No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Microsoft Defender for Business vs Microsoft Entra Workload ID 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

Microsoft Defender for Busi...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
15th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
20
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (12th)
Microsoft Entra Workload ID
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
30th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
4.6
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (21st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Business is 2.9%, down from 3.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra Workload ID is 0.8%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Defender for Business2.9%
Microsoft Entra Workload ID0.8%
Other96.3%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

Paritosh Jani - PeerSpot reviewer
Associate VP (Managed Information Technology Services) at Dev Information Tech Pvt Ltd
Has delivered automated threat response and streamlined integration with advanced tools
The best features of Microsoft Defender for Business include it coming as an XDR solution which provides automated investigations, remediations, and endpoint detection and response. Moreover, it can be tightly integrated with vulnerability management or detecting vulnerabilities and pushing them to the SIEM solution. I utilize the advanced threat hunting feature of Microsoft Defender for Business and find it helpful; it's good and improving with every update. Microsoft Defender for Business integrates effectively with the Microsoft ecosystem as with Azure Sentinel, and it has a two-way natural integration. Apart from that, it also integrates with industry SIEM solutions such as Splunk.
reviewer2772159 - PeerSpot reviewer
Postdoctoral Researcher at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
Have experienced ongoing challenges integrating with existing workflows despite strong foundational capabilities
I don't know how I would assess the impact of AI-powered threat detection for us. It has helped with security operations in general; I'm being very cagey here, Damian. You can understand why. Where I work, there is a directory services team. There is a security team. The security team may have several different departments in there. I think they are behind the times. That's about as far as what I would say. We may have the modern firewalls and detections and all the rest of it, but I think from a modern way of working, which the identity is a user which is any device, any place, anywhere, from anything, okay, securely, they're not quite up with that concept, in my opinion. The review rating is 8.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I would recommend Microsoft Defender for Business to others, rating it as ten out of ten."
"The solution includes attack-savvy service and risk protection, part of data center management, and offers an effective single-dashboard view with Microsoft 365."
"The security features in Microsoft Defender for Business that have been most effective for our company include the way it's built-in and intertwined into all the operating systems, giving us a good opportunity to holistically block things for the organization using that tenant."
"It is scalable."
"Everything is stable. There have been no technical errors or stability issues."
"The best features of Microsoft Defender for Business include it coming as an XDR solution which provides automated investigations, remediations, and endpoint detection and response."
"The solution is effective, continuously improving, and highly regarded, especially with Microsoft's leadership in the industry."
"I haven't had any problems with the tool's stability."
"We have various options available with Microsoft Entra, such as B2B cross-tenant guest member accesses, and we can invite users and perform activities from that area, while we are also dealing with Azure IaaS, infrastructure as a service, which has different IAM platforms existing with resources or subscriptions."
"I would evaluate the customer service or technical support with Microsoft for Entra products as well; we are a strategic partner, so we're one of 500 companies that can talk to them directly."
"The product enables organizations to synchronize users to Microsoft 365 products."
 

Cons

"Technical support could be faster to respond."
"Additionally, the pricing policy poses a challenge, particularly in multi-year contracts, where other solutions like Trend Micro offer more affordable options."
"We faced some issues while running some applications on Mac."
"Defender's reporting is rather scattered, and its URL filtering mechanism doesn't really work."
"We face a licensing issue with Windows 11 Enterprise not reflecting in our portal, which affects activation. Microsoft's support did not resolve this issue, even after sharing remote desktop and screen details."
"Threat protection could be improved even though it is already a built-in feature."
"The tool's support is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
"Pricing could be lowered as it is expensive and not suitable for low-budget organizations."
"In my opinion, Microsoft Entra Workload ID can be improved in several ways."
"Integration with existing IAM solutions has not helped our identity management processes; it's all of the things that are in front of Directory and Entra, such as SalePoint and other toolsets, give us one of the worst identity experiences I think I've ever come across, which is why I'm trying to change it."
"Integration with other products must be made easier."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is cheap, while some other solutions are more expensive. I remember the tool cost about five euros for a workstation or for a user on a monthly basis."
"Since we're a nonprofit, we get pretty good discounts on the tool."
"The tool's cost has been a little high, but I do not think it was terrible."
"It has to get more competitive because we are starting to see some of the competitors providing better pricing, and some of it, of course, is to gain market share. The Defender product pricing is probably a little higher than the competitors."
"Defender for Business is included by default with an Office 365 premium subscription."
Information not available
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Microsoft Security Suite solutions are best for your needs.
902,894 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
6%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise4
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

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 needs improvement with Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
In my opinion, Microsoft Entra Workload ID can be improved in several ways.Particularly about Microsoft Entra Workload ID, I think they still could improve categorization, which still has some room...
What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
I'm a consultant and not using the products myself, but rather in a capacity more as a consultant or reseller.I am not familiar with remote access products by ManageEngine. I do not use ManageEngin...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Entra Workload ID?
I'm working on that area while still looking for a new solution or already using ManageEngine Password Manager or Microsoft Entra ID.I've been dealing both with ManageEngine and Microsoft. I am mos...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Business vs. Microsoft Entra Workload ID and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,894 professionals have used our research since 2012.