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Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs USM Anywhere comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 9, 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 Endpoint offers improved security and cost-efficiency, with many users noting savings of 15% to 30%.
Sentiment score
6.8
USM Anywhere enhances security, saves time and resources, reduces staffing needs, and meets compliance, offering financial and time benefits.
We have seen a return on investment when using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, as it saves labor by reducing the need for staff to focus on it.
The biggest return on investment for me when using Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is the time saving.
The return on investment is primarily in time savings and better observability of what's happening.
Customers see ROI as they save on staff and other resources.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.5
Microsoft support is generally reliable and satisfactory, but experiences vary with responsiveness and outcomes depending on support level and expertise.
Sentiment score
8.0
USM Anywhere's customer service is generally praised for responsiveness but experiences occasional delays and inconsistent support information.
The level-one support seems disconnected from subject matter experts.
I rate Microsoft support 10 out of 10.
Due to our size, we don't have access to direct technical support, but the knowledge base, Microsoft Learn, and the articles available are really good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is scalable and integrates well with cloud services, though some find cost and dashboard management challenging.
Sentiment score
7.5
USM Anywhere is scalable for small to medium businesses, but enterprise-scale deployments face data volume and speed challenges.
We managed to scale it out in a short amount of time, with two months of planning and three months of implementation on 10,000 computers.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is scalable enough to handle various devices across environments, whether they are laptops, Android devices, or operating in hybrid environments.
Compatibility is its main feature.
USM Anywhere faces scalability issues because of a 60 TB limit.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is stable and reliable, with infrequent issues quickly resolved, preferred for Windows integration.
Sentiment score
7.2
USM Anywhere receives mixed stability reviews, with some users praising its reliability and others reporting issues during updates or large data handling.
I haven't seen any outages with Microsoft.
I rate Defender 10 out of 10 for stability.
Defender for Endpoint is extremely stable.
 

Room For Improvement

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint requires improvements in integration, user interface, performance, pricing, and third-party vendor compatibility.
USM Anywhere needs improved performance, user interface, integration, and support, with better updates and less disruptive software changes.
Repeated interactions are necessary due to Level One's lack of tools and knowledge, hindering efficient problem-solving and negatively impacting our experience with Microsoft support.
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.
Providing more detailed information on how Microsoft Defender for Endpoint detects vulnerabilities.
There are scalability issues due to a 60 TB limit, which restricts its use for large customers like banks.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is cost-effective in bundles, offering licensing flexibility and comprehensive security features for enterprises.
USM Anywhere offers scalable, affordable SIEM solutions ideal for SMBs, recommended for budget-conscious enterprises over costly competitors.
Given our extensive Microsoft licensing, transitioning to Defender for Endpoint did not affect licensing costs.
It costs $15 per VM for the P2 plan, which is seen as affordable for customers.
The pricing, setup, and licensing were very easy and simple.
The pricing is amazing and really cheap.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint provides efficient security with integration, automation, and centralized management, enhancing protection and response capabilities.
USM Anywhere offers event correlation, vulnerability scanning, and centralized logging with customizable, user-friendly security monitoring for small teams.
Defender for Endpoint's coverage across different platforms in our environment is pretty good. We have devices running Linux, Mac OS, Windows, iOS, and Android. It covers all of them.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint provides a unified management interface allowing customers to manage their on-premises and hybrid infrastructures from a single pane.
The attack surface feature where phishing simulations can be performed is quite neat.
The 365-day block query is a major feature.
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft Defender for Endp...
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
196
Ranking in other categories
Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (2nd), Anti-Malware Tools (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (5th)
USM Anywhere
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
51st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
115
Ranking in other categories
Log Management (44th), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) (30th), Compliance Management (12th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is 10.5%, down from 14.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of USM Anywhere is 0.3%, down from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
 

Featured Reviews

AnuragSrivastava - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides detailed visibility into threats but the ability to add exceptions needs improvement
One major item for improvement is the ability to add exceptions. We can add some exceptions, but not at the level we need to. 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. Reporting could also be improved because, at present, we get limited results at times. For example, in an environment with more than 100,000 devices, you may just get 10,000 results when you run a report.
Kris Nawani - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers complete coverage without the need to install additional software
USM Anywhere is used for threat detection and investigation. It provides a solution with built-in threat intelligence and various other investigation tools The solution offers complete coverage without the need to install additional software, as it is maintained by the vendor. It helps in saving…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
25%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
20%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 ...
What do you like most about AT&T AlienVault USM?
The most valuable feature of the solution is the ease of deployment that it provides to users. The integrations that the product has with third-party applications are useful.
What needs improvement with AT&T AlienVault USM?
There are scalability issues due to a 60 TB limit, which restricts its use for large customers like banks. It is also limited when used with bigger products and has complex password requirements.
 

Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus
AT&T AlienVault USM, AlienVault, AlienVault USM, Alienvault Cybersecurity
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health
Abel & Cole, Bank of Ireland, Bluegrass Cellular, CareerBuilder, Claire's, Hays Medical Center, Hope International, McCurrach, McKinsey & Company, Party Delights, Pepco Holdings, Richland School District, Ricoh, SaveMart, Shake Shack, Steelcase, TaxAct, Taylor Morrison, Vonage and Zoom
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. USM Anywhere and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,236 professionals have used our research since 2012.