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Jamf Pro vs Microsoft Configuration Manager 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

Jamf Pro
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.1
Number of Reviews
107
Ranking in other categories
Mobile Device Management (MDM) (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (2nd)
Microsoft Configuration Man...
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
81
Ranking in other categories
Server Monitoring (7th), Configuration Management (4th), Patch Management (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

Jamf Pro and Microsoft Configuration Manager aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Jamf Pro is designed for Mobile Device Management (MDM) and holds a mindshare of 25.4%, down 28.4% compared to last year.
Microsoft Configuration Manager, on the other hand, focuses on Server Monitoring, holds 5.3% mindshare, down 8.0% since last year.
Mobile Device Management (MDM)
Server Monitoring
 

Featured Reviews

Arunachalam S. - PeerSpot reviewer
Simplifies device management, making performing various administrative tasks easier
Sometimes, the server gets slow. The dashboard is only getting loaded. Jamf Pro offers many features, but some improvements could make it even more user-friendly. For example, streamlining authentication controls would enhance its security value. Too many complex settings on the dashboard make it hard for users to navigate. Simplifying the settings would make it easier to use. Adding a more interactive and cleaner UI design would also improve the user experience. Additionally, automatically categorizing policies and configurations by type would be helpful, making the dashboard more organized. Introducing auto-filtering based on categories would streamline configuration management. On the security side, enabling two-factor authentication for console login would provide better protection than single sign-on. Only authorized users can access sensitive data, like the asset inventory stored in the console. 2FA would help keep the system secure, preventing unauthorized access even if login credentials are compromised. Device management needs automation, and Jamf is likely to integrate Apple's Apple Intelligence into its framework once it's available. This integration is expected to be a significant enhancement for the Jamf console, potentially transforming the way device management is handled.
MikeNelson2 - PeerSpot reviewer
Deployment recovery works well but requires configuration improvements
While I do not use the product frequently, many issues were due to configuration rather than the product itself. I cannot give an exact recommendation as it is not my area of responsibility. The team that uses it finds it adequate. It is presently good enough for us not to investigate other options. Overall, I rate the product a six out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"One of the key features that I liked the most and a lot of the customer value as well is the geofencing. Geofencing is geographical locations. If the device is on a particular premise, then the policy applies. And when the device is not there, the policy goes away."
"We can set custom deployments based on every available parameter in macOS."
"Self Service empowers the user and allows them to install the software they need when they need it."
"Jamf is stable, reliable, secure and you have lots of customization options."
"The DEP enrollment is quite good. We're planning to migrate to the Jamf cloud this month."
"From the reviews that we are getting, the feedback from the client, the tool is very good on the Jamf side - especially for the Macs."
"Microsoft SSO integration allows us to set up email remotely for users without them having to do anything other than entering their password."
"We can put certain devices into smart groups based off of device name, department, etc."
"The solution doesn't require any maintenance from our end because it is a cloud-based solution and Microsoft takes care of everything."
"SCCM does everything from A to Z for a Windows operating system."
"It uses detailed descriptions of the workstations, and that is good for me."
"Software deployment and WSUS are most valuable."
"Provides great insight into the functionalities of the data scope."
"The most valuable features are Remote Connect, SUP, Cloud functionality, Report, Query, and third-party patching."
"It's helped us solve problems surrounding patching, installing, and reporting different patches, etc., on the virtual machines."
"The solution is user-friendly and easy to learn."
 

Cons

"I think there's room for improvement on the automation. For example, uploading a package to Jamf Pro and then updating the policy and other aspects, should be automatic. For instance, if I put a new version of the software, version 11 and the previous one was 10, Jamf Pro should be able to recognize if there's an update and update the policy automatically. It's not a big deal, but I think there's room for improvement."
"Every once in a blue moon, we wind up with a rarely-seen superbug that takes support weeks to months to solve."
"Apple does block certain actions from happening or disallows Jamf from making certain changes."
"A dark mode would for sure be appreciated."
"I am always complaining about the reporting side of things. I love how reporting lets us create custom reports, however, I also feel like it could use some updating."
"The solution should offer beta testing for new products."
"The patch management is not automated in any way, and you have to do a lot of manual work to upload the current version of applications."
"It will be very helpful if we could restore users after they have been removed from Jamf because I have some cases of deleting a computer before unlocking it."
"Initial setup was complex. There's a lot that goes into it."
"They should improve their anti-malware policies like the SCEP policies. For instance, you can't have different policies for different servers, there is only one policy in all the servers, and everything is covered under that. For example, say you want to scan one group of servers on Saturday, and then you want to scan another group of servers on Sunday, you can't do that. You have to scan all your servers, a regular scan or a full scan, on the same day and at the same time. That's definitely one thing they need to resolve. In the next release, it would actually be nice if they included Apple products. It will also help if you can use Intune again. Their compliance reporting feature could also be better. They can maybe work a bit on that for patching now. It would be better if SCCM came with the functions of Right Click Tools built-in. If SCCM would have all those functions already built-in, we won't have to go and spend $5,000, just as an add-in from another company to get those functions."
"In terms of the monitoring, the timeframe it takes to actually report back on the compliance of a device after it has been patched is a bit too long."
"I'm looking for a single solution for all discovery needs. It fulfills about 40% of the requirements, and I'd like to see the other 60% so that I don't have to keep doing this."
"I want the system to provide some dependency relations. I would also like to see the relationship between different machines."
"They need to improve the support for the Mac operating system."
"Its client interface should be more accessible, and the notifications should be more customizable from the console. It should be more user friendly and have some kind of customized notifications so that we can use it on the client side. These are the reasons why we restricted its use only for the server environment and didn't use it on the client side."
"The configuration of Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager could be improved, it is a bit complicated."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The only thing that is kicking us a bit is the rand to the dollar exchange rate. It is priced in dollars. Every time the rand goes worse, it just costs more. I would rate it a four out of five in terms of pricing because it is very unpredictable because of the rand to the dollar exchange rate."
"I know that as a school we get a discounted price, which is good because without it we would not be able to afford it."
"Jamf Pro is on the expensive side and could be slightly cheaper."
"The price difference between Jamf Pro and VMware Workspace One is not very much, but when counting the cost of my time, Jamf Pro is clearly much better."
"With respect to pricing, Jamf Pro is the better bet."
"The price of this solution is a bit high but it is worth the money for the features. There is an annual license for the use of this solution."
"If you have the in-house capability to support Jamf, then paying for onboarding / JumpStart training is a no brainer."
"It seems fair. It could be a little bit less, but you have to pay for a product. You can't get something for free. You get what you pay for, so if you put in a little bit of money, you're going to get a good quality product."
"We have a support license from Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager and the overall price of the solution is reasonable."
"As far as I know, it is an annual operating expense license."
"There is an annual license needed to use the solution."
"The license price could be reduced for Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager They should make the price more affordable for smaller companies, most companies would be able to use the solution if it was priced better. There are more people on this cloud because you don't have to have either a server room or an on-premise server. You can have one IT person handle this without any local infrastructure."
"Its price is okay because it is part of our licensing."
"Along with buying a license for MECM, we also have to buy a service called CMG (Cloud Management Gateway) which is a virtual machine in the cloud with which you can link your MECM to the Azure tenant so as to manage teleworkers."
"SCCM comes with its own version of SQL Server. If you use that SQL Server with SCCM and don't use it for another applications than you get an SQL Server for free."
"I would rate the cost as eight out of ten."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
26%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
University
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Jamf Pro?
The most valuable features of Jamf Pro for me are the device locator, which helps find missing iPads, and the ability to remotely manage and disable devices.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Jamf Pro?
The pricing structure is one of the cons. However, the licensing model is simple and easy to manage from an MSP perspective. Licenses are annual, and any changes are communicated effectively.
What needs improvement with Jamf Pro?
The biggest area for improvement is the price and the structure of Jamf's onboarding process, especially the mandatory JumpStart consultation, which can be costly for small organizations. The solut...
How does Ansible compare to Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM)?
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager takes knowledge and research to properly configure. The length of time that the set up will take depends on the kind of technical architecture that your org...
How to choose between ManageEngine Desktop Central and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (formerly SCCM)?
ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What I like most about ManageEngine is that I can log on to every PC very easily a...
What do you like most about SCCM?
One of the standout features of SCCM is its application management capabilities. It allows us to create packages efficiently and deploy them to specific groups within our network. This streamlined ...
 

Also Known As

JAMF Software Casper Suite
Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager, System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM )
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Xero, National Geographic, Oxford University, Via, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Fallon, Cabela's
Bank Alfalah Ltd., Wªrth Handelsges.m.b.H, Dimension Data, Japan Business Systems, St. Lucie County Public Schools, MISC Berhad
Find out what your peers are saying about JAMF, Microsoft, Cisco and others in Mobile Device Management (MDM). Updated: May 2025.
860,168 professionals have used our research since 2012.