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Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs VMware Carbon Black Cloud 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
7.3
VMware Carbon Black Cloud offers cost savings, improved security, centralized protection, better efficiency, and quick ROI with automation features.
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.
 

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
6.6
Users typically find VMware Carbon Black Cloud support efficient, with no negative feedback reported and alternative contacts available for assistance.
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
7.6
VMware Carbon Black Cloud is highly rated for scalability, performing well in diverse environments from small to enterprise businesses.
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.
 

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
7.0
VMware Carbon Black Cloud became reliable after initial instability, with high user satisfaction despite minor performance issues on large deployments.
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.
VMware Carbon Black Cloud needs better false positive handling, agent efficiency, support improvement, and enhanced features, training, and global support.
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.
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is cost-effective in bundles, offering licensing flexibility and comprehensive security features for enterprises.
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.
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint provides efficient security with integration, automation, and centralized management, enhancing protection and response capabilities.
VMware Carbon Black Cloud offers cost-effective, real-time security with intrusion alerts, quarantine, host isolation, data search, and threat hunting.
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.
 

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)
VMware Carbon Black Cloud
Ranking in Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
43rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Security Incident Response (6th)
 

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 VMware Carbon Black Cloud is 0.2%, up from 0.2% 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.
Tom Kar - PeerSpot reviewer
Shows promise for endpoint detection and response, with room for improvement in complexity and pricing
VMware Carbon Black Cloud is a user-friendly solution that can isolate machines from the rest of the network. When a machine is quarantined, it cannot communicate with any other machines on the network except for the Carbon Black Cloud server. This allows you to investigate the machine without the risk of malware escaping to the network. Carbon Black Cloud's server can communicate with the quarantined machine through DNS and VSCP. This allows you to collect data from the machine, such as system logs, process activity, and registry changes. This data can be used to investigate the infection and determine the next steps. CrowdStrike and Cybereason are also popular EDR solutions. They offer similar features to VMware Carbon Black Cloud but may have different strengths and weaknesses. It is important to evaluate all of your options before choosing an EDR solution. Additionally, it is complex to use, and the pricing should be improved.
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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions are best for your needs.
850,349 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
24%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Real Estate/Law Firm
11%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

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 to choose: an endpoint antivirus, an EDR solution or both?
I can recommend Carbon Black, an award-winning next-gen anti-virus (NGAV) and endpoint detection and response (EDR) security solution. The CB Predictive Security Cloud platform combines multiple hi...
What's the difference between Carbon Black CB Response and Carbon Black CB Defense?
Carbon Black offers two different levels of Endpoint Detection and Response. One is the VM Carbon Black Cloud Endpoint Standard (CB Defense), and the other is the Carbon Black Endpoint Detection an...
What do you like most about Carbon Black CB Response?
Threat hunting is the most valuable feature of VMware Carbon Black Cloud.
 

Also Known As

Microsoft Defender ATP, Microsoft Defender Advanced Threat Protection, MS Defender for Endpoint, Microsoft Defender Antivirus
Carbon Black CB Response
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Petrofrac, Metro CSG, Christus Health
ALLETE belk
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs. VMware Carbon Black Cloud and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,349 professionals have used our research since 2012.