

Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks and Microsoft Defender XDR compete in the cybersecurity solutions category. Cortex XDR tends to have the upper hand in automation and threat detection, while Microsoft Defender XDR is preferred for its integration with Microsoft products.
Features: Cortex XDR offers strong automation, behavioral analytics, and comprehensive security measures, excelling in threat detection and response capabilities. Its automation responses in case of a threat attack and centralized manageability are notable. Microsoft Defender XDR is praised for its extensive integration with the Microsoft ecosystem, which offers a consolidated security approach and comprehensive security coverage for seamless operation.
Room for Improvement: Cortex XDR could enhance its offering by including data loss prevention, improving pricing structures, and expanding third-party integrations. Additionally, the need for on-premise solutions and reducing false positives are suggested areas for improvement. Microsoft Defender XDR could improve its dashboard's intuitive nature, offer more flexible licensing, and enhance integration with non-Microsoft products for better cross-platform security.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cortex XDR supports diverse cloud environments including public, private, and on-premises, offering flexible deployment options. Its customer service is marked by a quick response time but can fall behind in complex situations. Microsoft Defender XDR provides robust support across public and hybrid clouds with seamless integration within the Microsoft ecosystem. Customer support is generally solid though some users mention variability in service quality and complexity in resolution.
Pricing and ROI: Cortex XDR is relatively more expensive compared to competitors like SentinelOne and Sophos, yet it is deemed cost-effective for its extensive features and strong performance. Microsoft Defender XDR is recognized for providing good value with its premium suite features and strong integration but perceived as costly. Both solutions report significant ROI, with Cortex XDR notably benefiting from its security features, and Microsoft Defender XDR leveraging its existing client base and integration advantages.
They appreciate the rich telemetry data from the solution, as it provides in-depth threat identification.
Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks helps to reduce my total cost of ownership significantly.
I have seen a return on investment with Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks, as this product is offered at a minimal cost, and we can find a good ROI from it.
We can quarantine and isolate a device within minutes.
Microsoft Defender XDR has saved me at least 50% of my time.
It helped stop multiple intrusion points where we would have had millions in lost revenue if the attackers got in.
The technical support from Palo Alto deserves a mark of ten because they reach out within an hour whenever assistance is needed.
There is no back and forth, and they know what we are asking for and come up with the best resolution for a solution.
If any of these services are missed, it becomes a problem in terms of support tickets, follow-up, or special configuration that needs to be done in the system.
You get stuck in low-level support for way longer than you should, instead of them escalating the issue up the chain.
It's critical to escalate SEV B issues immediately to a domestic engineer.
Once issues are escalated to the second or third layer, the support is much better.
Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks can be expanded anytime by purchasing another license without any issues related to scalability.
I think scalability for Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks is good.
My concern is about the scale of events and alerts being generated, and the product is doing a very good job of only surfacing the important items for us.
Microsoft Defender XDR shows tremendous scalability, much more so than on-premises solutions.
Microsoft Defender XDR scales pretty well.
Cortex remains fast and responsive, even with increasing data and alerts.
The thresholds we've seen on our firewall boxes at some instances reached 80% to 85%, but even at that level of utilization, we don't observe any latency or any issues reported with respect to accessing the application.
Cortex XDR is stable, offering high quality and reliable performance.
The service has remained consistently online, with any issues isolated to specific components, suggesting a well-designed and modular architecture.
The services within our ecosystem have been reliable, meeting their SLAs.
It provides high-fidelity signals.
Improving reporting and dashboard customization, along with the addition of real-time and exportable reports, would help SOC teams greatly.
The inclusion of this feature would allow the application of DLP policies alongside antivirus policies via a single agent and console, making it more competitive as other OEMs often offer DLP solutions as part of their antivirus products.
If the per GB data could be provided at a certain level free of cost or at the same cost which the customer is taking for the entire bundle, that would be better.
The licensing process needs improvement and clarification.
Improvements are needed in automated response capabilities.
Some inconsistencies exist between blades, which could be improved for a more seamless user and UI experience.
The pricing on SentinelOne is far more reasonable and cheaper than Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks.
I would say it is definitely not a cheap product, considering how mature it is and how scalable all Palo Alto products are together.
Cortex XDR is perceived as expensive by some customers, yet offers dynamic pricing.
There are certainly savings when using Microsoft Defender XDR, which can range from 30%, 40%, and even up to 50%.
I would rate the pricing as eight out of ten, indicating it is a reasonable cost for the product.
Microsoft purposefully obfuscates this through marketing ploys to hide costs.
It incorporates AI for normal behavior detection, distinguishing unusual operations.
The product provides automation responses in case of a threat attack, severity assessments, centralized manageability, and comprehensive compliance features, resulting in reduced costs.
It includes machine learning to easily analyze data and detect complex threats across endpoints, networks, or clouds.
With Microsoft threat intelligence information, it detects various types of threats, including insider attacks, malicious content, and data exfiltration.
This allows us to secure our systems in advance and proactively improve security, rather than waiting for incidents to occur.
Once we have it on the security dashboard, we can see a real-time storyline.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Defender XDR | 4.8% |
| Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks | 4.8% |
| Other | 90.4% |

| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 43 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 20 |
| Large Enterprise | 46 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 47 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 25 |
| Large Enterprise | 38 |
Cortex XDR by Palo Alto Networks provides advanced threat detection with AI-driven endpoint protection and seamless integration, ensuring multi-layered security and automatic threat response.
Cortex XDR is designed to safeguard endpoints against malware and suspicious activities. It offers advanced threat detection and response capabilities using behavioral analysis, AI, and machine learning. It seamlessly integrates with security infrastructures, providing endpoint security, firewall integration, and enhanced visibility in both cloud-based and on-premises environments.
What are the key features of Cortex XDR?Organizations in diverse sectors deploy Cortex XDR to protect against malware, leveraging its advanced threat detection capabilities. Its integration with existing security infrastructures appeals to those seeking comprehensive protection in both cloud and on-premises environments, providing enhanced visibility and threat intelligence.
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.
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