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 Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR Report (Updated: May 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR

May 2024

Download the complete report

Helped 793,295 peers since 2012

Categories and Ranking

Azure Firewall Manager

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

31st

Average Rating

7.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Firewall Security Management (13th)

Microsoft Defender XDR

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (6th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (5th)

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2024, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Firewall Manager is 0.5%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender XDR is 5.2%, down from 10.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Microsoft Security Suite

Unique Categories:

Firewall Security Management

2.2%

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)

4.3%

Extended Detection and Response (XDR)

11.2%

Featured Reviews

Gunjan Singh.

Senior Consultant at Capgemini

May 26, 2023

Useful testing, simple configuration, and scales well

We use Azure Firewall Manager for testing and security policies The most valuable feature of Azure Firewall Manager is the testing and configuration. The solution can improve the integration with open-source tools. I have been using Azure Firewall Manager for approximately seven months. I rate…

Read full review

Brian Mulambuzi

IT Technician Engineer at Nevasa Foundation

May 14, 2024

Helps improve our visibility, our security posture, and defends against advanced threats

Microsoft Defender XDR provides a unified identity and access management platform. It does a good job with identity protection. Including identity and access management within Defender XDR is valuable because it streamlines our organization's security by consolidating multiple tools into one. This eliminates the need to manage and pay for separate solutions and licenses, simplifying our security posture. Microsoft Defender XDR has improved our visibility, making us more efficient by providing threat details and remediation steps as well as improving our security posture. It safeguards our organization by preventing advanced threats like ransomware and business email compromise, along with stopping lateral movement within our network that could enable attackers to spread and gain wider access. It includes the ability to stop attacks and adapt to evolving threats. This is an important feature for us. We have been enabled to discontinue using Microsoft Sentinel. Microsoft Defender XDR helps save costs through the licensing for businesses which is around $20 each and helps save time for our security team.

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 solution is very easy to set up."

"The most valuable feature of Azure Firewall Manager is the testing and configuration."

"It is easy to install and does not require any plugins for your browser."

"The solution has improved our organization with its firewall."

"The tool's support is good."

"Microsoft 365 Defender is simple to upgrade."

"The most valuable feature is the DLP because that's where we can have an added data protection layer and extend it not just to emails but to the documents that users are working on. We can make sure that sensitive data is tagged and flagged if unauthorized parties are using it."

"The most valuable features are spam filtering, attachment filtering, and antivirus protection."

"The advantage of Microsoft Defender XDR has over other XDRs in the market is that it's easy to use. You can quickly differentiate between alerts, incidents, devices, software, etc. It's easier to investigate an incident, and you have so many options. You can automate investigations and use playbooks. There's also the live response session, which is something you can't find in any other XDR."

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

"A crucial aspect for our team is the inclusion of identity and access management tools from the vendor."

"The integration between all the Defender products is the most valuable feature."

"The common and advanced security policies for threat hunting and blocking attacks are valuable."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pros

Cons

"We could do only one-way NAT-ing, where the traffic comes from outside to internal, to Azure, which is fine. However, when we actually do NAT-ed traffic to hit the firewall, that way is not working."

"The price is okay. This said, the solution is certainly expensive in comparison with other cloud services."

"The solution can improve the integration with open-source tools."

"The tool's security features need to improve. It needs also to include a monitoring system for logs. It is also complicated to find a query on the Azure firewall."

"There should be a simple one-click deployment for a firewall, rather than a set of setup instructions that include steps such as the DNS configuration, et cetera."

"The data recovery and backup could be improved."

"The advanced threat-hunting capabilities are phenomenal, and the security copilot enhances that, but some data elements could be better or have more context inside of the advanced tables themselves. The schemas feel a little limited to what they're building into the product. It's probably just a maturity thing. I imagine we'll see the features I want in the next year."

"The price could be better. It'll also help if they can continuously update and upgrade the solution. Every day there's a new virus uploaded into the network, and we have to keep updating it to identify all these things."

"From an integration standpoint, it is always improving overall. With Security Copilot coming out, as partners, we are waiting for the GDAP support so that we can actually see Security Copilot on behalf of customers if they subscribe to it."

"Correctly updated records are the most significant area for improvement. There have been times when we were notified of a required fix; we would carry out the fix and confirm it but still get the same notification a week later. This seems to be a delay in records being updated and leads to false reporting, which is something that needs to be fixed."

"The price should be adjustable by region."

"There is definitely scope for improvement in the automation area. Because the solution is a SaaS platform, we don't have the overall ability to automate stuff.... There is no direct way to go ahead because it's a SaaS platform."

"The design of the user interface could use some work. Sometimes it's hard to find the exact information you need."

More Microsoft Defender XDR cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price of the solution is reasonable but it is reasonable for the features."

"The solution is certainly expensive in comparison with other cloud services."

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

"Purchasing Microsoft Defender XDR as part of a Microsoft 365 bundle can be cost-effective, but acquiring it as a standalone product may be more expensive."

"The solution is affordable, and we haven't been hit with any hidden costs. The subscription model is straightforward, and it's easy to understand how much additional features cost. If we need to cancel a license or feature, we do that well in advance to avoid being charged for it, but overall, the pricing and licensing are simple and easy."

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

"Microsoft Defender XDR is priced high."

"Microsoft Defender XDR is included in our license."

"Microsoft purposely makes its license combinations complex and includes combinations like Microsoft 365 E3 and Microsoft 365 E5, Office 365 E3, Office 365 E5, and Office 365 E1, so you get confused. Microsoft tries to sell you a bundle of a lot of things together."

"Microsoft 365 Defender offers competitive pricing."

More Microsoft Defender XDR pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Computer Software Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Azure Firewall Manager?

The most valuable feature of Azure Firewall Manager is the testing and configuration.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Firewall Manager?

The price of the solution is reasonable but it is reasonable for the features.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Azure Firewall Manager?

The solution can improve the integration with open-source tools.

See all answers

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?

The pricing is reasonable. It's cheaper than other options.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft 365 Defender?

The solution can improve the rules and privileges it offers. They need to be more transparent with changes. Often, changes come too rapidly.

See all answers

Comparisons

Azure Firewall vs Azure Firewall Manager

Compared 32% of the time

Palo Alto Networks Panorama vs Azure Firewall Manager

Compared 19% of the time

AWS Firewall Manager vs Azure Firewall Manager

Compared 15% of the time

FortiGate Cloud-Native Firewall (FortiGate CNF) vs Azure Firewall Manager

Compared 13% of the time

Tufin Orchestration Suite vs Azure Firewall Manager

Compared 6% of the time

More Azure Firewall Manager Competitors

CrowdStrike Falcon vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 47% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 13% of the time

Wazuh vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 5% of the time

Trend Vision One vs Microsoft Defender XDR

Compared 4% of the time

More Microsoft Defender XDR Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Firewall Security Management

June 2024

Download Azure Firewall Manager product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Defender XDR

July 2024

Download Microsoft Defender XDR product report

Also Known As

No data available

Microsoft 365 Defender, Microsoft Threat Protection, MS 365 Defender

Learn More

Microsoft

Overview

Azure Firewall Manager is a security management service that provides central security policy and route management for cloud-based security perimeters.

To learn more about our solution, ask questions, and share feedback, join our Microsoft Security, Compliance and Identity Community.

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.

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

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

Buyer's Guide

Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR

May 2024

Free Report: Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR

Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR and other solutions. Updated: May 2024.

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See our Azure Firewall Manager vs. Microsoft Defender XDR report.

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