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KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs NinjaOne comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 19, 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
5.7
Microsoft Intune offers cost savings, enhanced productivity, and seamless integration, cutting expenses up to 60% with efficient management.
Sentiment score
7.3
KACE SMA increases efficiency and productivity, offering rapid ROI by streamlining operations and reducing time, costs, and staffing needs.
Sentiment score
7.7
NinjaOne enhances productivity by enabling remote issue management, reducing workloads, and offering significant time and cost savings.
Everything we've gained from it makes my job easier day after day, and I see value in it as an engineer.
Microsoft Intune not only saves costs by reducing the number of personnel needed but also offers a comprehensive solution for managing laptops, applications, security, individual access, and enrollment.
Importantly, when someone leaves the company, it helps protect document access on their devices.
The return on investment is seen in the quick access to information, good inventory management, and efficient systems management.
NinjaOne enables significant time savings, reducing my workload by 40% to 50%, primarily due to remote management capabilities.
I have seen a return on investment with NinjaOne, specifically with fewer employees and less time spent on troubleshooting.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.5
Microsoft Intune's technical support has mixed reviews, with praise for higher-level engineers but criticism for lower-level support.
Sentiment score
6.6
KACE SMA support is praised for its expertise and 24/7 availability, with occasional room for flexibility improvement.
Sentiment score
7.8
NinjaOne's customer service receives mixed reviews, praised for responsiveness but criticized for slow responses and unavailable features.
When a support ticket is submitted, it directly reaches someone with Intune support expertise.
When I contacted Microsoft, they had the same expertise, if not more, which is phenomenal because I felt heard and my problem was solved.
Sometimes, the support provided is excellent, and the representative is knowledgeable, while other times, the service needs improvement.
I would rate the customer support for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) as a 10.
The customer service is very good, providing quick customer support in Spanish.
Our experience with escalation supports, including auto escalation to third-level or engineering support, has been very positive.
The customer support at NinjaOne is excellent, rated ten out of ten.
I rate customer service and support for NinjaOne at seven out of ten due to slow response times.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.7
Microsoft Intune offers scalable, cloud-based device management, integrating with systems like Office 365 for seamless enterprise flexibility and performance.
Sentiment score
7.2
KACE Systems Management Appliance efficiently supports various organization sizes, excelling in integration, scalability, and comprehensive network management.
Sentiment score
7.9
NinjaOne's cloud-based design offers scalable, cost-effective device management, efficiently supporting from small businesses to large enterprises.
The scalability of Microsoft Intune is ten out of ten.
Ideally, we want to automatically segregate devices based on user properties like primary use, but currently, dynamic groups seem limited to device properties.
It supports organizations with 200 endpoints and those with more than 15,000 endpoints.
The product is very scalable as it supports 10,000 thousand endpoints with just one appliance.
We have outgrown the size of one KACE appliance and are now running two.
I would rate the scalability of NinjaOne as ten out of ten.
We easily install the agent on new servers and can create scripts to automate agent installation.
The scalability of NinjaOne is good; we can add more as we grow.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.6
Microsoft Intune is stable and reliable, with minor sync delays, benefiting from a cloud-based infrastructure for improved performance.
Sentiment score
8.1
KACE Systems Management Appliance is praised for its stability, reliability, and efficient performance, with swift recovery during incidents.
Sentiment score
7.9
NinjaOne is praised for its stability and reliability, with frequent updates ensuring minimal issues and high user satisfaction.
We have not experienced downtime, bugs, or glitches.
It appears Microsoft Intune undergoes changes without informing customers.
Microsoft Intune has been very stable.
I would rate the stability a ten out of ten.
In the two years I have used it, I have never experienced any downtime or reliability issues.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Intune needs improved reporting, faster policy deployment, automation, enhanced integration, and better support for BYOD and non-Microsoft systems.
KACE Systems Management Appliance struggles with scalability, usability, customization, integration, image deployment, and technical support responsiveness.
NinjaOne requires improved integrations, usability enhancements, automation, and cost-effective solutions, particularly concerning cloud environments and active directory reliance.
Features like unlocking devices sometimes fail, and the support offered for other operating systems is insufficient.
There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now.
Many third-party companies offer single-pane-of-glass reporting that shows you what your update environment looks like, how your patch is doing, application status, etc., but Intune's reporting is not intuitive.
Currently, we have to go into each org to deploy applications when we need them all across the university.
The user interface needs improvement as customers have mentioned they do not like the interface since it is not an SMA-based interface.
Security and reporting, including business intelligence tools, are adequate.
NinjaOne should consider adding notifications about script executions to email, Teams, or Slack channels.
The inclusion of XENServer and Proxmox as virtual platforms in NinjaOne is currently missing.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Intune is seen as cost-effective, offering significant savings when bundled with Microsoft 365 and EMS licenses.
KACE Systems Management Appliance offers cost-effective enterprise solutions, although potentially expensive for small businesses, with no additional feature costs.
NinjaOne offers cost-effective, flexible device-specific pricing with notable discounts for large-scale deployments, often cheaper than competitors.
Introductory professional services, like a fast-track service, were included with our E5 membership, and there have been no additional costs.
The Intune suite and add-ons, such as batch management and remote help, are costly.
It costs approximately forty euros per user per month.
The pricing is in the middle range of the market, not too expensive but not the cheapest either.
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is that, hands down, it beat all of the others in simplicity and pricing.
The pricing for NinjaOne is appropriate for small companies.
NinjaOne is reasonably priced, particularly with the inclusion of TeamViewer, SentinelOne, and Bitdefender.
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for NinjaOne is fairly cheap and easy.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Intune offers zero-touch deployment, security, cross-platform management, and intuitive interface for streamlined device and application management.
KACE SMA offers integrated, centralized IT management for efficient software deployment, asset management, and security with customizable inventories.
NinjaOne enhances remote access and management with user-friendly features, automation, integrations, and a robust mobile app.
Intune excels in configuration and compliance management for Windows 10, ensuring devices receive timely updates and adhere to organizational standards.
Dynamic groups allow us to set conditions for automatic membership, eliminating the need for user intervention or manual review and ensuring a seamless workflow.
Windows Autopatch is the most valuable because it removes the burden of patch management.
Scripting has saved us hundreds of hours over the years when patching these vulnerabilities compared to how we did it before.
The most valuable features include simplicity, which makes systems management easier and faster, especially for device management.
The software's automation tools have solved critical deployment problems for small businesses.
A significant feature of NinjaOne is its remote access capability, which is essential for my clients’ home office usage.
Every month, every quarter, I see new features, and it is always evolving.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Unified Endpoint Management (UEM)
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
304
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Remote Access (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
KACE Systems Management App...
Ranking in Unified Endpoint Management (UEM)
10th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Client Desktop Management (3rd), Endpoint Compliance (7th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (11th), Patch Management (9th)
NinjaOne
Ranking in Unified Endpoint Management (UEM)
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Network Monitoring Software (30th), Server Monitoring (7th), IT Service Management (ITSM) (8th), Remote Access (18th), Vulnerability Management (28th), Mobile Device Management (MDM) (5th), IT Alerting and Incident Management (10th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (1st), Patch Management (8th), MSP Backup (3rd)
 

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license
The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.
Scott Tweed - PeerSpot reviewer
Low maintenance, reliable, and easy to create packages
I like how when you click on the device, it shows you everything that has changed as well as the software versioning. I am really enjoying the inventory aspect of it. The deployment process for both deploying and creating a package is straightforward. I believe the inventory in KACE is superior to SCCM's. I know with SCCM I could do things like remote console into machines via the agent's remote console, but that is not a feature that is provided in KACE. I know that at least in the Systems Management Appliance, I can't get to it. I'm not sure how distribution works, with distribution points. I'm not sure if KACE has that feature. You could use an SCCM to set up distribution points at remote sites so that they don't have to download patches or software from across the country. If you have a DP or something similar, they could pull it down.
Jörg Köhler - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhances remote access and integration with third-party tools
I use NinjaOne for managing smaller clients, specifically their devices and software, for small to medium businesses. I provide remote management services through NinjaOne. It allows clients to use NinjaOne for remote access to their computers for home office purposes. This feature is highly…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
University
12%
Government
9%
Non Profit
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business116
Midsize Enterprise46
Large Enterprise152
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business8
Midsize Enterprise20
Large Enterprise15
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise1
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Quest KACE Systems Management?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is that, hand...
What needs improvement with Quest KACE Systems Management?
I wish Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) would have a top-down approach since we use orgs; currently, we ...
What is your primary use case for Quest KACE Systems Management?
My main use case for Quest KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) is to deploy applications and maintain security, a...
What do you like most about NinjaOne?
NinjaOne helps us view the status of software patching, whether the PC is locked or unlocked.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NinjaOne?
The price or licensing of NinjaOne is a little bit high.
What needs improvement with NinjaOne?
The network monitoring needs to be improved.
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
Dell KACE Systems Management
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Waypoint, Mattos Filho, Meetic, Gems Education, Green Clinic HealthSystem, Service King
Status Pros, Mitchell and Company
Find out what your peers are saying about KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) vs. NinjaOne and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,869 professionals have used our research since 2012.