Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Purview Audit comparison

Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Audit are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Microsoft Defender XDR is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.4, while Microsoft Purview Audit is ranked #31 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft Defender XDR holds a 6.6% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Purview Audit’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Microsoft Defender XDR users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Microsoft Purview Audit users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Defender XDR

Read 102 Microsoft Defender XDR reviews

10,986 Views
2,856 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Microsoft Purview Audit

Read 3 Microsoft Purview Audit reviews

1,007 Views
292 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender XDR

Microsoft Purview Audit

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Audit based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Microsoft Security Suite solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

September 2025

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Helped 871,829 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 XDR

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

4th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

102

Ranking in other categories

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (5th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (2nd)

Microsoft Purview Audit

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

31st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (36th)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender XDR is 6.6%, up from 5.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Audit is 1.0%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Defender XDR	6.6%
Microsoft Purview Audit	1.0%
Other	92.4%

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

MohtesanShaikh

Business Development Executive at TechnoFirrm

Experience improves security management and simplifies threat protection

I have created automated investigations, and while they work, they operate rather slowly in the Microsoft portal. If I automate something, it takes considerable time; if I do it manually, I can complete it in a quarter of the time. The automation response being slow is the main concern; when an incident occurs or if I run a remediation, it takes significant time to complete the remediation. There are some limitations regarding the scalability of Microsoft Defender XDR with specific licensing. For SMB customers, there is only Microsoft Defender for Business, and if they want more features such as XDR features and automation investigation or incident response, they need to purchase Defender for Endpoint. We are currently using the EDR.

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Matthew Hoerig

President at Trustsec Inc.

Audit function refines log retrieval and drives application assessments with evolving features

From a service assessment and authorization process perspective, when conducting an assessment on an application or system, we use controls essentially equivalent to the NIST 800-53 framework. This includes examining audit logs, data quality, and various KPIs required for log configuration. It factors into our application assessments. When producing documentation packages for application or system authorization, audit logging and monitoring are crucial parts of the assessment process. The evidence we gather includes screenshots and outputs from these tools and capabilities. For Microsoft Purview Audit specifically, we provide examples of audit function configuration and log output details, which are incorporated into our evidence documents.

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

"The email protection feature is the most valuable because our risks primarily lie there, and it seems to be the most popular target."

"Microsoft 365 Defender's most valuable feature is the ability to control the shadow IP."

"I like the easy integration and advanced possibilities. We can implement it at customer sites in a few clicks, but we can also dive deep and drill down to extended features. There's a very good starting point to get into this product and all the features from Defender."

"The integration with other Microsoft solutions is the most valuable feature."

"The unified view of the threat landscape on a central dashboard is the most valuable feature."

"All of the security components are valuable including, antiphishing, antispam, and stage three antivirus."

"Having a single pane of glass for all Microsoft security services makes everything much easier. A security analyst can go to a single portal and see everything in one view. The integration of everything into one portal is a huge benefit."

"Microsoft Defender XDR has significantly improved our operational security."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pros

"The overall user experience with Microsoft Purview Audit is of higher quality than when it was branded as Compliance Center, and Microsoft consistently updates and evolves functionalities and the overall experience."

"The platform has significantly enhanced our operational insight into the overall Microsoft 365 environment."

"We're easily saving at least one hour per day using this solution."

Cons

"Automated playbooks and automated dashboards would be preferable to the way the data is currently being presented."

"The support could be more knowledgable to improve their offering."

"The improvements to Microsoft Defender XDR would probably go on the Linux side. There's still some more work to be done there."

"One of the biggest downsides of Microsoft products, in general, is that the menus are often difficult to find, as they tend to move from place to place between versions."

"Microsoft tends to provide too many features, which makes the solution prone to bugs."

"The Defender agent itself is more compatible with Windows 10 and Windows 11. Other than these two lines, there are so many compatibility issues. Security is not only about Microsoft. The core technical aspects of it are quite good, but it would be good if they can better support non-Microsoft solutions in terms of putting the agents directly into VMware and other virtualization solutions. There should be more emphasis on RHEL and other operating systems that we use, other than Windows, in the server category."

"It would be beneficial to have a more seamless experience with everything consolidated in one place, particularly when dealing with aspects related to the Exchange console."

"The price should be adjustable by region."

More Microsoft Defender XDR cons

"Areas for product improvement include enhancing customization options and integrating more comprehensive compliance features."

"We do have a Denial of Access happening."

"We are still in the early stages of leveraging Microsoft Purview Audit. Currently, it's primarily used for the audit function."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"365 Defender can get expensive because you pay per gigabyte of data ingested. On the other hand, much of the data available in the other Microsoft security solutions are made available relatively cheaply—sometimes at cost or for free. Integrating only a limited set of third-party solutions with Sentinel would be cost-effective. It's much more affordable if companies only have Microsoft stuff."

"Defender plan 1 is tenant-wise, and Defender plan 2 is per-user, which makes it more expensive. To have certain features, you would need to purchase the E5 license. For all of the capabilities that the tool provides, the price, though it can be high, is fair."

"Its licensing and pricing are handled by someone else. My role is limited to incidents or issues with the portal, but you get what you pay for. It is worth the cost."

"Understanding the subscription model has been a bit challenging, as every feature or requirement comes with an additional cost."

"Microsoft Defender XDR is expensive."

"Sometimes 365 Defender is expensive, but it can be moderate, depending on the organization's size and the license type. We're satisfied with the cost because it gives us a product that protects our entire environment with DLP. To compromise some cost, of course, we are to complete the most secure environment."

"Microsoft Defender falls within a mid-tier price range compared to other security solutions."

"Microsoft purposely makes its license combinations complex and includes combinations like Microsoft 365 E3 and Microsoft 365 E5, Office 365 E3, Office 365 E5, and Office 365 E1, so you get confused. Microsoft tries to sell you a bundle of a lot of things together."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

14%

Educational Organization

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	46
Midsize Enterprise	23
Large Enterprise	37

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft 365 Defender?

Microsoft Defender XDR provides strong identity protection with comprehensive insights into risky user behavior and potential indicators of compromise.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft 365 Defender?

The pricing for Microsoft Sentinel operates on a pay-as-you-go model based on data ingestion. I recall that Defender XDR pricing is based on the number of endpoints.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft 365 Defender?

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Purview Audit?

I'm not aware of the pricing of licensing terms.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Purview Audit?

We are still in the early stages of leveraging Microsoft Purview Audit. Currently, it's primarily used for the audit function. In a year's time, we will be able to provide more clarity and context ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Purview Audit?

Microsoft Purview Audit functions as a compliance center. Whenever these systems generate logs, we use Microsoft Purview Audit to capture or retrieve those logs. While there are more tools availabl...

See all answers

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR

October 2025

Download Microsoft Defender XDR product report

Buyer's Guide

Log Management

October 2025

Download Microsoft Purview Audit product report

Also Known As

Microsoft 365 Defender, Microsoft Threat Protection, MS 365 Defender

No data available

Overview

Microsoft Defender XDR is a comprehensive security solution designed to protect against threats in the Microsoft 365 environment.

It offers robust security measures, comprehensive threat detection capabilities, and an efficient incident response system. With seamless integration with other Microsoft products and a user-friendly interface, it simplifies security management tasks.

Users have found it effective in detecting and preventing various types of attacks, such as phishing attempts, malware infections, and data breaches.

Watch the Microsoft demo video here: Microsoft Defender XDR demo video.

Microsoft

The unified auditing functionality in Microsoft 365 provides organizations with visibility into many types of audited activities across many different services in Microsoft 365. Advanced Audit helps organizations to conduct forensic and compliance investigations by increasing audit log retention required to conduct an investigation, providing access to crucial events that help determine scope of compromise, and faster access to Office 365 Management Activity API.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Accenture, Deloitte, ExxonMobil, General Electric, IBM, Johnson & Johnson and many others.

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

September 2025

Free Report: Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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