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Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs Open EDR 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 Endp...
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
197
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (2nd), Anti-Malware Tools (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (5th)
Open EDR
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
34th
Average Rating
8.0
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is 10.5%, down from 14.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Open EDR is 1.1%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
 

Featured Reviews

AnuragSrivastava - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides detailed visibility into threats but the ability to add exceptions needs improvement
One major item for improvement is the ability to add exceptions. We can add some exceptions, but not at the level we need to. The second major area for improvement involves enhanced capabilities for different operating systems or platforms. That is, even though we have coverage for different operating systems or platforms such as Linux, we don't get all of the controls and enhanced capabilities that are available with Windows devices. Reporting could also be improved because, at present, we get limited results at times. For example, in an environment with more than 100,000 devices, you may just get 10,000 results when you run a report.
Timothy Muriithi - PeerSpot reviewer
I also like the ability to remotely manage update packages on your systems, and the fact that there is an open source version
Setting OpenEDR was challenging at first, but I got it done by following their documentation and online videos. You need to install the client and configure it to work with their online open platform. Next, you have to configure it on the device if it's a phone. You input a cloud link to the EDR, so you can monitor it from the cloud. There isn't any maintenance aside from updating the client. It's mostly on the cloud.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The endpoint detection of threats is valuable. The initial detection of things like ransomware and viruses and being able to shut down machines immediately and stop a threat is valuable. We can stop a threat at a source versus allow it to propagate it across the network."
"The solution is highly scalable."
"Defender for Endpoint provides good visibility into threats and has favorable threat intelligence."
"The most valuable features of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint are the ease of use and it was available within the operating system."
"This is not an inventory solution, but it helps you take count of how many workstations you have, as well as what software is installed on each of them."
"Microsoft Defender can block some viruses or malware. So, it can protect my files. It can save files on Office 365 OneDrive. I use encryption for some files, then I can recover them from OneDrive."
"The solution's latest features for threat analysis are updated to provide us with future protection against the latest threats worldwide."
"It has Kusto Query Language (KQL), so we can use our own queries to find anything."
"Comodo includes a firewall and antivirus in one solution. I also like the ability to remotely manage update packages on your systems. Comodo can even find a lost device and secure it remotely."
 

Cons

"The time to generate certain alerts on our dashboard can take between 45 minutes to an hour, and I am unsure of the factors that influence this duration."
"Its interface can be improved a little bit. We would like to have some sort of centralization. It should have something like a central server that is managing all the other clients. There are solutions from Kaspersky or ESET NOD32 that are really doing this kind of thing currently. We would like to see something similar from Microsoft."
"Our team's knowledge of the solution needs to be improved, and Microsoft could do a better job conveying the necessary information to users. We could proactively use the tool more and explore capabilities we are not yet utilizing."
"Windows Firewall is integrated with Windows Defender. Over the last few days, I have had a problem with defining a wildcard on Windows Firewall. For example, I wanted to pull out the connection of my program and install a software package with a lot of executable files. I wanted to prevent it from accessing the internet. I could not select executables by using a wildcard. I had to select a single executable with its full name."
"If the solution could be integrated more with Defender for Cloud, to be more unified, that would help. It is good now, but even more integration could be done with Defender for Cloud. We see two different portals. If Defender for Endpoint could be ported to the CSPM, Defender for Cloud, that would make things even easier for us."
"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is effective for validating work, but not ideal for investigations."
"We encountered some issues when we were trying to enable automatic updates from our group policy."
"They can improve it on the online protection front since people nowadays are moving online and working from home."
"Comodo includes a firewall and antivirus in one solution. I also like the ability to remotely manage update packages on your systems. Comodo can even find a lost device and secure it remotely."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We have been using the free version."
"The product is free of charge and comes integrated into Windows."
"This product is included in the pricing for Windows."
"If we are acquiring everything in a single place, the front end becomes cost-effective."
"I'm not too familiar with costs as I'm an architect, though I know about online pricing, as I help two teams with online purchasing and procurement. Nowadays, everyone has an enterprise agreement, such as an E3 license, which we provide to our customers."
"Microsoft Defender ATP is expensive."
"The license for Microsoft Windows covers Microsoft Defender for Endpoint."
"The license cost is around $35 per machine, which is not expensive compared to other products."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
24%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
20%
Government
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Retailer
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How is Cortex XDR compared with Microsoft Defender?
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security solution. The tool reduces the attack surface, applies behavioral-based endpoint protection and response, and includes risk-ba...
Which offers better endpoint security - Symantec or Microsoft Defender?
We use Symantec because we do not use MS Enterprise products, but in my opinion, Microsoft Defender is a superior solution. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security s...
How does Microsoft Defender for Endpoint compare with Crowdstrike Falcon?
The CrowdStrike solution delivers a lot of information about incidents. It has a very light sensor that will never push your machine hardware to "test", you don't have the usual "scan now" feature ...
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Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus
No data available
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, Microsoft and others in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR). Updated: January 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.