Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Purview Audit comparison

Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Audit are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Microsoft Defender XDR is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.4, while Microsoft Purview Audit is ranked #31 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft Defender XDR holds a 6.3% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Purview Audit’s 1.2% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Microsoft Defender XDR users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Microsoft Purview Audit users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Defender XDR

Read 106 Microsoft Defender XDR reviews

10,352 Views
2,484 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

Microsoft Purview Audit

Read 3 Microsoft Purview Audit reviews

1,184 Views
320 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender XDR

Microsoft Purview Audit

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Audit based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Microsoft Security Suite solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

December 2025

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Helped 881,082 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 XDR

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

5th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

106

Ranking in other categories

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (7th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (3rd)

Microsoft Purview Audit

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

31st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (35th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender XDR is 6.3%, up from 4.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Audit is 1.2%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Defender XDR	6.3%
Microsoft Purview Audit	1.2%
Other	92.5%

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

Kunle Oluwadiya

House security operator at Cypress Creek Renewables

Advanced threat hunting saves significant time in tracking and responding to incidents

Microsoft Defender XDR could be improved with a lower price. My main suggestion would essentially be what Copilot is providing, which is a single pane of glass, so I don't have to go to different windows. That's just a workflow consideration for me. It would be great to have all the information centralized into one particular data app. If I need to open up extra ones, I can, however, I would appreciate a future where everything I need is right there on one single pane of glass. Beyond that, there's really nothing else I see that I would want Microsoft to improve.

Read full review

Matthew Hoerig

President at Trustsec Inc.

Audit function refines log retrieval and drives application assessments with evolving features

From a service assessment and authorization process perspective, when conducting an assessment on an application or system, we use controls essentially equivalent to the NIST 800-53 framework. This includes examining audit logs, data quality, and various KPIs required for log configuration. It factors into our application assessments. When producing documentation packages for application or system authorization, audit logging and monitoring are crucial parts of the assessment process. The evidence we gather includes screenshots and outputs from these tools and capabilities. For Microsoft Purview Audit specifically, we provide examples of audit function configuration and log output details, which are incorporated into our evidence documents.

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

"From the perspective of Microsoft 365 XDR, the main benefit is a single, centralized dashboard offering the holistic visibility organizations crave."

"For technical support, I would definitely give a rating of nine out of ten."

"Microsoft Defender XDR provides strong identity protection with comprehensive insights into risky user behavior and potential indicators of compromise."

"It's a very scalable tool that can be used in a very small environment or in a very large environment. Everything can be managed from a simple dashboard and can be scaled up or down depending on the customer's environment."

"The most valuable feature of all is the full integration with the rest of the software in the operating system and Office 365, as well as Microsoft SCCM. It is quite easy for us to work with the whole instance of Microsoft products. This integration improves the benefits of the whole suite of products."

"The feature I like the most in Microsoft Defender XDR is XDR because it has taken us a while, but we are a global company with people in a few countries, and now we can have centralized alerts that we send out to Teams messages and clean up infected computers or help people in a very short amount of time."

"The threat intelligence is excellent."

"On the Windows side, Microsoft Defender XDR is definitely integrated into the operating system. Once we have it on the security dashboard, we can see a real-time storyline."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pros

"The overall user experience with Microsoft Purview Audit is of higher quality than when it was branded as Compliance Center, and Microsoft consistently updates and evolves functionalities and the overall experience."

"The platform has significantly enhanced our operational insight into the overall Microsoft 365 environment."

"We're easily saving at least one hour per day using this solution."

Cons

"Some of our older hardware experienced a slight bump in CPU and memory usage. Although I don't have empirical data to back that up, I would suggest possibly more streamlining in the software."

"Microsoft Defender XDR could be improved with a lower price."

"Sometimes, configurations take much longer than expected."

"Microsoft Defender XDR could be improved with a lower price."

"The abundance of sub-dashboards and sub-areas within the main dashboard can be confusing, even if it all technically makes sense."

"Microsoft Defender is slow to adapt to evolving threats."

"One of the biggest downsides of Microsoft products, in general, is that the menus are often difficult to find, as they tend to move from place to place between versions."

"The customer support aspect can be better because it's the biggest complaint I hear about Microsoft. They can improve the ease of support and licensing processes."

More Microsoft Defender XDR cons

"We are still in the early stages of leveraging Microsoft Purview Audit. Currently, it's primarily used for the audit function."

"Areas for product improvement include enhancing customization options and integrating more comprehensive compliance features."

"We do have a Denial of Access happening."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"365 Defender is billed per account. I don't know the exact price, but my supervisor told me that Microsoft Defender is cheaper than the alternatives. It's bundled, so you get all the features in one place."

"The functionality is fantastic, but for medium and small-sized companies it's overpriced. It would be better if it were a little bit cheaper."

"Understanding the subscription model has been a bit challenging, as every feature or requirement comes with an additional cost."

"Microsoft Defender XDR is already included in our Office 365 licensing. It is better because we're saving money by using it."

"On average, we pay around 55 euros per user for the services and features we receive."

"There are no issues with pricing, but sometimes, the clarity in licensing is a concern."

"I believe that the pricing of the licensing is fair."

"The bundling of software makes it easier to manage our setup, but Microsoft purposefully obfuscates this through marketing ploys to hide costs."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

17%

Computer Software Company

11%

Manufacturing Company

Construction Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	47
Midsize Enterprise	25
Large Enterprise	38

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft 365 Defender?

Microsoft Defender XDR provides strong identity protection with comprehensive insights into risky user behavior and potential indicators of compromise.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft 365 Defender?

My experience with pricing, setup, costs, and licensing of Microsoft Defender XDR is tied to our E5 subscription, which is very straightforward for us. We also purchase the uplift for our mobile us...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft 365 Defender?

I am not aware of a mobile app that would be available for my team. With a single analyst, if she is ever away, it would be beneficial to have easier access. While she can use the web portal, the e...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Purview Audit?

I'm not aware of the pricing of licensing terms.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Purview Audit?

We are still in the early stages of leveraging Microsoft Purview Audit. Currently, it's primarily used for the audit function. In a year's time, we will be able to provide more clarity and context ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Purview Audit?

Microsoft Purview Audit functions as a compliance center. Whenever these systems generate logs, we use Microsoft Purview Audit to capture or retrieve those logs. While there are more tools availabl...

See all answers

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Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 4% of the time

Microsoft Sentinel vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 4% of the time

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Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 9% of the time

Microsoft Purview eDiscovery vs Microsoft Purview Audit

Compared 8% of the time

Splunk Enterprise Security vs Microsoft Purview Audit

Compared 7% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR

January 2026

Download Microsoft Defender XDR product report

Buyer's Guide

Log Management

January 2026

Download Microsoft Purview Audit product report

Also Known As

Microsoft 365 Defender, Microsoft Threat Protection, MS 365 Defender

No data available

Overview

Microsoft Defender XDR is a comprehensive security solution designed to protect against threats in the Microsoft 365 environment.

It offers robust security measures, comprehensive threat detection capabilities, and an efficient incident response system. With seamless integration with other Microsoft products and a user-friendly interface, it simplifies security management tasks.

Users have found it effective in detecting and preventing various types of attacks, such as phishing attempts, malware infections, and data breaches.

Watch the Microsoft demo video here: Microsoft Defender XDR demo video.

Microsoft

The unified auditing functionality in Microsoft 365 provides organizations with visibility into many types of audited activities across many different services in Microsoft 365. Advanced Audit helps organizations to conduct forensic and compliance investigations by increasing audit log retention required to conduct an investigation, providing access to crucial events that help determine scope of compromise, and faster access to Office 365 Management Activity API.

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Accenture, Deloitte, ExxonMobil, General Electric, IBM, Johnson & Johnson and many others.

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

December 2025

Free Report: Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Audit and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

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