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Barracuda Message Archiver vs Microsoft Defender for Office 365 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Barracuda Message Archiver
Average Rating
7.6
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
Email Archiving (4th)
Microsoft Defender for Offi...
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
49
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (11th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Email Archiving category, the mindshare of Barracuda Message Archiver is 2.8%, down from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 31.2%, up from 15.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Archiving
 

Featured Reviews

SK
Easy to use with helpful email backup and search capabilities, but it needs to support SIEM integration
Integration with ArcSight would be very helpful. The user mailbox management is poor. For example, if I want to restore a complete mailbox then it doesn't keep the structure of the inbox intact. When the emails are restored, they are in a single folder that we have to extract and restructure. At times, the restoration doesn't work properly. It would be difficult to opt-out of the services because it would require the transfer of a lot of data from the cloud to on-premises storage. Technical support should be more available to the Indian market.
Tolu Omolaja - PeerSpot reviewer
Great URL scanning and attachment scanning, but I would like more proactive threat analysis
The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning. URL scanning involves an automatic scan of links and emails. When a user clicks on a link within an email, the system promptly checks the link's safety. If the link is deemed safe, access is granted automatically. However, if it is flagged as unsafe, we receive feedback and notification to caution us about the potentially harmful link. At this point, we are presented with the option to proceed or return. I have personally witnessed the system identify a few unsafe links, making this the primary advantage of using the solution. The second crucial aspect is the scanning of attachments. When an email containing an attachment arrives, we receive a notification of the new email, along with information that the attachment is being scanned for threats. This additional layer of security provides peace of mind for our organization. While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers numerous features, these two stand out as particularly impressive and valuable to us.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It's easy to use."
"It also gives me good visibility because, with Defender, I'm using a Microsoft product to defend Microsoft products. The integration was really seamless and I have wide visibility because it picks up almost everything. Literally, I can see almost every activity that happens, from the e-mail to the workstation itself."
"The initial setup is straightforward. You just add the license, click it, and then you can set up the rules. It is quite simple."
"The most valuable feature is protection against malicious links, fishing, and impersonation. You can train people to be aware of these threats, but they're not always careful. When they're using their phones between meetings, they click on a link, and it's game over."
"The initial setup was easy."
"One of the best features of the tool is its capability to aggregate insights from different workloads, basically from the Office 365 and endpoints part."
"The technical support is good and quick to resolve issues."
"The two main features that prove most beneficial for us are URL scanning and attachment scanning."
"The email protection is excellent, especially in terms of anti-phishing policies."
 

Cons

"The user mailbox management is poor."
"It's a little bit more expensive than the others."
"We are always looking for others tools to increase automation on tasks. There can be better integration with other solutions, such as PowerPoint and email."
"The visibility for the weaknesses in the system and unauthorized access can be improved."
"About eight months ago, we started to measure the quantity of phishing and spam that we have been receiving, and it has been increasing a lot. That means that protection for our email is not as good as we were expecting."
"There is room for improvement in terms of reporting."
"The phishing and spam filters could use some improvement."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 should be more proactive."
"We need a separate license and we don't know how to get the license that is required."
"The only thing they should improve is the licensing model. They should stop changing it. A year ago, the five features I mentioned were included in one product. Now, three of them are bundled into one product, and you have to pay extra for the other two. I don't mind paying extra, but I don't want them to change it every year or every six months. I need to know what I'm looking at and not worry about it next year."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are satisfied with the pricing and the service is bundled so there are no costs in addition to the standard licensing fees."
"They're a little bit more expensive than the others."
"The license is expensive because the cost is based on the number of users."
"For licensing, it's usually a yearly package for customers who are subscribed to Office 365, but they can also pay on a monthly basis."
"The solution could be better by simplifying the business model of their licensing. It was hard to figure out how to get the licensing done for the environment, initially."
"For large enterprise organizations, they can definitely afford it, but for small and medium organizations, they might struggle to cover the expenses."
"The product is very expensive."
"I was working in the government and it was too expensive for us to use our Microsoft products."
"The pricing is normal. Considering its popularity, it's not overpriced."
"The product is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
76%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
3%
Comms Service Provider
2%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your primary use case for Barracuda Message Archiver?
We use Barracuda Message Archiver to keep a copy of our users' emails, both inbound or outbound. Our goal in using it is that from a compliance perspective, we can provide access to our auditors. I...
What needs improvement with Barracuda Message Archiver?
It's a little bit more expensive than the others. It's like anything. You got to log in when you want stuff nowadays. Other than that, it's pretty good.
What do you like most about Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Threat Explorer is an invaluable tool for me, and it plays a crucial role in helping me discern the origins of various email campaigns, pinpointing where they emanate from, and identifying the indi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Money-wise, it is a part of the Office 365 ( /products/office-365-reviews ) suite, making it slightly more expensive compared to Trend Micro. Although Defender is free, you have to pay separately f...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
The main area for improvement is simplifying the implementation and rollout process. There are many conditions to be met, making it challenging to ensure every system is protected. Troubleshooting ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS Defender for Office 365
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Alfa Romeo, Texas A&M University, Time Warner, Nintendo, Boeing 
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Barracuda Networks, Veritas and others in Email Archiving. Updated: April 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.