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Checkmarx One vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 25, 2026

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
5.6
Checkmarx One enhances security by automating vulnerability detection, reducing costs, and improving development efficiency through CI/CD integration.
Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Defender for Cloud boosts security and efficiency, integrates with Azure, reduces costs, prevents breaches, and offers proactive defense.
Overall, between the fast scanning, automation, automatic reporting, and easy detection, it has reduced manual effort enough that we did not need an extra reviewer, even as our codebase or team size grew.
Senior GenAI Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Based on my interactions with the clients, I can tell that there is a return on investment because if something is not profitable and it's not helping to save costs or vulnerabilities, clients wouldn't come back to renew their license year after year.
Chief Technology Officer at 3CS Aquarah Limited
Defender proactively indexes and analyzes documents, identifying potential threats even when inactive, enhancing preventative security.
Endpoint management at a government with 10,001+ employees
Identifying potential vulnerabilities has helped us avoid costly data losses.
Manager at CBTS
Compared to not having Microsoft Defender for Cloud in place, we definitely saw an advantage by not having downtime due to a security threat.
Principal Microsoft Consultant at MicroAge
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.0
Checkmarx One support is praised for quick responses and knowledgeable staff, despite some reporting delays in technical support.
Sentiment score
6.3
Microsoft Defender for Cloud support is responsive at higher levels, but experiences vary with mixed satisfaction due to delays.
If you raise a support case with Checkmarx, it is handled smoothly.
ML Engineer - Specialist at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The customer support team is amazing and they provide on-phone call, email support, and on-website support.
Senior Solution Architect | L3+ Systems & Cloud Engineer | SRE Specialist at Canada Cloud Solution
I have relied on Checkmarx One customer support hundreds of times for several things, and Checkmarx One support is very proactive and very responsive.
Chief Technology Officer at 3CS Aquarah Limited
Since security is critical, we prefer a quicker response time.
Manager at CBTS
The support team was very responsive to queries.
Programme Manager- Cyber Fusion- Group CISO at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
They understand their product, but much like us, they struggle with the finer details, especially with new features.
Endpoint management at a government with 10,001+ employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
Checkmarx One is scalable for large workloads, but some users report challenges with configurations and licensing requirements.
Sentiment score
7.4
Microsoft Defender for Cloud is scalable, integrating across environments effortlessly, suitable for all enterprise sizes with flexible performance.
Approximately four billion lines of code are being scanned monthly.
Cyber Security Expert at Nestle
Since it is cloud-based, the infrastructure and PaaS, IaaS, and SaaS are taken care of by the cloud marketplace.
Senior Solution Architect | L3+ Systems & Cloud Engineer | SRE Specialist at Canada Cloud Solution
Checkmarx One's scalability has changed my organization because the strong collaboration between the development and security team helps us to do things much faster.
Senior GenAI Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
As we have reduced our on-premises infrastructure, it is about how we can migrate workloads to the cloud to make it easier, and then having everything fully encompassed and secured within that area makes it much easier for us to scale as needed and grow.
Principal Microsoft Consultant at MicroAge
We are using infrastructure as a code, so we do not have any scalability issues with Microsoft Defender for Cloud implementation because our cloud automatically does it.
Senior Cloud Platform Engineer at Deutsche Börse
It has multiple licenses and features, covering infrastructures from a hundred to five hundred virtual machines, without any issues.
Snr. Infrastructure Architect (Data Centre) at LogicEra
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Checkmarx One is generally stable but faces issues with large codebases, memory use, and session inconsistencies.
Sentiment score
7.5
Microsoft Defender for Cloud is stable and reliable, with minimal issues mainly during updates, ensuring strong user satisfaction.
I would rate the stability of this solution a nine on a scale of 1 to 10 where one is low stability and 10 is high.
Specialist Leader at Deloitte
Checkmarx One is often down when the cloud provider experiences issues.
Cyber Security Expert at Nestle
Defender's stability has been flawless for us.
Engineer at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
Microsoft Defender for Cloud is very stable.
Cloud architect at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
Microsoft sometimes changes settings or configurations without transparency.
Senior Cloud Platform Engineer at Deutsche Börse
 

Room For Improvement

Checkmarx One needs enhancements in accuracy, speed, integration, UI, support, pricing, and features for enterprise usability.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud users seek better automation, clarity, integration, AI features, and comprehensive analytics for improved security management.
Integration into the IDE being used would be beneficial so that code does not need to be uploaded to the website and an IDE-friendly report could be generated.
Senior Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
It could suggest how the code base is written and automatically populate the source code with three different solution options to choose from.
Specialist Leader at Deloitte
If you can improve the speed optimization, it takes around 30 to 40 minutes for checking a build. If you can make it within five minutes or 10 minutes, that would be great.
Senior Software Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Microsoft, in general, could significantly improve its communication and support.
Endpoint management at a government with 10,001+ employees
It would be beneficial to streamline recommendations to avoid unnecessary alerts and to refine the severity of alerts based on specific environments or environmental attributes.
Works at Coca-Cola HBC
The artificial intelligence features could be expanded to allow the system to autonomously manage security issues without needing intervention from admins.
Cloud Consultant at i-Community AG
 

Setup Cost

Checkmarx One is often costly but provides quality and security, with costs varying by team size and selected modules.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud is scalable, offering free and paid versions with costs averaging $15 monthly per server.
For a small team under 50 developers, normal expenses come under 30 to 60K.
Senior Solution Architect | L3+ Systems & Cloud Engineer | SRE Specialist at Canada Cloud Solution
Due to the number of years I've implemented Checkmarx One, there are rebates and discounts from the OEM which makes it a lot more profitable.
Chief Technology Officer at 3CS Aquarah Limited
The pricing should be reasonable, matching what we are paying for.
Senior GenAI Engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Security has essentially no cost when compared to the cost of a breach.
Director, Cloud and Modern Workplace at Informanix Technology Group
Every time we consider expanding usage, we carefully evaluate the necessity due to cost concerns.
Programme Manager- Cyber Fusion- Group CISO at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
We appreciate the licensing approach based on employee count rather than a big enterprise license.
Manager, Microsoft Technology Alliance at Silverfort
 

Valuable Features

Checkmarx One offers comprehensive vulnerability scanning, seamless CI/CD integration, and enhances productivity with ease of use and automation.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud enhances security with AI-based threat detection, multi-cloud support, and a unified portal for comprehensive management.
Since replacing the previous tool, SAST and SCA scans are conducted in a couple of minutes instead of hours or days.
Cyber Security Expert at Nestle
The best features Checkmarx One offers, over the past years, include broad language and technical support that Checkmarx provides, covering most languages.
ML Engineer - Specialist at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Checkmarx One has positively impacted our organization as we tend to find vulnerabilities very early in the development cycle.
Product security engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The most valuable feature for me is the variety of APIs available.
Programme Manager- Cyber Fusion- Group CISO at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
This feature significantly aids in threat detection and enhances the user experience by streamlining security management.
Cloud Consultant at i-Community AG
The most valuable feature is the recommendations provided on how to improve security.
Cloud architect at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Checkmarx One
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
17th
Ranking in Container Security
15th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
81
Ranking in other categories
Application Security Tools (2nd), Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (3rd), Static Code Analysis (2nd), API Security (3rd), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (2nd), DevSecOps (2nd), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (7th), Application Security Posture Management (ASPM) (3rd), AI Security (2nd)
Microsoft Defender for Cloud
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
8th
Ranking in Container Security
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
87
Ranking in other categories
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)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Vulnerability Management category, the mindshare of Checkmarx One is 1.3%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Cloud is 3.6%, down from 4.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Vulnerability Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Defender for Cloud3.6%
Checkmarx One1.3%
Other95.1%
Vulnerability Management
 

Featured Reviews

Shahzad Shahzad - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Solution Architect | L3+ Systems & Cloud Engineer | SRE Specialist at Canada Cloud Solution
Enable secure development workflows while identifying opportunities for faster scans and improved AI guidance
Checkmarx One is a very strong platform, but there are several areas where it can improve to support modern DevSecOps workflows even better. For example, better real-time developer guidance is needed. The IDE plugin should offer richer AI-powered auto-fixes similar to SNYK Code or GitHub Copilot Security, as current guidance is good but not deeply contextual for large-scale enterprise codebases. This matters because it reduces developer friction and accelerates shift-left adoption. More transparency control over the correlation engines is another need. The correlation engine is powerful but not fully transparent. Users want to understand why vulnerabilities were correlated or de-prioritized, which helps AppSec teams trust the prioritization logic. Faster SAST scan and more language coverage is needed since SAST scan can still be slow for very large mono-repos and there is limited deep support for new language frameworks like Rust and Go, along with advanced coverage for serverless-specific frameworks. This matters because large organizations want sub-minute scans in CI/CD as cloud-native ecosystems evolve fast. A strong API security module is another area for enhancement. API security scanning could be improved with active testing, API discovery, full Swagger, OpenAPI, drift detection, and schema-based fuzzing. This is important as API attacks are one of the biggest AppSec risks in 2025. Checkmarx One is strong, but I see a few areas for improvement including faster SAST scanning for large mono-repos, deeper language framework support, more transparent correlation logic, and stronger API security that includes discovery and runtime context. The IDE plugin could offer more AI-assisted fixes, and the SBOM lifecycle tracking can evolve further. Enhancing integration with SIEM and SOAR would also make enterprise adoption smoother, and these improvements would help developers and AppSec teams move faster with more accuracy.
David Birhange - PeerSpot reviewer
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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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
5%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise46
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business27
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise49
 

Questions from the Community

What alternatives are there for Fortify WebInspect and Fortify SCA?
I would like to recommend Checkmarx. With Checkmarx, you are able to have an all in one solution for SAST and SCA as well. Veracode is only a cloud solution. Hope this helps.
What do you like most about Checkmarx?
Compared to the solutions we used previously, Checkmarx has reduced our workload by almost 75%.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Checkmarx?
Checkmarx One is a premium solution, so budget accordingly. Make sure you understand how licensing scales with additional applications and users. I advise negotiating multi-year contracts or bundle...
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...
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...
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.
 

Also Known As

No data available
Microsoft Azure Security Center, Azure Security Center, Microsoft ASC, Azure Defender
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

YIT, Salesforce, Coca-Cola, SAP, U.S. Army, Liveperson, Playtech Case Study: Liveperson Implements Innovative Secure SDLC
Microsoft Defender for Cloud is trusted by companies such as ASOS, Vatenfall, SWC Technology Partners, and more.
Find out what your peers are saying about Checkmarx One vs. Microsoft Defender for Cloud and other solutions. Updated: January 2026.
881,733 professionals have used our research since 2012.