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Field Effect MDR vs Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Field Effect MDR
Ranking in Managed Detection and Response (MDR)
3rd
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
31
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Defender Experts ...
Ranking in Managed Detection and Response (MDR)
20th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.6
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Managed Detection and Response (MDR) category, the mindshare of Field Effect MDR is 3.2%, up from 2.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting is 1.6%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Field Effect MDR3.2%
Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting1.6%
Other95.2%
Managed Detection and Response (MDR)
 

Featured Reviews

Anmol Nagpal - PeerSpot reviewer
Effective MDR with great support and an easy setup
The feature I've found the move valuable is the 24/7 monitoring. We are a small organization that supports a LOT of endpoints and clients. Without this tool, it would be impossible for us to confidently tell clients that we are secure. Alongside this, the ability for Field Effect to make decisions on its own based on what it has learned from all the "training data" that we have provided in the past. It will only get better over time. We have had some false positives; for example, using a legitimate networking scanning tool from the terminal has been blocked. However, we were actually impressed when something so simple was caught!
Mondher-Smii - PeerSpot reviewer
Has supported clients in managing incidents through clear pricing and hybrid deployment options
What really stands out about Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting is that it's easy to use. The cost is clear, and the pricing is transparent. The onboarding of the product on the customer's environment is straightforward. We can use it in a hybrid environment, in the cloud, or on-premise environment. This is the main advantage regarding this product. If it's configured correctly, everything will be good, resilient, and secure, which supports threat mitigation efforts depending on the configuration on the tenant and the parameters on Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting. Threat intelligence updates have some impact on our overall security posture. They give us external eyes regarding threat actors, which is good. It's very helpful to enrich the SIEM, which is Microsoft Sentinel. It's a good feature that we can include threat intel on the product.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I like how comprehensive Field Effect Covalence is."
"The most valuable aspects of Covalence for me are the exceptional customer service and the support from the dedicated team."
"The standout feature is its continuous 24/7 monitoring of all network traffic, providing unparalleled vigilance."
"We now have a single cybersecurity product that protects all of our threat services, and all the endpoints."
"Direct and easy and quick communication to the Field Effect cybersecurity team experts has led to quick resolution of any problems or alerts."
"The solution's advanced detection behaviors, automated notifications and responses, and automated remediation behaviors are valuable features."
"The ARO alerts are helpful to use almost daily to get a sense of what actions we need to take to expedite security measures."
"A quick specific example of how I use Field Effect MDR to keep my customers secure is that it helps me identify computers that need updates, even when I believe they are already updated."
"What really stands out about Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting is that it's easy to use, the cost is clear, and the pricing is transparent, with straightforward onboarding in hybrid, cloud, or on-premise environments."
"The solution helps to detect some suspicious items for us and our clients."
"What really stands out about Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting is that it's easy to use, the cost is clear, and the pricing is transparent, with straightforward onboarding in hybrid, cloud, or on-premise environments."
 

Cons

"While the reporting is good, I would like more of a white-label option with my company's name at the top and a clean look for the report."
"In the AROs tab, if we encounter multiple duplicate recommendations, it would be helpful to be able to select and resolve or dismiss them all at once."
"Covalence should provide a live view of the endpoint because the endpoint view in the portal is 5 to 15 minutes behind the actual status of the endpoint and its vulnerabilities. When it doesn't update with the actual status, it makes managing those things harder because sometimes something gets updated, and one of those vulnerabilities has gone away, but that doesn't appear in the ARO."
"The tagging of ARO closure has room for improvement."
"Covalence's SEAS feature wasn't very user-friendly."
"It would be more effective if it could surgically isolate the specific malicious process instead of deleting the entire machine."
"In my experience, Field Effect MDR is somewhat stable. However, I have one situation where it has been two months trying to resolve an installation issue on a server, which has consumed a significant amount of time."
"They could use more third-party integrations with other MSP tools."
"We tried the proactive threat hunting feature, but it was not a good experience with Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting. It created more trouble than expected with false positives and non-expected answers."
"There is a lot of change in a small period. This might not be helpful for IT administrators and users."
"The solution’s user interface could be improved."
"There is a lot of change in a small period. This might not be helpful for IT administrators and users."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing isn't sized, so Field Effect doesn't make it easy for anything under 25 users. I'm not crazy about that."
"Field Effect is fairly priced from my perspective. You get a lot of bang for the buck with this and a level of visibility that provides you with greater peace of mind knowing that the system is carefully monitored. You also have automated responses for known malicious behavior at any time of the day. Someone could have their Office 365 mailbox compromised at 2 in the morning on a Saturday when most people are asleep or not paying attention, and the system can prevent an issue in an automated way."
"The pricing is comparable to what else is out there."
"Covalence is cost-effective."
"The pricing is fair and reasonable."
"The licensing model itself is solid, but we're ironing out some inconsistencies in how customer profiles are configured."
"The shift to a per-user pricing model and the introduction of a base price for the on-premises or virtual appliance has been particularly advantageous."
"Field Effect Covalence's pricing is just right."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
49%
Retailer
5%
Outsourcing Company
5%
Government
4%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
6%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise1
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Field Effect Covalence?
It is very user-friendly. We have regular reports to see what is going on.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Field Effect Covalence?
Pricing was initially a concern, but the recent updates have resolved that by offering a more accessible buying cost.
What needs improvement with Field Effect Covalence?
One way Field Effect MDR can be improved is through its licensing process, which is not ideal. The licensing process is difficult because I have to access a separate website to complete it.
What do you like most about Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting?
The solution helps to detect some suspicious items for us and our clients.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting?
The areas of the solution that have room for improvement in Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting include the locking mechanism, which is not tough in terms of the cost. The price of the solution ...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting?
We work on the cybersecurity solutions with Microsoft tools. We work with Azure Sentinel and we work with Defender, specifically focusing on Microsoft cybersecurity tools. For the cybersecurity tea...
 

Also Known As

Field Effect Covalence
No data available
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Field Effect MDR vs. Microsoft Defender Experts for Hunting and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
868,759 professionals have used our research since 2012.