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Kiteworks vs Microsoft 365 Business comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 29, 2025

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

Kiteworks
Ranking in Content Collaboration Platforms
14th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
Enterprise Content Management (16th), Email Security (26th), Managed File Transfer (MFT) (8th), Secure Email Gateway (SEG) (9th)
Microsoft 365 Business
Ranking in Content Collaboration Platforms
7th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
250
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Device Management (MDM) (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Content Collaboration Platforms category, the mindshare of Kiteworks is 2.6%, down from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft 365 Business is 2.5%, up from 1.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Content Collaboration Platforms Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft 365 Business2.5%
Kiteworks2.6%
Other94.9%
Content Collaboration Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

KT
Associate Consultant at a tech consulting company with 10,001+ employees
Streamlined global file sharing with user-friendly interface and self-service capabilities
I'm not a network expert, however, there must be some room for improvement. Perhaps there could be a notification to users about their bandwidth or network packet loss. If users receive such notifications, they can understand any disruptions are due to issues with their network or bandwidth rather than the site or Kiteworks. Additionally, I work from offshore India, and I told my client manager to communicate with the Kiteworks forum salesman regarding one feature. I noticed the Kiteworks login UI is very basic, lacking customization. Allowing more HTML tags to add hyperlinks or user-friendly information on the home page would be very useful.
Hemanthreddy Vakiti - PeerSpot reviewer
Data engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Collaborating securely across project teams has improved communication and streamlined workflows
In my view, Microsoft 365 Business has all the features, but there are some areas for improvement. One area is that the licensing structure can be confusing, especially with the different plans, so understanding each plan is somewhat difficult. When using large Excel files, such as extracting data from an SQL query and pasting it into Excel, it sometimes encounters performance issues when dealing with large files. Integration with non-Microsoft tools is sometimes limited; however, integration within the Microsoft tools is very good. It would be useful if it were possible to integrate with other tools outside of Microsoft. Managing permissions and access in SharePoint and Teams can be complex for new users, but once they become familiar with the tool, they can manage it easily. The security and permissions for new users in SharePoint and Teams can be made more intuitive for them. Additionally, the pricing structure, which involves explaining different plans, could be clearer to help users easily choose the plan they need. Improving performance when working on large Excel files would also be beneficial.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature is the ability to send a large file of 30 GB in size and more. In Outlook and other email applications, you cannot send files that are larger than 20 MB. But with Kiteworks, 30 GB is transferable by default and, with the proper approval, a file of up to 100 GB can be sent. It makes file transfer very easy and smooth."
"We could see whether the customer with whom we shared a file had downloaded it, which was not available with GitHub."
"As a file-sharing application, it's an absolute 10 out of 10."
"I can identify from which region our users are uploading or downloading files."
"The most valuable aspect of Kiteworks is undoubtedly the private content network. This feature is particularly beneficial for us. Furthermore, it serves as a centralized platform that enables us to track and manage our information exchange."
"The solution removes the limitations with file attachment size that is found with regular email."
"The benefits that Kiteworks has provided to its customers in terms of data sovereignty."
"Kiteworks is easy to manage and maintain with a user-friendly interface and I recommend it to anyone that requires a file-sharing system that supports SFTP."
"It is easy to use."
"The most valuable features are the user-friendly interface and ease of use. There is a benefit to not needing to install the application on your computer. For example, if you want to use Outlook or another application you can easily navigate to the website through your phone and quickly check your email. This is a very useful feature."
"The performance is good."
"Employees are working from home and this solution has enabled us to continue functioning."
"I am really very happy using this solution."
"It is much more seamless when it comes to accessing documentation and collaborating with other people on the same projects."
"It's great that one user can log onto many different devices."
"It's fast."
 

Cons

"We have experienced some issues with stability due to bugs."
"There is no offboarding process for end-users in Kiteworks. It's a manual process. There is no automated syncing with LDAP and checking to see if the account is still active. It's a manual process to get people out of here, which isn't the best way."
"There is one particular thing that is a nuisance."
"Perhaps there could be a notification to users about their bandwidth or network packet loss."
"It would be nice if Kiteworks could provide a free version of the platform so that it could be used for a certain number of file transfers. We could be charged a fee if we exceeded the number of allotted file transfers."
"In my experience, their technical support can be a little slow."
"We mainly had stability issues with kiteworks, where we were pushing the limits of its capability."
"The system is extremely stable, but because it is a "COTS" system access is restricted and you must use the solution's support to make even simple changes, which increases the downtime."
"It requires logging out and in again when working for different companies."
"Some of the functionalities available in the desktop version are not available on the cloud."
"If they offered more integration capabilities, that would be ideal."
"I would like to see more integration options."
"Microsoft 365 Business’s stability needs improvement. There are a lot of system downtimes. It could work better."
"The solution could improve the user interface a little bit to make it easier to navigate."
"It should be more secure."
"From the perspective of a developer, the interface could be more user-friendly. It is quite difficult to use."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is not really expensive. I mean, to me it's obviously expensive, but it's worth it."
"The license management is changing and confusing. If I could make one change to it, it would be better license management through the API."
"I believe it's a little costly, but given the faith that we put into it from a security perspective to maintain the integrity of our patient information that is being transferred through this system, that's a small price to pay. So, on the surface, it might look like a lot of money, but depending on the need for security, which is where we feel it shines, it's okay price-wise."
"They changed it midstream. We were being charged a certain flat rate for SFTP traffic. For whatever reason, at the beginning of the year, our pricing changed, and we are now being charged more for using a feature of the product than we were when we first bought it. That has been our experience with billing. It turned out to be more expensive than when we started with it."
"The solution is very expensive because we are buying with Malaysian Ringgit and it's sold in US dollars."
"The price of Kiteworks is reasonable."
"The price of the solution is costly but it is fair for what is offered. I have found that the billing model can definitely be improved. Currently, it is not very transparent. It is a big problem, especially in cloud-based models."
"Compared to buying a license, it is much cheaper and a good buy."
"The solution is expensive and the price could be lowered. For example, if I want to purchase a personal Office 365 subscription, they have pricing that does not have the flexibility to choose a wide range of storage sizes, you are limited to a lower amount. If you then switch to the Business version to receive the larger storage offering it is too large and expensive. If they would allow customers to choose the storage size on-demand it would be beneficial and a big improvement."
"The solution is moderately priced for what it offers."
"Licensing is on a monthly basis."
"Currently, my office pays for it, but if you want to get a license of your own, it is a bit pricey. It should be cheaper."
"We have an enterprise license."
"The product is expensive and the licensing costs are yearly."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Construction Company
20%
Marketing Services Firm
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Large Enterprise11
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business114
Midsize Enterprise44
Large Enterprise102
 

Questions from the Community

What is Kiteworks?
Kiteworks is a secured file sharing platform that enables users to collaborate with different parties across a robust offering of secured protected channels. Users have the option of virtual privat...
What needs improvement with Kiteworks?
I'm not a network expert, however, there must be some room for improvement. Perhaps there could be a notification to users about their bandwidth or network packet loss. If users receive such notifi...
What advice do you have for others considering Kiteworks?
Scalability is impressive. It can be highly available, resilient, and scalable infrastructure. I can confidently give it a nine. It suits any level of organization, whether a small setup with two a...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft 365 Business?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing shows that pricing is reasonable, but it depends on the plan, as some advanced security features require higher-tier licenses.
What needs improvement with Microsoft 365 Business?
Microsoft 365 Business can be improved because sometimes the admin portal can be confusing, especially for a new user, and policies are spread across multiple dashboards. Better centralized visibil...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft 365 Business?
My main use case for Microsoft 365 Business is securing collaboration, email security, and identity management across the organization. A specific example of how I use Microsoft 365 Business for em...
 

Also Known As

Accellion
Microsoft 365 E3, Microsoft 365 E5, Microsoft 365 F1, MS 365 Business
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

United States Securities and Exchange Commission, National Health Service, Husch Blackwell LLP, NYC Health + Hospitals, Viatris, MITRE Corporation, Chubb, Kraft Heinz, KPMG, Kohler, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Purdue Pharma, AVL
Urban Agriculture Co., The Detroit Wallpaper Co., TransBlue Facility Management, Garner Food Company
Find out what your peers are saying about Kiteworks vs. Microsoft 365 Business and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.