Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. Symantec Endpoint Security

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Score 8.3 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 7.7 out of 10
N/A
Symantec Endpoint Protection is the company's flagship antivirus / endpoint security product.N/A
Pricing
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Editions & Modules
Academic
$2.50
per user/per month
Standalone
$5.20
per user/per month
No answers on this topic
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
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 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
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.
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
8.2
51 Ratings
4% below category average
Symantec Endpoint Security
8.4
36 Ratings
1% below category average
Anti-Exploit Technology8.049 Ratings8.330 Ratings
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)8.550 Ratings9.033 Ratings
Centralized Management7.950 Ratings8.434 Ratings
Hybrid Deployment Support7.810 Ratings7.925 Ratings
Infection Remediation8.250 Ratings7.434 Ratings
Vulnerability Management8.348 Ratings8.631 Ratings
Malware Detection8.551 Ratings9.034 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Small Businesses
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
SentinelOne Singularity
SentinelOne Singularity
Score 9.1 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
CrowdStrike Falcon
CrowdStrike Falcon
Score 9.1 out of 10
CrowdStrike Falcon
CrowdStrike Falcon
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 8.7 out of 10
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 8.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(71 ratings)
8.1
(63 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(4 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
9.1
(4 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
9.0
(2 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(5 ratings)
1.0
(11 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Microsoft Defender for EndpointSymantec Endpoint Security
Likelihood to Recommend
Microsoft
Usually we had lots two platforms tasked with scanning exposures, anti-malware and provision for information and threat management. But with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint we have an all inclusive platform that even integrate with other Microsoft security apps such as Microsoft Defender for Cloud for enhanced threat insights and visibility.
Read full review
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.
Read full review
Pros
Microsoft
  • It provides a unified security experience when combined with other Microsoft products such as Microsoft Defender for 365 and Azure Defender.
  • It has an excellent dashboard and centralized view that make it easy to see and control everything from one location.
  • It's an EDR tool designed to help you understand incidents and alerts better.
  • Real-time detection of attacks and prompt endpoint device responses. It effortlessly interacts with additional Microsoft security products.
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
  • Does not allow for remediation from the management console.
  • The ticket system doesn't alert the person assigned to the ticket.
  • You have to submit requests for whitelisting applications.
  • Scanning exclusions are tricky to find.
  • Adding devices, especially Apple devices, is very cumbersome.
Read full review
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.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
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
No answers on this topic
Broadcom
I think it works great. It's easy to administer. It's easy to see if it's working and how well. There's no real user interaction necessary.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
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
Read full review
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
Read full review
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.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Broadcom
Use a third party deployment tool and not the deployment option within the SEP Manager itself.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Microsoft
in an overall protection sentinelone is providing better protection for us, but as it comes with subscription's limitation, we have to be really careful in managing the licenses, the MS Defender for endpoint is providing us a decent protection which we are not complaining about, why we chose them ? as mentioned, this is coming with our subscription
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.
Read full review
Return on Investment
Microsoft
  • By providing robust threat protection, Defender for Endpoint can prevent downtime caused by security issues. Employees can work without interruptions, leading to increased productivity.
  • By significantly decreasing the frequency of security incidents like malware infections and data breaches, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint can protect your network. The cost of incident response, cleanup, and potential regulatory fines are reduced as a result of the decrease in events.
  • The implementation and configuration of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint may require an initial investment in licensing, training, and deployment, which can temporarily affect ROI.
  • The cost of licensing can be substantial, especially for larger organizations. This cost needs to be factored into the ROI calculation.
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