Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 9, 2024

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)
WithSecure Elements Endpoin...
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
48th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
6
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 WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response is 0.4%, up from 0.4% 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.
Nobuaki Kitamura - PeerSpot reviewer
A scalable solution with easy deployment but pricing needs to improve
WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response need to improve pricing.  The product is stable.  WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response is scalable. My company has 800-1000 customers.  We support ourselves.  Positive The tool's deployment is easy; even a salesperson can do…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The intelligence mechanisms are good."
"We are a Microsoft shop, and Defender is a Microsoft solution that provides some security at a reasonable cost."
"The solution's threat protection is mostly AI and machine-learning based. That is the most important feature of the product. It also offers centralized management so I can remotely manage devices."
"It captures data through machine learning, which is built-in on the back-end. It also provides built-in analytics and a threat intelligence feature. It is a one-stop solution that doesn't require an antivirus because it comes prebuilt into Windows 10."
"I enjoy using the live response feature, which allows me to remotely access different endpoints and investigate malicious files, such as malware that people may have downloaded, and other related issues."
"This is a very go, proactive solution to threat protection using advanced analysis."
"This solution definitely increases our security posture. When you are reviewing your existing fleet or endpoints and based on the configuration that you put out of your Defender for Endpoint, you then receive a security score from Microsoft. Depending on what rules you have configured, what policies you have deployed, and what attack surface reduction rules that you have set up and deployed, it is almost gamifying information security in the sense that you are always trying to achieve a higher score. The more hardening you perform on your endpoints, the better score you receive. This generally tends to give you a better peace of mind, but also makes you secure at the same time."
"Within its class I think, it has a high and decent detection rate."
"It is a scalable solution."
"I use the solution to protect our infrastructure. The tool has special frames for banking. There is an additional secure filter for banking-related pages. It protects me from viruses, malware, and attacks."
"The only issue that we have today is with false positives. We have too many false positives with the solution."
"It offers good scalability."
"The product is stable."
"WithSecure includes an encrypted drive that stores a key for accessing the encrypted data."
 

Cons

"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint can improve by providing more and different types of reports."
"The file scanning has room for improvement. Many people use macros within their files, so there should be a mechanism that helps us to scan them for malicious payloads."
"A concern is ransomware, whether people can penetrate and encrypt my data or steal my credit card/banking information."
"The frequency of the patching, and the frequency of the updates, are not included with the free version."
"It seems there are challenges associated with IP addresses at times."
"Updates are not coming out of preview quickly enough and it is holding back on the development of the product."
"It can get a bit laggy sometimes. Other than that, we don't have any issues. They constantly tweak it and fix it up based on users' feedback. It has improved a lot over the past four years. Defender for Endpoint never really used to be a good endpoint security solution, but over the past couple of years, Microsoft has invested heavily in it. So, it has come a long way in all aspects of endpoint security. If they want to make it better, they should just continue investing in the current path of what they've been doing over the past couple of years."
"The solution needs to improve its ransomware. It's not so good. It could also use some general performance optimization for the computers the solution operates on, to ensure it does not slow down the devices."
"The website rules are too complicated."
"Its automated functionality could be better."
"The monthly reporting feature of WithSecure can be improved."
"The initial setup is very straightforward."
"The tool’s mobile version needs to be improved."
"WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response is scalable. My company has 800-1000 customers."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is no licensing fee."
"When customers haven't deployed the solution and don't have licenses, it can be expensive to start from scratch."
"It is an expensive solution. It would be nice if it could be included with the Microsoft Office package."
"The nice thing about Defender and Sentinel is that the cost is based on the data logs that you ingest from the Defender endpoints and data connectors. I don't have to buy a 25- or 50- or 1,000-user or enterprise license. I can buy one license at a time."
"The price is fair for the features Microsoft delivers. If you want tailor-made features, you have to mix different licenses. It isn't straightforward."
"There are different licenses, such as E3 and E5."
"Everybody would like to see a lower price on everything. The Slovenian market is basically an SME market with clients having up to 100 seat licenses, comprising 90% of the company. They're very price sensitive. So, the price could be cheaper."
"It is affordable and comes in the Office 365 bundle."
"The solution's price is moderate."
"I would rate the tool’s pricing a three out of ten. Its pricing is competitive."
"I rate WithSecure a four out of ten because it's quite economical."
"WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response's licensing costs are yearly."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions are best for your needs.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
24%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
21%
Comms Service Provider
19%
Manufacturing Company
7%
University
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 ...
 

Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus
F-Secure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response, F-Secure Rapid Detection and Response, F-Secure RDR
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health
Blackfin
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. WithSecure Elements Endpoint Detection and Response and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.