integration, in addition to reducing false positives.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Defender for Cloud supports hybrid deployments but faces challenges with support responsiveness. Trivy is easy to deploy due to its community-driven model, but lacks extensive customer support details.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Defender for Cloud's pricing varies and is often high but offers extensive features and positive ROI through time efficiency and reduced risks. Trivy, being open-source, provides high ROI without licensing costs, making it attractive for those prioritizing budget efficiency in security management.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs. Trivy Report (Updated: February 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs. Trivy

February 2026

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Helped 882,410 peers since 2012

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

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Ranking in Container Security

7th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Vulnerability Management (8th), Container Management (7th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (1st), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (4th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (4th), Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) (5th), Microsoft Security Suite (7th), Compliance Management (4th), Cloud Detection and Response (CDR) (2nd)

Trivy

Ranking in Container Security

4th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Container Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Cloud is 6.2%, down from 6.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Trivy is 4.9%, up from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Container Security Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Trivy	4.9%
Microsoft Defender for Cloud	6.2%
Other	88.9%

Container Security

Featured Reviews

David Birhange

Director, Cloud and Modern Workplace at Informanix Technology Group

Brings together cloud security insights through a unified view and supports agentless protection for virtual machines

Copilot and similar features are already being used, though not necessarily for Microsoft Defender for Cloud specifically. We are trying to get more experience before rolling out most of Microsoft Defender for Cloud's AI capabilities. This is definitely on our to-do list, and the priority is urgent as we seek to learn more about these capabilities. The GenAI threat protection from Microsoft Defender for Cloud has not been enabled yet. There are many unknowns with AI applications. AI agents will operate while you're not present, whether you are sleeping or awake, and it's unclear whether there would be any exfiltration of data or how data is being managed. Microsoft Purview is being used extensively, and there is significant development going on with DSPM that will be rolled out to address security concerns. Data labeling and proper demarcation for sensitivity of data before it is received are being actively pursued.

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Surya Aniketh Tamirisa

Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Consistently maintains vulnerability-free images and integrates effectively with builds

Trivy is very reliable and always has an up-to-date database to scan images and identify vulnerabilities. I integrated it with Jenkins jobs, so every time we run a build, if there is a high, critical, or medium vulnerability, the build is set to fail. This ensures that somebody resolves the issues before the code progresses. This approach helps keep every image in every project we work on vulnerability-free.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Defender lets you orchestrate the roll-out from a single pane. Using the Azure portal, you can roll it out over all the servers covered by the entire subscription."

"The security policy is the most valuable feature for us. We can go into the environment settings and attach any globally recognized framework like ISO or any benchmark."

"It's quite a good product. It helps to understand the infections and issues you are facing."

"One of the features that I like about the solution is it is both a hybrid cloud and also multi-cloud. We never know what company we're going to buy, and therefore we are ready to go. If they have GCP or AWS, we have support for that as well. It offers a single-panel blast across multiple clouds."

"Microsoft Defender for Cloud has benefited my organization by reducing the overall cost of the Azure package and providing greater peace of mind during off-hours to prevent problems."

"The solution is quite good and addresses many security gaps."

"The most valuable feature is the hunting feature, which integrates well into the entire Microsoft ecosystem."

"I find Microsoft Defender for Cloud's KQL very flexible and powerful. It's really easy to search through with KQL queries to find the security breaches and incidents and to track down the breach itself."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud pros

"Trivy is most valuable for its ability to scan all repository files and dependencies."

"Trivy's open source nature and wide functionality are incredibly valuable."

"One of the great features of Trivy is that it helps me scan items such as AWS credentials and GCP service accounts."

"Trivy is very reliable and always has an up-to-date database to scan images and identify vulnerabilities."

"I can see vulnerabilities in the images of any applications deployed in the Kubernetes environment or as container applications."

"I rate Trivy a nine out of ten."

"The vulnerability scanning feature is excellent as it supports various container capabilities like Docker and Sharma."

More Trivy pros

Cons

"The product's advanced analytics and reporting features could be improved."

"Microsoft Defender could be more centralized. For example, I still need to go to another console to do policy management."

"Defender is occasionally unreliable. It isn't 100% efficient in terms of antivirus detection, but it isn't an issue most of the time. It's also somewhat difficult to train new security analysts to use Defender."

"The cost is always a concern, but overall, it's not too bad because it is easy to use and pretty friendly."

"An area where Microsoft Defender for Cloud could be improved is in getting away from having multiple menus that do the same thing, which seems imposing when looking at it."

"Defender could improve how data is represented. It can be unstructured or slow to load. The recent update allowing policy grouping into control groups is beneficial, but further enhancements for speed and clarity are needed."

"It's hard to reach someone who understands my problems. I haven't had many issues, so I haven't called them."

"I would like to see more connectors and plugins with other platforms."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud cons

"Having little experience can hinder the ability to connect it to a user-friendly UI effectively."

"The main area for improvement is in differentiating between OS and application-based vulnerabilities."

"Currently, the container image scanning is static. A dynamic scanning capability during runtime would be a significant advantage."

"Trivy generates many false positives, flagging non-existent vulnerabilities."

"In our CI/CD pipelines, Trivy lacks built-in functionality for report analysis."

"The reporting could be a little better."

"The only problem is that Trivy does not support reporting features such as generating reports in CSV, which is useful for auditing and reporting."

More Trivy cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is bundled with our enterprise subscription, which makes it easy to go for it. It is available by default, and there is no extra cost for using the standard features."

"The pricing model for most plans is generally good, but the cost of the new Defender for Storage plan is high and should be revisited, as it could lead to disabling desirable security features due to cost."

"We only use the free tier, so we haven't faced any pricing, setup costs, or licensing challenges."

"Microsoft Defender for Cloud is pricey, especially for Kubernetes clusters."

"The licensing is straightforward but can become expensive if you cover everything. You must balance the cost against the importance of what needs covering."

"This is a worldwide service and depending on the country, there will be different prices."

"Security Center charges $15 per resource for any workload that you onboard into it. They charge per VM or per data-base server or per application. It's not like Microsoft 365 licensing, where there are levels like E3 and E5. Security Center is pretty straightforward."

"It has global licensing. It comes with multiple licenses since there are around 50,000 people (in our organization) who look at it."

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

13%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

13%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	27
Midsize Enterprise	10
Large Enterprise	49

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	3
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	9

Questions from the Community

How is Prisma Cloud vs Azure Security Center for security?

Azure Security Center is very easy to use, integrates well, and gives very good visibility on what is happening across your ecosystem. It also has great remote workforce capabilities and supports a...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Cloud?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Microsoft Defender for Cloud was pretty straightforward. We did have a consultation with a third party to go over different tiers and produ...

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What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Cloud?

Microsoft Defender for Cloud can be improved. An additional feature that should be included in the next release is Zero Trust, similar to ThreatLocker software.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Trivy?

Trivy's marketing and awareness need improvement. Not everyone knows about it, which isn't ideal given its capabilities. There's potential to integrate AI and machine learning for enhanced function...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Trivy?

I use Trivy ( /products/trivy-reviews ) to scan code for vulnerabilities before deployment. Our projects, which are developed by different developers, involve various dependencies and third-party c...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Trivy?

I recommend Trivy to others due to its powerful and useful features. However, I suggest increasing its marketing to raise awareness. I rate Trivy an eight out of ten.

See all answers

Comparisons

AWS GuardDuty vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 36% of the time

Wiz vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 7% of the time

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 4% of the time

Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 2% of the time

SentinelOne Singularity Cloud Security vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud

Compared 2% of the time

More Microsoft Defender for Cloud Competitors

JFrog Xray vs Trivy

Compared 18% of the time

Snyk vs Trivy

Compared 15% of the time

Kubescape vs Trivy

Compared 9% of the time

Wiz vs Trivy

Compared 8% of the time

Qualys VMDR vs Trivy

Compared 3% of the time

More Trivy Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Cloud

January 2026

Download Microsoft Defender for Cloud product report

Buyer's Guide

Trivy

January 2026

Download Trivy product report

Also Known As

Microsoft Azure Security Center, Azure Security Center, Microsoft ASC, Azure Defender

No data available

Interactive Demo

Microsoft

Demo not available

Aqua Security

Overview

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is a comprehensive security solution that provides advanced threat protection for cloud workloads. It offers real-time visibility into the security posture of cloud environments, enabling organizations to quickly identify and respond to potential threats. With its advanced machine learning capabilities, Microsoft Defender for Cloud can detect and block sophisticated attacks, including zero-day exploits and fileless malware.

The solution also provides automated remediation capabilities, allowing security teams to quickly and easily respond to security incidents. With Microsoft Defender for Cloud, organizations can ensure the security and compliance of their cloud workloads, while reducing the burden on their security teams.

Microsoft

Trivy offers comprehensive scanning for files, images, repositories, and infrastructure. It's open-source and integrates with CI/CD for vulnerability detection and security enhancement.

Trivy scans vulnerabilities in code, Docker images, containers, and infrastructure. It integrates seamlessly into DevOps pipelines, ensuring security in dependency management and open source vulnerabilities. This tool, lightweight and open-source, provides user-friendly reports and supports continuous vulnerability database updates, fostering ease of use across operating systems. Users benefit from its scanning capabilities, covering Kubernetes, AWS credentials, and GCP service accounts, effectively identifying vulnerabilities and misconfigurations.

What are Trivy's key features?

Comprehensive Scanning: Covers files, images, repositories, infrastructure, and sensitive data.
CI/CD Integration: Easily integrates into existing pipelines for seamless security checks.
Open-Source & Lightweight: Quick setup and fast scanning capabilities ensure rapid deployment.
Continuously Updated Database: Keeps vulnerability data current for effective threat detection.
User-Friendly Reports: Generates understandable and actionable security insights.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Enhanced Security: Provides in-depth analysis of vulnerabilities and misconfigurations.
Ease of Use: Designed for straightforward implementation and user interaction.
Compliance Support: Assists in meeting industry security standards and regulations.
Cross-Platform Use: Effective across different operating systems, enabling wide scalability.

In industries like technology and finance, Trivy is used extensively to secure applications, perform compliance checks, and offer security metrics visualization. It addresses microservices, container systems, and Kubernetes clusters security requirements, supporting DevOps teams and enhancing codebase analysis precision.

Aqua Security

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is trusted by companies such as ASOS, Vatenfall, SWC Technology Partners, and more.

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs. Trivy

February 2026

Free Report: Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs. Trivy

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