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Heimdal Endpoint Security vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint 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

Heimdal Endpoint Security
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
44th
Ranking in Anti-Malware Tools
25th
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
34th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
8.6
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Threat Intelligence Platforms (20th), Domain Name System (DNS) Security (14th), Ransomware Protection (12th)
Microsoft Defender for Endp...
Ranking in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
1st
Ranking in Anti-Malware Tools
1st
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
197
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (4th), Microsoft Security Suite (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) category, the mindshare of Heimdal Endpoint Security is 0.3%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is 10.1%, down from 13.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP)
 

Featured Reviews

DEEPAK KUMAR PACHDEO DUBEY - PeerSpot reviewer
Delivers efficiency and agility with USB control limitations
One area where we lag is that, since we use everything from Heimdal, including XDR and other features, we also use the privilege manager feature called Elevation. What we lack is granular USB control. We have an issue where we can only switch USB on or off. I want to whitelist specific devices in the network, which I currently cannot do.
John Rallo - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers excellent visibility into vulnerabilities and the attack surface itself
Attack surface reduction and limiting attack surface vectors are valuable features. It's helpful to isolate specific devices and get super granular with the features they offer. The visibility into the attack surface is good. It gets highly granular. I don't work on that side, but the people who do tell me they get more visibility.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Heimdal is a very agile and lightweight solution."
"As compared to multiple solutions I have used in the past, Heimdal is a very agile and lightweight solution."
"This product is flexible, and it is very easy to get updates from the Microsoft website."
"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint has been secure and there is zero maintenance required because it updates with Microsoft Windows."
"It does not make Windows slow, as compared to all of the third part antiviruses."
"Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is quite good. We haven't really experienced any issues with it."
"The integration with all variations of Microsoft Defender, for Endpoint, 365, and Cloud is valuable."
"It automatically detects intrusion and malware."
"The best thing I like about it is its interaction with the other Defender products. It provides the ability to push telemetry up. It gives me endpoint visibility and allows me to take automated actions."
"The intelligence mechanisms are good."
 

Cons

"What we lack is granular USB control. We have an issue where we can only switch USB on or off."
"What we lack is granular USB control."
"I would like to see better integration with their other security products to give better visibility from a higher level."
"The major area for improvement is the integration with a managed service provider. We use Microsoft partners to help govern the platform, and as part of an alliance, we want to gather data from each tenant and combine them for a complete view. This process has been complicated, though it has gotten better."
"The management console is something that can be improved."
"Its user interface (UI) can be improved. Currently, in the console, you have to dig down for certain things. They've got many different layers to get to things instead of having it all on the surface. You have to go three folds lower to get to specific functionality or click a particular option. It would be good if we can manage the console through menus and instead of three clicks, we can do things in one click. They need to change the UI and work on it in terms of a better user experience."
"The price, in general, could always be a little bit cheaper."
"The user interface could use some improvement."
"The solution can be more user-friendly."
"The second major area for improvement involves enhanced capabilities for different operating systems or platforms. That is, even though we have coverage for different operating systems or platforms such as Linux, we don't get all of the controls and enhanced capabilities that are available with Windows devices."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"It came with Windows."
"This solution is part of an enterprise license we have."
"The solution is free."
"We have a bundle where the price includes all Microsoft products."
"We sell this product as part of Office 365 and it is not expensive."
"It is free."
"The price was a problem for me three years ago, but they improved their E3, E5, and a la carte licensing. In other words, you have to get all of E5. That used to be a problem because you had E3, Defender, and guardrails, but you needed an E5 license to get the management suite and the analytics. It's more flexible now. You can switch from a la carte to the entire suite when it starts to make sense. It's becoming more economically competitive to go that route."
"For most people, the price of the license is not something that they have to worry about."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
21%
Non Profit
9%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Media Company
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Government
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Heimdal Endpoint Security?
Pricing, compared to what we had before, was quite economical. There was a difference of about twenty percent or something between the solutions.
What needs improvement with Heimdal Endpoint Security?
One area where we lag is that, since we use everything from Heimdal, including XDR and other features, we also use the privilege manager feature called Elevation. What we lack is granular USB contr...
What is your primary use case for Heimdal Endpoint Security?
My company colleagues and I use this antivirus solution. I am part of a company where I deploy solutions, and I also work in the IT department of that company. Therefore, I have chosen this antivir...
How is Cortex XDR compared with Microsoft Defender?
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security solution. The tool reduces the attack surface, applies behavioral-based endpoint protection and response, and includes risk-ba...
Which offers better endpoint security - Symantec or Microsoft Defender?
We use Symantec because we do not use MS Enterprise products, but in my opinion, Microsoft Defender is a superior solution. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is a cloud-delivered endpoint security s...
How does Microsoft Defender for Endpoint compare with Crowdstrike Falcon?
The CrowdStrike solution delivers a lot of information about incidents. It has a very light sensor that will never push your machine hardware to "test", you don't have the usual "scan now" feature ...
 

Also Known As

Heimdal Next-Gent Endpoint Antivirus, Thor Vigilance Enterprise, Heimdal Endpoint Detection and Response, Heimdal DNS Security - Endpoint, Heimdal Threat Prevention, Heimdal Ransomware Encryption Protection
Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Brother, Symbion, CPH West
Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, CrowdStrike, SentinelOne and others in Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP). Updated: July 2025.
864,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.