Azure Front Door vs Microsoft Defender for Business comparison

Azure Front Door vs. Microsoft Defender for Business

December 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:

ROI

Sentiment score

6.9

Azure Front Door offers ROI through cost reduction, quick setup, and simplified management, prompting proactive adoption amid system phase-out.

Sentiment score

6.1

Microsoft Defender for Business improves security, enhances productivity, and reduces costs but may have delays in financial returns.

Azure Front Door offers a quick return on investment once it is set up.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

Using Microsoft Defender for Business results in cost reductions as it consolidates various features under one product, saving around 20% to 30% of the budget.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Consultant at Dell Technologies

The value I see in Microsoft Defender for Business is in its ability to track and respond to application usage and security threats through its CASB and automation features, which are cost-beneficial.

Amit-Granot

Works

Customer Service

Sentiment score

7.1

Azure Front Door's customer service is mixed; some praise responsiveness and documentation, others find problem-solving quality inconsistent.

Sentiment score

5.2

Microsoft Defender for Business support is efficient but inconsistent, with variable responsiveness and differing opinions on staff knowledge and resolution times.

I am able to set up a critical call with Microsoft, and they respond quickly to tickets with the highest severity.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

It is rated ten out of ten for its quality and assistance.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

The onboarding support is exceptional, ensuring seamless integration and implementation.

Anat Garty

Chief Cybersecurity Architect at cytek-security

Faster support is needed for endpoint security solutions.

Amit-Granot

Works

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score

7.1

Azure Front Door offers scalable, reliable global capabilities, highly rated by users, though it may become costly with extensive use.

Sentiment score

7.6

Microsoft Defender for Business offers scalable, cloud-driven security for diverse organizations, adaptable to various configurations and endpoint quantities.

I find that Front Door can become expensive for large-scale projects with more transactions and users.

Azure Consultant at cloudshift

I consider the scalability of Azure Front Door to be strong.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

The cloud-based nature of the solution ensures high scalability.

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

The scalability of Microsoft Defender for Business is rated as ten, indicating it is very scalable.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Consultant at Dell Technologies

In terms of scalability, I would rate Microsoft Defender for Business a ten.

Takayuki-Umehara

Public Cloud Engineer at Prudential

Stability Issues

Sentiment score

8.4

Azure Front Door is praised for stability and performance, with minor DNS issues and advantages in updates via Azure Portal.

Sentiment score

7.2

Microsoft Defender for Business is highly rated for stability, despite minor errors and complexity issues not significantly impacting confidence.

I rate Azure Front Door's stability a nine because it is easy to make updates through Azure Portal.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

No customer complaints about its functionality or reliability.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

Although it generally works, there are occasional issues and errors that sometimes require a complete system format to rectify.

Amit-Granot

Works

I would rate the stability of Microsoft Defender for Business with a three out of ten, where one is very bad.

Takayuki-Umehara

Public Cloud Engineer at Prudential

Room For Improvement

Azure Front Door needs improvements in multi-cloud support, pricing, user interface, DDoS protection, and enhanced functionalities as per feedback.

Microsoft Defender for Business needs improved reporting, threat protection, support, and integration, with attention to pricing and update communication.

If I could use Azure Front Door with private IP addresses, it would be more beneficial.

Azure Consultant at cloudshift

It relies on the WAF module where users must configure rate-limiting rules, as it does not automatically sense malicious spikes in traffic.

reviewer2226693

Architect at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees

The only significant adjustment required is with URL set parameters that need to be passed for an existing domain.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

Microsoft should provide batch management solutions with the application, integrating pass management with roles.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

Features related to Advanced Persistent Threat detection vectors and cyber kill chain integrations are not available out-of-the-box.

KiranKumar17

CISO at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees

There can be improvements in the user interface to make it more intuitive.

Wondimu Almu

Information Technology Security Consultant at Navaio IT Security

Setup Cost

Azure Front Door offers flexible, tiered pricing praised for balancing cost and features, though premium levels may seem expensive.

Microsoft Defender for Business offers integrated security in Office 365, with competitive pricing but some note higher costs than competitors.

Azure Front Door is cheaper for small projects, companies, or applications compared to using separate tools.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Azure Consultant at cloudshift

Single-year pricing remains good.

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

The pricing is quite affordable at the enterprise level with no extra expenses noted.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Consultant at Dell Technologies

Although the cost can be slightly higher, it expedites deployment, which is beneficial, especially for startups.

KiranKumar17

CISO at a financial services firm with 11-50 employees

Valuable Features

Azure Front Door enhances security, performance, and global reach with features like SSL offloading, load-balancing, and traffic analytics.

Microsoft Defender for Business provides robust, scalable security with seamless Azure integration and effective threat management at a cost-effective price.

Azure Front Door provides DDoS protection and features related to WAF.

Azure Consultant at cloudshift

Azure Front Door includes a built-in web application firewall, which performs signature-based checks of the request payload, offering protection against common attacks or malicious requests.

For more quotes and insights, download the Azure Front Door report

Co-Founder at arpa

The threat detection capabilities are robust, with a dedicated research team and a continuously updated threat feed.

Wondimu Almu

Information Technology Security Consultant at Navaio IT Security

Its vulnerability management is regarded as one of the best in the industry.

Solution Consultant at BIM Group of Companies

The most effective features of Microsoft Defender for Business include its threat detection and response capabilities in managing vulnerabilities and ransomware attacks.

For more quotes and insights, download the Microsoft Defender for Business report

Consultant at Dell Technologies

Categories and Ranking

Azure Front Door

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

17th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

CDN (3rd), Web Application Firewall (WAF) (13th)

Microsoft Defender for Busi...

Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite

16th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (18th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Azure Front Door is 2.3%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Business is 3.5%, up from 3.0% 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 for Business	3.5%
Azure Front Door	2.3%
Other	94.2%

Microsoft Security Suite

Featured Reviews

reviewer2226693

Architect at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees

Optimizing global application performance with robust security measures and advanced traffic management

DDoS capabilities in Azure Front Door could certainly be improved. Although Microsoft states it comes with basic DDoS protections out of the box, I find it often ineffectual in mitigating thousands of requests from a single source in a short span of time. User then have to rely on the WAF module where users must configure rate-limiting rules, as it does not automatically sense malicious spikes in traffic. I believe Front Door should have an out-of-the-box premium DDoS protection that can automatically detect and block malicious traffic. I would appreciate improvements in the turnaround time for support, especially since issues with Azure Front Door are usually critical for businesses. If there is an issue, it often results in downtime for line of business applications. I have faced this situation multiple times as one of the largest financial institutions in India is hosted there, adhering to strict SLAs that require prompt responses.

Read full review

Takayuki-Umehara

Public Cloud Engineer at Prudential

Product deployment protects assets but needs improvement in system support

I am doing maintenance for Microsoft Defender for Business, and I'm currently working with it. We don't need to use the latest version of Microsoft Defender for Business. We still use the latest virus definition file that Microsoft Defender for Business has automatically updated. We implement a basic update mechanism. Our compliance division manages how many servers and PCs we have and whether those servers have antivirus solutions. I am not certain about how Microsoft Defender for Business helps with AI-driven security strategies. I just use it normally and don't know if it uses AI technology. I rate Microsoft Defender for Business a six out of ten.

Read full review

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881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Government

Computer Software Company

17%

Comms Service Provider

Government

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	9
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	9

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	4

Questions from the Community

What's the difference between Azure Front Door and Application Gateway?

We found Azure Front Door to be easily scaled and very stable. The implementation is very fast and Microsoft provides excellent support. Azure Front Door can quickly detect abnormalities before the...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Front Door?

I am not sure about the pricing but believe Azure Front Door might require a higher cost due to its entry point nature.

What needs improvement with Azure Front Door?

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

Our thoughts on the pricing for Microsoft Defender for Business are that we wish it could be better. If the pricing was a little better, we would definitely increase what we currently have.

What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Business?

I see room for improvement in Microsoft Defender for Business, particularly regarding the consolidation of all security solutions in one place and the integration of AI and data security into the s...

What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Defender for Business?

I would rate this product an eight out of ten.

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Product Reports

Download Azure Front Door product report

Azure Front Door

January 2026

Microsoft Defender for Business

January 2026

Download Microsoft Defender for Business product report

Also Known As

Azure Front-Door

No data available

Overview

Azure Front Door enhances web application performance and security by leveraging traffic inspection, SSL offloading, and a web application firewall. It enables intelligent routing, load balancing, and global resource deployment while providing essential features for online application security.

Azure Front Door integrates GitOps for seamless deployment, offering significant capabilities in giant networks like CDN functionalities and DDoS protection. Its advanced configurations include traffic analytics and transit layer security. Despite its affordability and scalability, users see room for improvement in global load balancing and private IP address support, citing integration challenges with other cloud vendors. The interface may appear complex, and some users desire more transparent pricing, better DDoS defenses, and enhanced monitoring. This platform is especially beneficial for securing external traffic and optimizing content delivery, providing DNS integration and disaster recovery mechanisms.

What are the key features of Azure Front Door?

Traffic Inspection: Enhances security with comprehensive traffic analysis at the network level.
SSL Offloading: Streamlines SSL certificate management and encryption processes.
Web Application Firewall: Offers protection against web vulnerabilities and threats.
Global Resource Implementation: Facilitates deployment across multiple regions.
Intelligent Routing and Load Balancing: Optimizes traffic distribution for efficient performance.
Bot and DDoS Protection: Shields applications from malicious traffic and attacks.
CDN Capabilities: Accelerates content delivery with local caching and optimized routing.

What benefits and ROI should users expect?

Affordability: Provides robust features at competitive pricing.
Scalability: Adapts easily to growing traffic demands and business needs.
Security: Delivers comprehensive defenses against cyber threats.
Performance Optimization: Enhances application responsiveness and delivery speed.
Global Reach: Supports globally distributed applications with ease.

In industries focusing on online presence and global user engagement, Azure Front Door is invaluable for optimizing web application performance. E-commerce platforms deploy it to secure transactions and enhance load times. Media companies leverage its CDN and security features to ensure seamless content delivery. Enterprises with international operations find it crucial for reliable and secure data access across regions.

Microsoft

Microsoft Defender for Business is a new endpoint security solution that was designed especially for the small and medium-sized business (up to 300 employees). With this endpoint security solution, your company's devices are better protected from ransomware, malware, phishing, and other threats.

Microsoft