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Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Microsoft Entra Workload ID comparison

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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 Cloud
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
6th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
89
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (9th), Container Management (8th), Container Security (4th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (1st), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (4th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (5th), Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) (7th), Compliance Management (4th), Cloud Detection and Response (CDR) (3rd)
Microsoft Entra Workload ID
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
30th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
4.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (20th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Cloud is 5.4%, down from 6.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra Workload ID is 1.0%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Defender for Cloud5.4%
Microsoft Entra Workload ID1.0%
Other93.6%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

RW
Head Of IT at Cirrus Response
Cloud security has cut investigation time and now reveals threats faster but needs simpler oversight
When deploying AI applications, my key security concerns with Microsoft Defender for Cloud are data loss, leakage of data, and guardrails around the actual AI, and I am hoping that this is going to help me put those guardrails in place and identify data exfiltration. Microsoft Defender for Cloud has not helped me manage and secure multi-cloud environments, as we are 100 percent Microsoft and have not really got it in any other environment at all. I am not yet using the unified AI-powered security feature offered by Microsoft Defender for Cloud, but that is coming. I am not yet using the integrated XDR feature of Microsoft Defender for Cloud, but that is coming. I am not yet utilizing the GenAI threat protection features of Microsoft Defender for Cloud. That is also coming and a lot of that will come from learning it here. I have enabled the agentless scanning in my cloud environment with Microsoft Defender for Cloud. Assessing the impact on my workload protection without needing to install agents with Microsoft Defender for Cloud makes it a lot easier, but it also identifies a lot more, which puts more load on me sometimes. I would advise another organization considering Microsoft Defender for Cloud that it is the most logical route to follow if their whole ecosystem is Microsoft. It is easy to implement and it is very self-explanatory when doing it, making sense to just follow the steps as it is too simple, really. I would rate this review a 7.5 out of 10.
reviewer2772159 - PeerSpot reviewer
Postdoctoral Researcher at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Have experienced ongoing challenges integrating with existing workflows despite strong foundational capabilities
I don't know how I would assess the impact of AI-powered threat detection for us. It has helped with security operations in general; I'm being very cagey here, Damian. You can understand why. Where I work, there is a directory services team. There is a security team. The security team may have several different departments in there. I think they are behind the times. That's about as far as what I would say. We may have the modern firewalls and detections and all the rest of it, but I think from a modern way of working, which the identity is a user which is any device, any place, anywhere, from anything, okay, securely, they're not quite up with that concept, in my opinion. The review rating is 8.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It isn't a highly complex solution. It's something that a lot of analysts can use. Defender gives you a broad overview of what's happening in your environment, and it's a great solution if you're a Microsoft shop."
"The feature of Microsoft Defender for Cloud that I have found most valuable is the alerts, which are pretty standard for security."
"Microsoft Defender for Cloud has made our environment more secure."
"One of the features that I like about the solution is it is both a hybrid cloud and also multi-cloud. We never know what company we're going to buy, and therefore we are ready to go. If they have GCP or AWS, we have support for that as well. It offers a single-panel blast across multiple clouds."
"Defender for Cloud provides a complete DevOps security package for cloud services."
"Defender for Cloud has improved our security posture, providing us with a prioritized list of security issues to remedy, which improves our security operations because we know what to tackle first."
"Microsoft Defender for Cloud is stable and reliable as advertised."
"Most importantly, it's an integrated solution."
"The product enables organizations to synchronize users to Microsoft 365 products."
"We have various options available with Microsoft Entra, such as B2B cross-tenant guest member accesses, and we can invite users and perform activities from that area, while we are also dealing with Azure IaaS, infrastructure as a service, which has different IAM platforms existing with resources or subscriptions."
"I would evaluate the customer service or technical support with Microsoft for Entra products as well; we are a strategic partner, so we're one of 500 companies that can talk to them directly."
 

Cons

"Consistency is the area where the most improvement is needed. For example, there are some areas where the UI is not uniform across the board."
"Pricing could be improved. There are limited options based on pricing for the government."
"Defender could provide more in-depth visibility into vulnerabilities and services. For instance, we wanted to scan Azure NetApp for sensitive data, but they didn't have that feature. It was only for storage accounts. I want Azure Defender features to cover all Azure resources rather than a few."
"Customer service and support from Microsoft are very poor. Even for high-severity cases, response or resolution time can extend to three or four weeks."
"For improvements, I'd like to see more use cases integrated with Microsoft Sentinel and support for multi-cloud environments beyond just Azure."
"One of the issues with the product is that it's not possible to write or edit any capability."
"It's very expensive in terms of the need to maintain it actively."
"There are challenges with the licensing policies, which are quite complicated."
"Integration with existing IAM solutions has not helped our identity management processes; it's all of the things that are in front of Directory and Entra, such as SalePoint and other toolsets, give us one of the worst identity experiences I think I've ever come across, which is why I'm trying to change it."
"Integration with other products must be made easier."
"In my opinion, Microsoft Entra Workload ID can be improved in several ways."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"They have a free version, but the license for this one isn't too high. It's free to start with, and you're charged for using it beyond 30 days. Some other pieces of Defender are charged based on usage, so you will be charged more for a high volume of transactions. I believe Defender for Cloud is a daily charge based on Azure's App Service Pricing."
"I'm not privy to that information, but I know it's probably close to a million dollars a year."
"The licensing cost per server is $15 per month."
"The pricing is very difficult because every type of Defender for Cloud has its own metrics and pricing. If you have Cloud for Key Vault, the pricing is different than it is for storage. Every type has its own pricing list and rules."
"This is a worldwide service and depending on the country, there will be different prices."
"I am not involved in this area. However, I believe its price is okay because even small customers are using Azure Security Center. I don't think it is very expensive."
"Microsoft's licensing and pricing are sometimes complicated. If someone is new to Microsoft's licensing, they might have difficulty with it."
"There are improvements that have to be made to the licensing. Currently, for servers, it has to be done by grouping the servers on a single subscription... We don't have an option whereby, if all those resources are in one subscription, we can have each of the individual servers subject to different planning."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
16%
Construction Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
University
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business31
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise49
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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 costs, and licensing was that the license cost was the only consideration. Setup and support had no issues.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Cloud?
To improve Microsoft Defender for Cloud, I think pricing-wise, the license price is a little bit higher from an ingestion cost perspective. Depending on what license you choose, you might have to p...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
In my opinion, Microsoft Entra Workload ID can be improved in several ways.Particularly about Microsoft Entra Workload ID, I think they still could improve categorization, which still has some room...
What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
I'm a consultant and not using the products myself, but rather in a capacity more as a consultant or reseller.I am not familiar with remote access products by ManageEngine. I do not use ManageEngin...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
I'm working on that area while still looking for a new solution or already using ManageEngine Password Manager or Microsoft Entra ID.I've been dealing both with ManageEngine and Microsoft. I am mos...
 

Also Known As

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

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Cloud is trusted by companies such as ASOS, Vatenfall, SWC Technology Partners, and more.
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs. Microsoft Entra Workload ID and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
919,894 professionals have used our research since 2012.