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Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration vs Sophos Email comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 2024

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
7.3
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 enhances email protection, reduces costs, and increases productivity, offering invaluable data security.
Sentiment score
8.0
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration boosts security and productivity, offering up to 60% ROI by preventing cyber threats.</p>
Sentiment score
8.6
Sophos Email delivers cost-efficient security and reduces unsolicited emails, enhancing ROI, particularly valuable for government contracts.
It has also decreased our time to detection and response by about 15 to 20 percent.
Overall, cost of owning and operating our system goes down.
It's hard to quantify the return on investment we've seen from Microsoft Defender for Office 365.
The time saved during investigations is significant due to the neat dashboard that organizes everything related to alerts.
There has been a 70% decrease in phishing emails and data breaches since implementing Check Point Harmony Email Security.
I have seen a return on investment, as I can share relevant metrics like money saved, time saved, and fewer employees needed, all of them.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.9
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers reliable support, praised for responsiveness, despite some challenges with clarity and third-party resolutions.
Sentiment score
7.2
Check Point Harmony Email's customer service is praised for professionalism but criticized for slow responses and inconsistent support experiences.
Sentiment score
6.5
Sophos Email support is responsive but requires improvements in speed and expertise; users can contact via phone, chat, or email.
Over the past two years, there have been no critical problems.
we opened tickets, and they typically resolve them quickly.
Customer service and support have been fantastic.
We opted for the 24/7 premium support, which is very responsive and quick whenever we have configuration challenges or other inquiries.
We understand that with respect to SLA, but we expect they can go beyond SLA and provide quick support for the client.
Customer support is of high quality.
When I reported a problem with our firewall, they acted promptly and delivered another piece of equipment.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
8.2
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 scales seamlessly across configurations, supporting thousands of users with effortless integration and optimal performance.
Sentiment score
8.1
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration offers seamless, flexible scalability, easily integrating with applications for organizational growth.</p>
Sentiment score
7.4
Sophos Email is scalable and reliable for SMEs, though licensing and server maintenance can be challenging for larger use.
We have never faced scalability problems, and Microsoft manages it effectively.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 scales transparently for us, as we grew from 1,000 users to 3,000 users, and we didn't notice much difference.
I would rate the scalability of Check Point Harmony Email and Collaboration as nine out of ten, indicating high scalability.
Scalability is limited, being only integrated with Microsoft Office 365 and G Suite at present.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is highly reliable, offering stable performance, quick issue resolution, and high user satisfaction ratings.
Sentiment score
8.0
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration boasts stability, effective threat blocking, reliable performance, and supportive customer service, ensuring user satisfaction.</p>
Sentiment score
8.1
Sophos Email is reliable and stable, highly rated for handling significant email activity despite minor issues and update requests.
The solution is stable, as we have been using it for the past two years.
I would assess the stability and reliability of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 as very stable, with barely any issues.
Overall, the stability and reliability of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 are good.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 needs enhanced virus protection, compatibility, UI, integration, reporting, and cost transparency to improve user experience.
Check Point Harmony Email struggles with delays, limited platform support, high costs, lacks real-time analytics, and needs better integration.
Sophos Email needs better security, user interface, compatibility, and performance, with improvements in pricing and reporting features.
The main area for improvement is simplifying the implementation and rollout process.
Microsoft could improve by offering recommendations for domain spoofing attacks, especially scenarios where DNS records like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are not properly published.
There is a different console for different things; I just want one consolidated console.
Updates based on AI and reduced administrative overhead by adding or bulk adding new users, along with graphical enhancements to the GUI, would also be beneficial.
Enhancing reporting capabilities with customizable and advanced analytics features would greatly improve our ability to detect trends and proactively address emerging threats.
It would be better if HEC also provides support for third-party email service solutions, such as IBM HCL Notes, creating more opportunities.
Sophos Email does not work with split delivery.
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise users find Microsoft Defender for Office 365 pricing complex but valuable due to integration with Office 365 features.
Check Point Harmony offers flexible, user-based pricing ideal for medium to large organizations, with possible discounts for bundled services.
Sophos Email offers reasonable pricing with flexible options, balancing affordability and features for various organizational needs.
We've likely saved 30% of costs.
Money-wise, it is a part of the Office 365 suite, making it slightly more expensive compared to Trend Micro.
Microsoft is quite affordable with a lot of features available for any size organization.
Pricing is a bit expensive, but it is worth it considering the features that Check Point provides.
I consider the pricing to be a bit expensive, similar to other solutions.
The pricing is lower compared to what I used before.
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price since they also seek to make a profit.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 offers comprehensive security with real-time updates and automated threat response, enhancing multi-platform enterprise safety.
<p>Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration provides robust email security with AI-driven threat protection and seamless integration, enhancing productivity.</p>
Sophos Email provides robust security, AI-driven features, and seamless integration with Office 365 and Google Workspace for comprehensive protection.
It ranks the threats and allows us to prioritize those hitting us the hardest, such as email threats.
It provides end-to-end visibility on email threats such as phishing, extending beyond Exchange Online Protection.
The value of the DLP feature is significant to us because we have internal data, sometimes sensitive, and the users may not always be aware of security and privacy, which might lead them to send out information mistakenly to external parties.
The most valuable feature is spam detection and phishing site prevention, which Microsoft couldn't catch, yet Check Point does.
Check Point Harmony Email and Collaboration offers online support and has tight integration with Microsoft.
The protection and scanning of emails are also appreciated, as they secure everything in the email spectrum.
It provides a defense layer for email protection, scanning every incoming and outbound email for malware and spam.
The spam reduction feature in Sophos Email provides comfort when using it.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Offi...
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Ranking in Email Security
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
Email Archiving (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (2nd), Microsoft Security Suite (10th), Secure Email Gateway (SEG) (1st)
Check Point Harmony Email &...
Ranking in Email Security
4th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
67
Ranking in other categories
Data Loss Prevention (DLP) (5th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (8th)
Sophos Email
Ranking in Email Security
10th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
Office 365 Protection (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 12.3%, down from 16.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration is 4.9%, up from 3.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Email is 2.1%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Nasseer Qureshi - PeerSpot reviewer
Email security effectively detects a wide range of threats and improves productivity
Since we have been using Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration for a year, we haven't encountered significant challenges. However, it would be beneficial if it could support other email security services beyond Microsoft and Google. Integration with other platforms would enhance its appeal since the features are commendable. While the analytics are commendable, they don't provide deep dive insights. They show the overall counts of malware, phishing, and business compromise emails, but there isn't a robust ability to dive deeper into those categories to see specifics. Analytics should allow us to explore which users received malware emails the most or trends among departments. Currently, we have to sift through manually, which is not ideal. A more profound analytical capability would elevate the tool to become the complete email security solution for any user.
Ahmed_Fahmy - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides a powerful and simple email protection with proven management benefits
Sophos Email is integrated with Office 365 and Google Workspace. It offers anti-spam functionality, which is easy to manage and comes with documentation on how to integrate it with Office 365 and Google Workspace. It provides a defense layer for email protection, scanning every incoming and outbound email for malware and spam. It can also function temporarily as an email solution if my vendor from Office 365 or Google Workspace is out of service.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
19%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Healthcare Company
5%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 variou...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Microsoft is quite affordable with a lot of features available for any size organization.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
Microsoft could improve by offering recommendations for domain spoofing attacks, especially scenarios where DNS recor...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Check Point Harmony Email & Office?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration has been all ...
What is your primary use case for Check Point Harmony Email & Office?
My main use case for Check Point Harmony Email &amp; Collaboration is to protect email against all zero-day threats, ...
What do you like most about Check Point Harmony Email & Office?
The product offers good and easy integration capabilities with other products.
What do you like most about Sophos Email?
The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Email?
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price...
What needs improvement with Sophos Email?
Sophos Email does not work with split delivery. If I have a domain with 100 mailboxes and want to protect only 50, it...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
Check Point CloudGuard, Check Point CloudGuard SaaS , Check Point Harmony Email & Office
Sophos Email Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Helvetia, Denham Capital, Daymark Solutions, Neopharm Group
Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School
Find out what your peers are saying about Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration vs. Sophos Email and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.