Microsoft Defender XDR vs Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management comparison

Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management 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 Insider Risk Management is ranked #28 with an average rating of 8.0. Microsoft Defender XDR holds a 6.3% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management’s 2.4% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Microsoft Defender XDR users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management 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 Insider R...

Read 5 Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management reviews

1,853 Views
537 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Microsoft Defender XDR

Microsoft Purview Insider R...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Microsoft Defender XDR and Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management 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 Insider Risk Management Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

December 2025

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Helped 880,901 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) (4th)

Microsoft Purview Insider R...

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

28th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Insider Risk Management (2nd)

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 Insider Risk Management is 2.4%, up from 0.3% 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 Insider Risk Management	2.4%
Other	91.3%

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

Karthik Ekambaram

Director at Scybers

Have consistently built secure internal environments while implementing compliance tools for diverse customer needs

The customizable alerts system needs improvement. The detection rules are not extensive enough. There should be more possibilities for creating alerts based on additional criteria. While rules can be customized, the available criteria for creating detection rules should be expanded. Microsoft's pricing is very expensive. The Business Premium offering should be extended to enterprise customers, as it's currently limited to 300 users. There should be a tier below E5 that includes Microsoft Purview and other features. Currently, E5 licensing costs approximately 6,000 INR per user per month including taxes. Competitive solutions offer similar functionality at about 50% of Microsoft's cost. Email DLP is included in Business Premium or P1 licenses, while P2 licenses cover endpoint DLP and additional channels. Microsoft should introduce an intermediate tier below E5 that covers all P1 licenses, as customers often need coverage across the entire M365 suite.

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

"Microsoft Defender XDR has significantly improved our operational security."

"The feature of Microsoft Defender XDR that I preferred the most traditionally was its focus on endpoint protection, but now identity is right up there with endpoint security. Identity is important because different compromises start at the identity level. This allows us to understand what actions are being taken, who is doing them, and whether it is actually them."

"My clients like Defender's file integrity monitoring. They're monitoring Windows and Linux system files."

"One of the most valuable features of Microsoft Defender XDR is its ability to provide preemptive reports regarding excessive privileged access."

"For me, the advanced hunting capabilities have been really great. It allowed querying the dataset with their own language, which is KQL or Kusto Query Language. That has allowed me to get much more insight into the events that have occurred. The whole power of 365 Defender is that you can get the whole story. It allows you to query an email-based activity and then correlate it with an endpoint-based activity."

"Microsoft 365 Defender is a stable solution."

"The most valuable features of Microsoft 365 Defender are the combination of all the capabilities and centralized management."

"I like Defender XDR's reports and alerts. They give you updates about the latest hotfixes and zero-day vulnerabilities, which gives me all the information I need to maintain my servers."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pros

"Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management was helpful in performing investigations after alerts were received."

"The scoring mechanism is exceptional because it eliminates the need to reinvent criteria for identifying risks, misconfigurations, or vulnerabilities."

"Insider Risk Management's graphing is highly specific and useful. You can see the last six months of data for the Microsoft tenant. You can easily find what you need. For example, you can filter for alerts about devices, emails, etc."

"The best thing about Purview is that it's easy to integrate with our day-to-day environment. We have Active Directory, and Word and Excel. Using a third-party vendor and trying to integrate with our existing environment would be much more challenging."

"An example of how these features from Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management have benefited my organization is that we recently discovered a foreign actor, someone from North Korea took a job at our company and was pretending to be an employee, and with Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management, they notified us of that problem and we were able to remediate the fact that we had a North Korean spy working for us."

Cons

"The cost can be high if you want to build custom license packages. Another area for improvement is the policies. In Azure, we need to implement policies in JSON format, but in 365 Defender 365, it would be helpful to use a different format so we can customize the platform."

"The interface could be improved. For example, if you want to do a phishing simulation for your employees, it can take a while to figure out what to do. The interface is a bit messy and could be updated. It isn't too bad, but doing some things can be a long process."

"The improvements to Microsoft Defender XDR would probably go on the Linux side. There's still some more work to be done there."

"The support from Microsoft could improve. There are times I have to wait for a response from a qualified specialist."

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

"The automation response being slow is the main concern; when an incident occurs or if I run a remediation, it takes significant time to complete the remediation."

"The initial time spent setting up and configuring Defender XDR is a bit longer than the other solutions. If everything were on one portal, the platforms for managing policies or alerts would be simpler. We must automate and manage policies on Intune rather than the same portal."

"The solution could improve by having better machine learning and AI. Additionally, the interface, documentation, and integration could be better."

More Microsoft Defender XDR cons

"Microsoft's pricing is very expensive. The Business Premium offering should be extended to enterprise customers, as it's currently limited to 300 users."

"For certain things, you need to install an agent. I understand it's for integrity, but if there could be a clientless solution for certain aspects, it would make life easier."

"My experience with the deployment of Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management was a fifty-fifty situation because we have a very diverse network, and not all of it is on Microsoft products."

"The user interface also isn't user-friendly. When we introduce Insider Risk Management to our clients, they often find it difficult to understand. There is too much information, and the UI is not scalable. Also, entry-level IT technicians are not always interested in learning something new. It should be clearer and easier to understand."

"The reporting capabilities sometimes leave a little to be desired. It could be improved in terms of producing reports to provide information to the C-suite or others."

Pricing and Cost Advice

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

"The solutions price is fair for what they offer."

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

"The most valuable licensing option is expensive, so pricing could be improved. Licensing options for this solution also need to be consolidated, because they frequently change."

"I believe the pricing is fair and acceptable. I consider it to be reasonable and satisfactory."

"We have a lot of problems in Latin America regarding the price of Microsoft 365 Defender, because the relationship between dollars and the money of the different countries, it's is a lot. Many customers that have small businesses say that they would like the solution but it is too expensive. However, large companies do not find the cost an issue."

"Microsoft Defender falls within a mid-tier price range compared to other security solutions."

"It is fairly priced because we get complete integrated services with the E5 license."

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

Computer Software Company

19%

Financial Services Firm

Outsourcing Company

Comms Service Provider

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 needs improvement with Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management?

I feel Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management can be improved by being able to identify patterns and practices of users to determine whether or not they fit the normal use case of a developer, a...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management?

My main use cases involve identifying issues related to problems with the current software deployments and whether or not it is being utilized correctly.

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management?

My advice to another organization that is considering using Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management is to make sure they plan out their deployment very carefully because the biggest sticking poin...

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Comparisons

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Compared 4% of the time

Microsoft Sentinel vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 4% of the time

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Compared 31% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Identity vs Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

Compared 19% of the time

Netskope Advanced Analytics vs Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

Compared 16% of the time

Dtex Systems vs Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

Compared 6% of the time

Exabeam vs Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

Compared 5% 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

Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

January 2026

Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management report

Download Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management product report

Also Known As

Microsoft 365 Defender, Microsoft Threat Protection, MS 365 Defender

Microsoft Insider Risk Management

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

Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management helps organizations identify and manage potential internal threats by utilizing advanced analytics and insights to minimize risk.

With a focus on addressing internal threats, Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management employs sophisticated analytics to proactively detect and manage risks. It offers context-rich insights to protect data, helping businesses maintain compliance and safeguard their information. By implementing mechanisms to predict potential risks, it aids in preventing data loss and ensures that sensitive information remains secure.

What are the most important features of Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management?

Advanced Analytics: Provides in-depth analysis to detect suspicious activities within the organization.
Data Protection: Ensures sensitive data security with robust preventive measures.
Risk Insights: Delivers actionable insights to help mitigate potential insider threats.
Compliance Support: Assists organizations in maintaining compliance with industry regulations.

What benefits should businesses expect from Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management?

Efficient Risk Mitigation: Streamlines identifying and addressing insider threats, saving time and resources.
Enhanced Data Security: Protects sensitive data, reducing the likelihood of data breaches.
Better Decision Making: Offers insights that help organizations make informed decisions about security protocols.

In industries like finance and healthcare, where data sensitivity is critical, adopting Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management can be crucial. For example, financial institutions utilize this tool to detect and mitigate fraudulent activities, while healthcare providers leverage its capabilities to protect patient data, ensuring compliance with data protection regulations. Its implementation varies across industries but consistently focuses on securing valuable information and reducing risk exposure.

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 Insider Risk Management

December 2025

Free Report: Microsoft Defender XDR vs. Microsoft Purview Insider Risk Management

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

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