Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus comparison

Microsoft and WatchGuard are both solutions in the Anti-Malware Tools category. Microsoft is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.3, while WatchGuard is ranked #26 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft holds a 16.7% mindshare in Anti-Malware Tools, compared to WatchGuard’s 0.3% mindshare. Additionally, 94% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of WatchGuard users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Defender for Endp...

Read 197 Microsoft Defender for Endpoint reviews

8,636 Views
6,837 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

Read 5 WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus reviews

210 Views
151 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender for Endp...

WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus and Microsoft Defender for Endpoint are both contenders in the cybersecurity market. Despite WatchGuard’s competitive pricing and robust support, Microsoft Defender takes the lead with its rich features and seamless integration with Microsoft products.

Features: WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus focuses on solid malware detection, real-time scanning, and strong integration capabilities for businesses prioritizing layered security. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint shines with advanced threat intelligence, automated investigation, and cross-platform security integration, providing an extensive feature set that ensures its competitive advantage.

Room for Improvement: WatchGuard could enhance its user interface and expand integration with third-party tools. Improvements in threat intelligence analytics and customization options are also areas to consider. Microsoft Defender could benefit from refining its support services, improving resource consumption efficiency, and enhancing detailed threat analytics for broader visibility.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: WatchGuard offers easy deployment with well-documented assistance, beneficial for businesses wanting minimal disruption. Microsoft Defender, with its seamless integration into the Microsoft ecosystem, offers easy adoption for organizations already utilizing other Microsoft services, aligning smoothly with existing systems.

Pricing and ROI: WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus presents a value-centric pricing structure for budget-conscious organizations, focusing on a reasonable initial cost and ROI. Microsoft Defender, possibly requiring higher initial investment, leverages its extensive security capabilities to justify the cost, offering long-term value by including comprehensive security features as part of its offering.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

April 2025

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Helped 851,604 peers since 2012

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 Anti-Malware Tools

1st

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), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (3rd), Microsoft Security Suite (5th)

WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

Ranking in Anti-Malware Tools

26th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Anti-Malware Tools category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is 16.7%, down from 22.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus is 0.3%, down from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Anti-Malware Tools

Featured Reviews

AnuragSrivastava

Information Security Engineering Lead at a energy/utilities company with 10,001+ employees

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.

Read full review

Petri Alhainen

Administrator at Sulbana Oy

Reasonably priced and simple to use

During the product's installation phase, you just put the tool in the right place, and it works. The solution is deployed on an on-premises model. The solution can be deployed in a couple of minutes. The installation process is so basic that I don't even remember what you need to do. You just put the tick marks in the tool and ask the tool to use them. In the rules, where you see the files go through is where you can think over what to do with the files. With the tool, you just need to put it on, and then the default rules make sure that there is some indication that something is wrong.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It can reach our applications and PC activities in the cloud."

"It's a very solid security system, and the advanced hunting and everything really lets you dive deep into things."

"User-friendly, offering safety and security."

"It's effective against most types of infection, and the firewall is perfect for protection."

"It is a straightforward setup."

"Within its class I think, it has a high and decent detection rate."

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is extremely stable."

"Defender for Endpoint allows us automatic resolutions if a unit is compromised or if a user clicks a malicious link."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint pros

"It is the most effective on non-encrypted traffic and it is able to determine some threats through deep packet inspection."

"The pricing of the solution is okay. It's not the most expensive option."

"It does its job very well, and it is quite easy to put to use."

"I haven't a problem with anti-virus stability using WatchGuard for over two years."

"WatchGuard is easy to implement and inexpensive. When we get a bulk-off license, we get a very discounted price that is competitive with alternative or competitor solutions."

Cons

"I would like to have additional features such as DNS lookup, which would help for detecting malicious sites."

"There are likely some technical improvements or features that could be added, however, I cannot say, off the top of my head, what they would be."

"The log searches for Microsoft Defender for Endpoint are pretty difficult to navigate. It needs a better UI or more intuitive search and filter mechanisms to make it easy to get through and filter through all the data logs."

"I miss having an executive dashboard or a simple view for viewing things. Everything is extensive in this solution. Everything is configurable and manageable, but the environment of Microsoft 365 has about 13 administrative dashboards, and in each of the dashboards, there are a gazillion things to set up. It is good for a large enterprise, but for a 200-seat client, you need to see 5% of that."

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint should have more transparency. In the latest edition of Windows, Windows 11, it is a compulsory requirement to connect to a Microsoft account, which in turn has implications for Defender. This should be removed."

"The biggest issue I had with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint was the antivirus and ransomware. I wanted central visibility over all the machines that we operate."

"There are alternative solutions that offer a greater range of dashboard insights when compared to Microsoft Defender for Endpoint."

"It can be more secure."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint cons

"The solution isn't what I would consider feature-rich."

"It doesn't offer the best protection and it's incompatible with a lot of China's websites. It makes a lot of mistakes when it is detecting items as it's not recognizing items correctly."

"Since WatchGuard acquired Panda, there may be synergies in consolidating both solutions under a single name to reduce customer confusion."

"WatchGuard technical support requires a license."

"There were a little bit of problems with the tool's updates, making it an area where improvements are needed."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution comes free with Microsoft Windows 10."

"I recently switched from education to private business, and all I can say is that private business licensing from Microsoft is not cheap until you hit certain quantities or scale. That does not mean that it is not comparable to other industries. It is similar pricing, but it is still crazy to me how much you pay for a client. I feel it is high, but it is in line with other vendors."

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is more affordable compared to some other endpoint solutions."

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint comes with Windows 10, and it's free. But for you to be able to manage it in the cloud and use the console, you need to have either an Office 365 E5 subscription or a Microsoft M365 subscription. You need to buy an extra license."

"If we are acquiring everything in a single place, the front end becomes cost-effective."

"It is free."

"The price of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is reasonable. Other solutions are more expensive, such as ClowdStrike."

"The solution is free."

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint pricing and cost advice

"For what we use, the tool's price has been reasonable, but it is not the cheapest. The tool has been quite reasonable."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

24%

Computer Software Company

12%

Government

Financial Services Firm

No data available

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...

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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...

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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 ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus?

It is a basic tool tool, and it does very well for what it is supposed to do. It does simple checks against signatures. I think it is very much what it needs to be, and it is a basic tool that you ...

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What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus?

The solution is used when you want to handle policies with the file. There are different ways you can use it, like in the firewall rules and in proxy rules, and to secure emails. The tool was used ...

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What advice do you have for others considering WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus?

It is the basic starting tool. We used different tools in the company. In our gateway, we used WatchGuard because we used WatchGuard's firewalls. It was very easy to set it up. It was used so that ...

See all answers

Comparisons

CrowdStrike Falcon vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Compared 8% of the time

Symantec Endpoint Security vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Intune vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Compared 4% of the time

F-Secure Total vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Compared 4% of the time

HP Wolf Security vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Compared 4% of the time

More Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Competitors

Securepoint Antivirus Pro vs WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

Compared 48% of the time

More WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

May 2025

Download Microsoft Defender for Endpoint product report

Buyer's Guide

Anti-Malware Tools

January 2025

Download WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus product report

Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus

No data available

Interactive Demo

Microsoft

Demo not available

WatchGuard

Overview

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a comprehensive security solution that provides advanced threat protection for organizations. It offers real-time protection against various types of cyber threats, including malware, viruses, ransomware, and phishing attacks.

With its powerful machine-learning capabilities, it can detect and block sophisticated attacks before they can cause any harm. The solution also includes endpoint detection and response (EDR) capabilities, allowing organizations to quickly investigate and respond to security incidents. It provides detailed insights into the attack timeline, enabling security teams to understand the scope and impact of an incident.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint also offers proactive threat hunting, allowing organizations to proactively search for and identify potential threats within their network. It integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft security solutions, such as Microsoft Defender XDR, to provide a unified and holistic security approach. With its centralized management console, organizations can easily deploy, configure, and monitor the security solution across their entire network.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a robust and scalable security solution that helps organizations protect their endpoints and data from evolving cyber threats.

Microsoft

Keeping your network free of malware is more challenging than ever before as an increasing number of new and ever-changing threats are emerging each day. Ensure your network and devices remain free of malware with WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus. It uses advanced, multi-layered threat detection engines to identify and block malware at the network gateway. Using industry-leading, high-performance scanning of traffic on all major protocols, WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus provides real-time protection against known viruses, trojans, worms, spyware, and rogueware.

WatchGuard

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health

Star Cargo

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

April 2025

Free Report: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WatchGuard Gateway AntiVirus and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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