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Azure Bastion vs Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management comparison

Azure Bastion and Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management are both solutions in the Microsoft Security Suite category. Azure Bastion is ranked #19 with an average rating of 9.0, while Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management is ranked #33 with an average rating of 7.5. Azure Bastion holds a 1.4% mindshare in Microsoft Security Suite, compared to Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management’s 0.3% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Azure Bastion users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management users who would recommend it.
Azure Bastion
Read 12 Azure Bastion reviews
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100% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary
We performed a comparison between Azure Bastion and Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface 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.

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To learn more, read our detailed Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management Report (Updated: June 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
June 2025
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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

Azure Bastion
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
19th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
Network Monitoring Software (24th), Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) (7th)
Microsoft Defender External...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
33rd
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
Attack Surface Management (ASM) (13th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Bastion is 1.4%, down from 1.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management is 0.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

Aladin Steiner - PeerSpot reviewer
Has good scalability and provides secure access to the virtual machines
The product improved the security posture of our organization. We don’t have open ports and connect them to servers using it. We can carry out two-factor authentication to protect the devices with conditional access features. It would be nice to have a feature to copy and paste the files into servers. I rate the product a nine out of ten.
Read full review
AndyChan3 - PeerSpot reviewer
Enhanced visibility and exposes vulnerabilities but needs more integration
I am currently in the pilot stage of implementing Microsoft External Attack Surface Management (EASM). My organization is transitioning to a comprehensive track of Microsoft solutions, and we will move to full-scale production in another year, maybe Microsoft External Attack Surface Management…
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

"The most significant advantage lies in its runbook features, particularly beneficial for our infrastructure team."
"As an Azure consultant, for me, it is the best way to give the administrator access as you can manage the permission - including who can access Bastion."
"Azure Bastion makes it easy to provide quick virtual machine access to our customers."
"The ability to operate the product with scripting is excellent."
"Azure Bastion is preferable because you just switch it on and off you go."
"Azure Bastion eliminates the need for a jump server by providing secure access to servers without hitting the public network."
"The product's setup is easy."
"The interface is available in the edit portal."
More Azure Bastion pros
"It seems to be better at protecting from cyberattacks."
"Microsoft External Attack Surface Management helps improve the visibility of my exposed vulnerabilities and provides an overview of my security posture across the globe."
"Microsoft External Attack Surface Management helps improve the visibility of my exposed vulnerabilities and provides an overview of my security posture across the globe."
 

Cons

"There is room for improvement with AI features. I would like to see integrated AI features with Azure Bastion, especially for connectivity issues."
"Azure Bastion does its job. However, it would be nice to have the capability to cut and paste across desktops, similar to old-fashioned Remote Desktop emulation."
"The solution breaks down sometimes."
"You are charged for retrieving your own data."
"The protocol speed could be faster."
"When you have a boot issue on Windows, you cannot use Azure Bastion to fix it. You have to use the Azure console or the VM console, and it is very limited."
"We are not able to copy and paste files directly into the server over the patch host. We have to transfer files over to Azure Storage."
"There are some challenges because Bastion is more compatible with Edge but not with the other browsers. As an organization, it doesn't make sense that we have to use only Edge. We should be able to access Bastion over Chrome, Mozilla, or Opera. It should be our choice."
More Azure Bastion cons
"The integration is not as seamless compared to competitors like Palo Alto."
"With Microsoft, support is always crazy, it's not easy to get support."
"Further integration across different Microsoft products would be an improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is a lower decision point than high-quality security for our organization. Better security comes at a cost, but it's worth it, and that's what we tell our customers."
"The tool is cheaply priced. I would say that the product is free to use."
"It does not save money for us."
"Azure Bastion's pricing is good."
Information not available
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860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Computer Software Company
20%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Energy/Utilities Company
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Bastion?
Azure Bastion makes it easy to provide quick virtual machine access to our customers.
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Bastion?
Microsoft's pricing is on the higher side and could be more competitive. Startups and small organizations often prefer AWS ( /products/amazon-aws-reviews ) or GCP due to their lower costs, while la...
See all answers
What needs improvement with Azure Bastion?
Azure Bastion does its job. However, it would be nice to have the capability to cut and paste across desktops, similar to old-fashioned Remote ( /products/remote-reviews ) Desktop emulation. I am u...
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
I rate the pricing of the solution as eight out of ten.
See all answers
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
Further integration across different Microsoft products would be an improvement. Introduction of more AI automation into the products would also be beneficial. The integration is not as seamless co...
See all answers
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management?
I am currently in the pilot stage of implementing Microsoft External Attack Surface Management (EASM). My organization is transitioning to a comprehensive track of Microsoft solutions, and we will ...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

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Compared 13% of the time
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Compared 9% of the time
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Compared 15% of the time
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Compared 14% of the time
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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Azure Bastion
June 2025
Azure Bastion reportDownload Azure Bastion product report
Buyer's Guide
Attack Surface Management (ASM)
June 2025
Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management reportDownload Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management product report
 

Overview

Azure Bastion is a service you deploy that lets you connect to a virtual machine using your browser and the Azure portal. The Azure Bastion service is a fully platform-managed PaaS service that you provision inside your virtual network. It provides secure and seamless RDP/SSH connectivity to your virtual machines directly from the Azure portal over TLS. When you connect via Azure Bastion, your virtual machines do not need a public IP address, agent, or special client software.

Microsoft

In this era of hybrid work, shadow IT creates an increasingly serious security risk. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management helps cloud security teams see unknown and unmanaged resources outside the firewall.

Microsoft
Buyer's Guide
Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
June 2025
Free Report: Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Bastion vs. Microsoft Defender External Attack Surface Management and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
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