Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. Symantec Endpoint Security

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Score 8.9 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (formerly Microsoft Defender ATP) is a holistic, cloud delivered endpoint security solution that includes risk-based vulnerability management and assessment, attack surface reduction, behavioral based and cloud-powered next generation protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), automatic investigation and remediation, managed hunting services, rich APIs, and unified security management.
$2.50
per user/per month
Symantec Endpoint Security
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
Symantec Endpoint Protection is the company's flagship antivirus / endpoint security product.
$29.99
per year 100-249 devices
Pricing
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Editions & Modules
Academic
$2.50
per user/per month
Standalone
$5.20
per user/per month
Endpoint Security, Initial Hybrid Subscription License With Support
$29.99
1 year 100-249 devices
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise, Initial Hybrid Subscription License with Support
$34.99
1 year 1-99 devices
Endpoint Security, Initial Hybrid Subscription License With Support
$90.99
3 years 100-249 devices
Symantec Endpoint Security Enterprise, Initial Hybrid Subscription License with Support
$99.99
3 years 1-99 devices
Symantec Endpoint Security Complete, Initial Hybrid Subscription License with Support
$200
3 years 1-99 devices
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Considered Both Products
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
As we are using 90% of Windows devices and laptops in our organisation we figured out that Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a better solution for us as compared to above solutions mentioned. It is very easy and convenient to use this solution with Windows devices. The …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Enterprise Endpoint Protection: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is well suited for large organizations with numerous endpoints, such as desktops, laptops, and servers, as it provides centralized management and monitoring of security across the entire network. Microsoft …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Mostly it runs smoothly on host without impacting performance as other AVs like Symantec's impacts performance issue of host. Also because it's still a good product overall price range. Can upgrade to EDR solution with not much difficulty & onboarding on tool is not that …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We used to use Symantec's Endpoint Detection and Response Solution, and so that's actually what we replaced with Defender for Endpoint. So it's just lightyears ahead of that one. So personally, I've also used Webroot in the past for an antivirus solution and Kaspersky and …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
As compared to some of the other products we have used in our organization over the years, Windows Defender has been a lot better at not using a lot of system resources when running on the clients. A lot of other commercial threat protection products on the market today, tend …
Symantec Endpoint Security
Chose Symantec Endpoint Security
In comparison with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Symantec Endpoint Security has, in my opinion, more scalable file inspection/spyware/antivirus settings. Plus it is more stable in a multi-OS user environment. But it also has numerous issues with itself and related Symantec …
Chose Symantec Endpoint Security
Symantec Endpoint Protection really shines against its competitors when it comes to centralized management. It falls a little short when it comes to cloud deployments.
Features
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
8.7
78 Ratings
3% above category average
Symantec Endpoint Security
9.2
37 Ratings
8% above category average
Anti-Exploit Technology8.975 Ratings9.031 Ratings
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)9.177 Ratings9.933 Ratings
Centralized Management8.777 Ratings9.035 Ratings
Hybrid Deployment Support7.210 Ratings9.026 Ratings
Infection Remediation9.075 Ratings9.035 Ratings
Vulnerability Management8.772 Ratings9.831 Ratings
Malware Detection9.276 Ratings9.035 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Small Businesses
ThreatLocker
ThreatLocker
Score 9.4 out of 10
ThreatLocker
ThreatLocker
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
Score 9.1 out of 10
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 9.9 out of 10
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 9.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Likelihood to Recommend
8.9
(136 ratings)
9.0
(64 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.4
(10 ratings)
9.1
(4 ratings)
Usability
8.7
(11 ratings)
9.0
(5 ratings)
Availability
9.1
(1 ratings)
9.0
(2 ratings)
Performance
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(7 ratings)
1.0
(11 ratings)
Implementation Rating
7.3
(1 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
Configurability
8.2
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
9.1
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Likelihood to Recommend
Microsoft
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easy to deployed across the entire organization. Having a cloud based solution with a single pane of glass to manage all assets is a real no-brainer. Being able to receive immediate alerts when suspicious activity occurs is extremely helpful in keeping risks at a minimum. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint management is also smart enough to not send several alerts when an attack could be hitting multiple targets within a certain time frame or when it's the same attack multiple times. However, be prepared to click through multiple pages all over the site to figure out what happened when an attack occurs.
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Broadcom
Symantec Endpoint Security is a well-rounded product that provides a significant amount of functionality and covers many of our endpoint needs without needing to resort to multiple vendors that might clash in unpredictable ways when ultimately deployed to the endpoints in our estate. The default policies are adequate and tuning these requires some time as with all similar EDR products but the product is flexible enough to allow very granular whitelisting/blacklisting which is great. Low resource requirements are also fantastic and we've not had many complaints from developers who were getting slowed down when compiling complex code with other previous solutions.
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Pros
Microsoft
  • One, it's crazy lightweight, so compared to some of the competitors that we also have used with our security services, it's really lightweight and so I don't have a lot of overhead on the system that it's running on.
  • It does really fantastic PowerShell integration.
Read full review
Broadcom
  • The virus and spyware protection has worked well for us, catching several things and quarantining the items or cleaning them.
  • The virus definitions very rarely fail to update for the users, so I feel confident that my client machines are kept up to date.
  • I like the report I get daily telling me about threats found and action taken without having to login to the console to look it up myself.
Read full review
Cons
Microsoft
  • It would be good to continue to minimize the amount of resources needed during a scan
  • Provide more integration with Outlook to scan attachments with a notification that everything is good
  • Provide a Click to Fix option when listing issues or high-risk problems on systems
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Broadcom
  • The system should have a better ability to auto repair, if an item is malfunctioning it should auto reinstall.
  • The cloud platform and the server do not talk well to each other and it would be great to get the same data on both platforms, this may be due to version though.
  • It seems the whitelisting on the cloud platform could use some work.
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Likelihood to Renew
Microsoft
Cost add-ons for Security features is nickel and diming the process to keep pace with cybercrime. Limited Education budgets require us to be more pro-active in finding cost-effective measures to protect our devices, staff and students. Defender is a strong, well-featured product that is pricing itself out of the education market
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Broadcom
Best of Breed. Symantec Endpoint Protection beats all other end point products I have used, tested and seen in presentation at this point in time.
Read full review
Usability
Microsoft
It offers multiple security features and integrates well with Microsoft ecosystems. A workflow for threat detection, investigation, automated remediation, and a centralized dashboard is an added advantage. This application is mainly designed for experienced users; new users may feel challenged.
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Broadcom
The rating reflects Symantec Endpoint Security's ability to balance enterprise grade security with user-friendly workflows or advanced configurations require extra effort. For most organizations, the streamlined management and robust automation justify the high score. Management GUI is old fashined and need to be improve. Older devices may experience slowdowns during full scans without careful configuration.
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Reliability and Availability
Microsoft
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint chugs along just fine no matter what we throw at it and what systems it's running on. It doesn't take up a lot of resources either, so that's welcomed.
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Broadcom
We've used it for years and the software is easy to use. The dashboard is easy to read, and you can easily figure out where to go to troubleshoot or deploy software. Symantec is there for emergencies like backup restoration or file retrieval. It's pretty low maintenance. Symantec is there when your IT infrastructure needs it
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Performance
Microsoft
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easy on memory and resources on clients.
Read full review
Broadcom
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Microsoft
The first time I tried to onboard my macOS endpoints to MDE I struggled for quite a bit. I had to reach out to Microsoft's MDE support team. The tech was very helpful in walking me through the steps during a screen share session
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Broadcom
Support is completely awful! You can never get anyone to help if you can even find a number to call. The support web portal is a joke and their response time if you're even able to submit a ticket is ridiculously slow.
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Implementation Rating
Microsoft
Deployment was handled by our team here and everything went pretty smoothly. We did have a few hiccups in our test group, but that only took a bit to get ironed out.
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Broadcom
Use a third party deployment tool and not the deployment option within the SEP Manager itself.
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Alternatives Considered
Microsoft
Defender is far easier to deploy and manage than Sophos and tends to work without as many issues. The threat assessment portal provides an in-depth view of the organization's security posture, whereas Sophos only shows the patching status of the PCs. We did need Intune to get many of the control features (disabling USB drives) that Sophos offered out of the box.
Read full review
Broadcom
Symantec Endpoint Security offers very similar features to the above products, they all do the same thing in terms of protecting your endpoints against cybersecurity threats. Installation wise the products all install from a central management system and report back to this for central reporting. Ultimately we choose Symantec as the reseller was able to offer additional incentives which made their pricing very competitive.
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Scalability
Microsoft
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easily scaled from small orgs to giant enterprises.
Read full review
Broadcom
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Microsoft
  • Reduced incidents of security breaches lead to lower remediation costs and avoid potential financial losses and reputational damage.
  • Reduces the need for additional third-party security solutions and training, thereby lowering overall security management costs.
  • Increased efficiency and productivity of IT staff lead to better allocation of resources and cost savings.
  • Reduces the risk of fines and sanctions associated with non-compliance, ensuring business continuity and protecting revenue.
Read full review
Broadcom
  • The ROI from deploying this has led to fewer security issues which reduces costs.
  • Keeping track of security issues and how the were remedied is easier.
  • Deskside support can work with end users easily if something is triggered and this allows us to not have to overstaff.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Screenshots

Screenshot of blocked activitiesScreenshot of Detects & respondsScreenshot of discovers vulnerabilityScreenshot of Eliminates blind spotsScreenshot of Risk management