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Microsoft Defender for Business vs Microsoft Entra Verified ID 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

Microsoft Defender for Busi...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
15th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (14th)
Microsoft Entra Verified ID
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
21st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Business is 3.1%, up from 2.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra Verified ID is 1.7%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Defender for Business3.1%
Microsoft Entra Verified ID1.7%
Other95.2%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

Takayuki-Umehara - PeerSpot reviewer
Public Cloud Engineer at Prudential
Product deployment protects assets but needs improvement in system support
I am doing maintenance for Microsoft Defender for Business, and I'm currently working with it. We don't need to use the latest version of Microsoft Defender for Business. We still use the latest virus definition file that Microsoft Defender for Business has automatically updated. We implement a basic update mechanism. Our compliance division manages how many servers and PCs we have and whether those servers have antivirus solutions. I am not certain about how Microsoft Defender for Business helps with AI-driven security strategies. I just use it normally and don't know if it uses AI technology. I rate Microsoft Defender for Business a six out of ten.
MuhammadWaqar - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Director at Interwood Mobel Pvt Ltd
Supports user management and authentication but needs simpler hybrid integration for broader adoption
I believe there should be an easy provision for the on-premises and for the hybrid environment in Microsoft Entra Verified ID, as there seems to be some difficulty with hybrid implementations, especially in a country like Pakistan where most are transitioning to cloud but not fully migrating, instead opting for hybrid solutions. An ease for hybrid integration would greatly help the technical teams. I believe the policy implementation is a little bit complex on the Microsoft side; there should be a simpler way to implement policies, utilizing standardized templates for compliance, such as industry-specific templates for the service industry, which would be helpful for HIPAA and other compliances.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I rate Microsoft Defender for Business a 10 out of 10."
"A few things are valuable. One is the alerting we see when any kind of intrusion is happening, any kind of malware is being deployed across the endpoints, or any kind of suspicious activity is going on. We have a footprint across all of North America, Canada, and Mexico, so we want to make sure that all our endpoints are protected and we are able to look for any anomalous activity."
"The solution provides good scalability."
"Microsoft Defender for Business stands out due to its ease of use, particularly due to the fact that many of my customers already use Microsoft and Azure."
"Using Microsoft Defender for Business is beneficial for my company."
"Defender is top class in terms of functional security."
"If you're an Intune user, you can bring in certain capabilities like system-hardening policies, which further enhances the security."
"I haven't had any problems with the tool's stability."
"Microsoft Entra Verified ID has helped reduce fraud or impersonation attacks because if you are using a government-sanctioned ID, what is more secure than that?"
"Microsoft Entra Verified ID has smoothed out our identity verification process and made it easier for us to authenticate users, making us more confident about our users being who they say they are so we can trust that we have secure logins for all our users."
"The biggest return on investment when using Microsoft Entra Verified ID is the single sign-on (SSO) feature."
"The authentication features of Microsoft Entra Verified ID are valuable. As an infrastructure professional, I appreciate the exceptional integration between on-premises Active Directory features and Entra ID."
"I like the Microsoft Authenticator app since it comes with two-factor authentication."
"Entra allows us and our customers to access workloads on Azure and Office 365 securely, and we've integrated it with other applications to provide a single pane of glass for user identification, eliminating the need for multiple IDs."
"The most valuable features of the solution are mainly in the areas of security and auditing."
"I would recommend this solution to others because it's simple enough to deploy."
 

Cons

"We faced some issues while running some applications on Mac."
"The tool's support is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
"I am not satisfied with Microsoft's technical support. There are challenges with the knowledge and experience of the support staff, frequent redirection between departments, and slow response times."
"We face a licensing issue with Windows 11 Enterprise not reflecting in our portal, which affects activation. Microsoft's support did not resolve this issue, even after sharing remote desktop and screen details."
"The user interface has a lot of features which can make it complex and hard to adapt to for some users."
"The biggest one is that Defender needs to be more proactive to the emerging threats. There can be tighter integration with email, especially how it integrates with our email system, which is the Microsoft Outlook suite. There should be the ability to react a lot quicker to emerging threats because sometimes, it takes a few days before some of these new threats are fully identified, and we need that to be a few hours."
"Microsoft should provide batch management solutions with the application, integrating pass management with roles."
"Threat protection could be improved even though it is already a built-in feature."
"There are issues with the integration of Microsoft Entra Verified ID and MFA. Sometimes, the MFA process doesn't succeed, requiring users to sign out and log back in."
"Standard support could be improved, as it's often not as responsive."
"I have not really seen return on investment with Microsoft Entra Verified ID."
"I believe there should be an easy provision for the on-premises and for the hybrid environment in Microsoft Entra Verified ID, as there seems to be some difficulty with hybrid implementations, especially in a country like Pakistan where most are transitioning to cloud but not fully migrating, instead opting for hybrid solutions."
"Microsoft products basically have no support other than the knowledge base, so I would give it a two out of 10."
"I must do two-factor authentication when I sign in from a different location. It creates friction. It's not personalized for the end user. I would like to see specific insights."
"The tool's expensive nature is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"While Microsoft continues to improve the solution, integrating the ID with biometric features could be enhanced, especially in terms of standard B2C flows for multi-factor authentication. Improvements in remembering devices and the timing of MFA triggers could also be beneficial."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Defender for Business is included by default with an Office 365 premium subscription."
"The tool is cheap, while some other solutions are more expensive. I remember the tool cost about five euros for a workstation or for a user on a monthly basis."
"It has to get more competitive because we are starting to see some of the competitors providing better pricing, and some of it, of course, is to gain market share. The Defender product pricing is probably a little higher than the competitors."
"The tool's cost has been a little high, but I do not think it was terrible."
"Since we're a nonprofit, we get pretty good discounts on the tool."
"The pricing and setup are standard. With Entra, you choose between P1 and P2 licenses. We recommend having at least one P2 license in a company for better alert management, even though P2 is more expensive."
"If one is cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the product price as seven."
"I still feel the pricing is on the higher side for larger customers. They don't pay anything for on-prem Active Directory. Although we receive additional features with Microsoft’s SSO, pricing is an area Microsoft can work on."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Construction Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Business?
Our thoughts on the pricing for Microsoft Defender for Business are that we wish it could be better. If the pricing was a little better, we would definitely increase what we currently have.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Business?
I see room for improvement in Microsoft Defender for Business, particularly regarding the consolidation of all security solutions in one place and the integration of AI and data security into the s...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
It is hard for me to say how Microsoft Entra Verified ID can be improved. I really do not know the extent of how that can benefit everything. I am trying to learn that here at the Ignite conference.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
My main use cases for Microsoft Entra Verified ID are verifying the end user saying who they are and being able to back that up with government-issued proof.
What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
My organization has not implemented the Face Check feature yet; we are using YubiKeys. My organization's trust in digital interactions really has not changed since implementing Microsoft Entra Veri...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Business vs. Microsoft Entra Verified ID and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,221 professionals have used our research since 2012.