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Azure Firewall vs Microsoft Purview Data Governance comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
3.0
Azure Firewall provides cost-efficient security for small applications, with varied ROI experiences depending on organizational needs.
Sentiment score
6.8
Microsoft Purview improves efficiency, security, and compliance, offering significant long-term ROI despite initial setup efforts.
With Azure Firewall on the cloud, you just need to subscribe to the firewall, configure it, and it will help you protect your environment.
Technical Solution Architect at liwa
Clients benefit from using a one-stop-shop solution, increasing their visibility across different platforms.
Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
4.2
Azure Firewall support is generally satisfactory, though some suggest improvements in response time and mention occasional third-party reliance.
Sentiment score
5.5
Microsoft Purview's customer service is mixed, with quick, knowledgeable support but delays and insufficient expertise for complex issues.
Microsoft provides excellent customer support, especially with premium support plans.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
Nevertheless, the final support from Microsoft remains effective.
Information Technology Architect at GMS INC
With Azure products, customer support is really good.
Senior Manager, Information Security at NetSol Technologies Inc.
Overall, it doesn't meet our expectations.
Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
They're skillful people who know what they're doing in their space.
Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
I have a dedicated team as a government agency, and Microsoft assists us promptly.
Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.4
Azure Firewall efficiently scales with traffic, supports global users, but larger enterprises seek further scaling improvements for extensive demands.
Sentiment score
7.6
Microsoft Purview Data Governance offers scalable performance, adaptable for diverse environments, with flexible architecture and ongoing scalability updates.
Based on my experience, I would rate it nine out of ten for scalability.
Cybersecurity Engineer at AXSYS
Azure Firewall is highly scalable, and I would give it a scalability rating of nine out of ten.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
When we started deploying the solution, it was not a mature product at times.
Senior Manager, Information Security at NetSol Technologies Inc.
With automation, you can label five documents or 50,000 with the same amount of clicks.
Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
It allows for one-to-one connections with different types of servers, either cloud-based like AWS, or physical servers.
Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees
The product is scalable and works across multi-cloud and multi-platform environments.
Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.5
Azure Firewall is praised for stability and reliability, with users noting high uptimes and positive comparisons to competitors.
Sentiment score
7.5
Microsoft Purview is highly stable, evolving consistently, with users appreciating its reliability despite occasional bugs and network issues.
The stability of Azure Firewall is excellent.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
For our use case, Azure Firewall is stable enough.
Technical Solution Architect at liwa
It can take seven days to 24 hours to determine whether a policy is effective.
Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions
Microsoft Purview Data Governance is absolutely fine in terms of stability.
Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Azure Firewall needs improvements in security, usability, support, pricing, AI integration, and centralized management to match competitors.
Microsoft Purview struggles with non-Azure data lineage, integration issues, limited macOS features, and requires better support and documentation.
If Azure Firewall can integrate identity features, it will help deliver additional next-generation capabilities.
Solutions Area Lead at a tech consulting company with 501-1,000 employees
Improvement in reporting and better visibility into network traffic would also be beneficial.
Cybersecurity Engineer at AXSYS
Azure Firewall could improve its reporting capabilities.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
It's essential to know if a feature isn't working due to missing licenses.
Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions
There are some problems with DLP rules, and it would be great if the security around DLP could be expanded.
Cloud Security Specialist at a aerospace/defense firm with 10,001+ employees
A watermark feature or similar tools to help enhance security for end users could be added.
Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise buyers view Azure Firewall's pricing as variable, with flexible pay-as-you-go costs and mixed opinions on affordability.
Microsoft Purview Data Governance is generally viewed as reasonably priced but has varied opinions on its cost-effectiveness.
The standard functionality for API Management is at a zero level, and then the next level is one.
Technical Solution Architect at liwa
Azure Firewall is quite expensive, with a high cost.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
Azure Firewall is subscription-based, which is advantageous as there is no need for upfront payment.
Information Technology Architect at GMS INC
The feature might be available in the console, but it won't work without the proper license, creating confusion.
Mcafee Epo Administrator at Consultant/Converge Technology Solutions
Microsoft Purview Data Governance is quite affordable compared to other market solutions, which have high initial costs.
Data Governance Advisor at a government with 501-1,000 employees
I'm not exactly sure how much our license costs, but it is very expensive.
Senior IT Security Risk & Compliance Analyst at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Valuable Features

Azure Firewall offers comprehensive security, seamless integration, user-friendly management, and advanced features for modern security and compliance needs.
Microsoft Purview excels in data governance with Azure integration, compliance support, multi-cloud protection, and AI-driven data management.
We have to combine multiple features and multiple products, and then we can say that this is more cost-effective and works properly to ensure the security posture of our cloud deployments.
Senior Manager, Information Security at NetSol Technologies Inc.
With Azure Firewall on the cloud, you just need to subscribe to the firewall, configure it, and it will help you protect your environment.
Technical Solution Architect at liwa
The premium version includes all traditional firewall features, reducing the need for separate compute resources.
DevOps Engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
It provides a comprehensive view of the entire ecosystem's threats and compliance in real time.
Manager, Service Delivery & Solutions Architect at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
The sensitivity labeling is the most valuable feature because it is the foundation for automating the encryption process and ensuring proper data handling across the organization.
Dex engineer at a tech vendor with 1,001-5,000 employees
Microsoft Purview Data Governance has helped my company by finding insider risks, ensuring data loss prevention, and achieving compliance to make sure everybody is compliant.
Senior IT Security Risk & Compliance Analyst at a government with 501-1,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Azure Firewall
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
11th
Average Rating
7.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
44
Ranking in other categories
Firewalls (10th)
Microsoft Purview Data Gove...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
8th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
59
Ranking in other categories
Data Governance (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Firewall is 2.8%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Data Governance is 4.5%, down from 5.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Purview Data Governance4.5%
Azure Firewall2.8%
Other92.7%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

AD
Technical Solution Architect at liwa
Has enabled us to manage internal access securely but lacks accessible documentation for deeper integration
We haven't required any support, but overall, Microsoft support is good. Whenever we raise any concern, they are supporting us on time. Currently it is good. We are not a public-facing company; it is a retail company only, so that's why I don't think it is required. We don't have an e-commerce solution on Azure. For that, we are using a different stack for the e-commerce portal, so that is not in Azure. We are only using it for business applications, and I think L3 filtering in network security suffices for our problem currently. Regarding scalability for Azure Firewall, we don't need it here because the request to the application is internal. All are internal users. So there is not much request to get into the application, so scalability is not required for us in the current scenario.
AS
Tech lead at a healthcare company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Automated data discovery has streamlined management while configuration remains complex
Compared to Big-ID, Microsoft Purview Data Governance looks complicated to me. I do not feel it has a good user-level UI. The interface feels a little complicated compared to Big-ID. I did not appreciate the configuration part. It felt complex, whereas when I went for a Big-ID demo, the interface looked better and was easier to understand for any user.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Government
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise22
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise13
Large Enterprise31
 

Questions from the Community

What is a better choice, Azure Firewall or Palo Alto Networks NG Firewalls?
Azure Firewall Vs. Palo Alto Network NG Firewalls Both solutions provide stellar stability and security. Azure Firewall is easy to use and provides excellent support. Valuable features include int...
How does Azure Firewall compare with Palo Alto Networks VM Series?
Both products are very stable and easily scalable. The setup of Azure Firewall is easy and very user-friendly and the overall cost is reasonable. Azure Firewall offers a solid threat awareness, can...
Which would you recommend - FortiGate VM or Azure Firewall?
Both of these solutions are excellent options that provide flexible scalability and solid security. Fortinet Fortigate VM integrates well and has excellent centralized reporting. It is very easy to...
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Purview?
It is designed to seamlessly connect to various data sources, which is particularly beneficial for our customers who primarily use Microsoft technologies.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Purview?
Microsoft Purview Data Governance is quite affordable compared to other market solutions, which have high initial costs. It allows for a cost-effective start with negligible initial cost. However, ...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Purview?
Compared to Big-ID, Microsoft Purview Data Governance looks complicated to me. I do not feel it has a good user-level UI. The interface feels a little complicated compared to Big-ID. I did not appr...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Microsoft Purview, MS Azure Purview
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Firewall vs. Microsoft Purview Data Governance and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.