Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 vs Microsoft Entra Verified 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 Offi...
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
60
Ranking in other categories
Email Archiving (1st), Email Security (1st), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (2nd), Secure Email Gateway (SEG) (1st)
Microsoft Entra Verified ID
Ranking in Microsoft Security Suite
20th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) (8th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Microsoft Security Suite category, the mindshare of Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is 3.6%, up from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Entra Verified ID is 1.5%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Microsoft Security Suite Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft Defender for Office 3653.6%
Microsoft Entra Verified ID1.5%
Other94.9%
Microsoft Security Suite
 

Featured Reviews

Emeka Ndulu - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Solutions Architect at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Improves threat visibility and response while reducing manual tasks and training users against phishing
I appreciate the attack simulation feature whereby I get to train users and educate them on how to identify phishing emails and spam emails, as well as the anti-spam protection. It gives me visibility into my threat environment and threat landscape to ensure that I am one step ahead of any likelihood of threats within my environment. I get to detect it and respond, so the threat intelligence is very effective. Microsoft security solutions save my time. It saves money because once I protect my environment, I don't lose money. It has decreased my detection time and my time to respond.
MuhammadWaqar - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Director at Interwood Mobel Pvt Ltd
Supports user management and authentication but needs simpler hybrid integration for broader adoption
I believe there should be an easy provision for the on-premises and for the hybrid environment in Microsoft Entra Verified ID, as there seems to be some difficulty with hybrid implementations, especially in a country like Pakistan where most are transitioning to cloud but not fully migrating, instead opting for hybrid solutions. An ease for hybrid integration would greatly help the technical teams. I believe the policy implementation is a little bit complex on the Microsoft side; there should be a simpler way to implement policies, utilizing standardized templates for compliance, such as industry-specific templates for the service industry, which would be helpful for HIPAA and other compliances.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like its investigation capabilities, as that is what is most important to me. It is fairly simple with a user-friendly interface."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 has improved my organization's security. It makes it easier to manage the infrastructure without the help of third-party applications."
"Defender for Office 365 has helped eliminate having to look at multiple dashboards and that is the aspect I like most about it. It is simpler, effective, and convenient. The users like the process efficiency."
"It gives me visibility into my threat environment and threat landscape to ensure that I am one step ahead of any likelihood of threats within my environment."
"Our customers are satisfied with Defender for 365 because Microsoft products are easy to use and customize to meet the client's needs. Everything is in one place, so we can adjust policies as needed for phishing, DLP, ATP, or any other security features that our clients want to apply."
"The basic features are okay and I'm satisfied with the Defender."
"The risk level notifications are most valuable. We get to know what kind of intrusion or attack is there, and we can fix a problem on time."
"Microsoft Defender has a feature to protect each and every attachment. Even if it's an encrypted attachment, it will check for any potential threats."
"I find Microsoft Dynamics 365 very easy and useful because most of the users on our end are using Microsoft, thus they are very familiar with the Microsoft Office stack, and some of SharePoint and Teams."
"Microsoft Entra Verified ID has smoothed out our identity verification process and made it easier for us to authenticate users, making us more confident about our users being who they say they are so we can trust that we have secure logins for all our users."
"The authentication features of Microsoft Entra Verified ID are valuable. As an infrastructure professional, I appreciate the exceptional integration between on-premises Active Directory features and Entra ID."
"Microsoft Entra Verified ID has helped reduce fraud or impersonation attacks because if you are using a government-sanctioned ID, what is more secure than that?"
"I would recommend this solution to others because it's simple enough to deploy."
"The MFA number matching feature effectively prevents unauthorized access by phishing bad actors who might obtain email credentials. This feature requires users to verify a number on their screen, ensuring they only approve genuine requests."
"I like the Microsoft Authenticator app since it comes with two-factor authentication."
"The most valuable features of the solution are mainly in the areas of security and auditing."
 

Cons

"You should be able to deploy Defender for every subscription without the need to add servers."
"The product must provide better malware detection."
"One area for improvement is support, in terms of being able to reach them and, especially, technical support for configuration."
"We need to be able to whitelist data at the backend."
"Microsoft wants its well-paying customers to finish testing some of its half-baked products, find bugs, and report bugs back to Microsoft's team, which is a little frustrating for those who have to manage it and roll it up to thousands of people across the organization."
"I am generally satisfied with how it currently is. If I could improve anything, I would reduce the cost."
"We noticed that from time to time, Microsoft's stability does have problems. Sometimes the service goes up and down. Sometimes they change without prior notice."
"They can improve their security in a way where a customer can know if all their attachments are safe or not to open through a report. The solution does its job perfectly, but it never reports to the customer whether those attachments have been stopped before or not."
"While Microsoft continues to improve the solution, integrating the ID with biometric features could be enhanced, especially in terms of standard B2C flows for multi-factor authentication. Improvements in remembering devices and the timing of MFA triggers could also be beneficial."
"There is room for improvement in Microsoft Entra Verified ID, particularly in the integration with other platforms, as they could do better with the API, for example."
"I have not really seen return on investment with Microsoft Entra Verified ID."
"The tool's expensive nature is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"There are issues with the integration of Microsoft Entra Verified ID and MFA. Sometimes, the MFA process doesn't succeed, requiring users to sign out and log back in."
"Microsoft products basically have no support other than the knowledge base, so I would give it a two out of 10."
"I must do two-factor authentication when I sign in from a different location. It creates friction. It's not personalized for the end user. I would like to see specific insights."
"I believe there should be an easy provision for the on-premises and for the hybrid environment in Microsoft Entra Verified ID, as there seems to be some difficulty with hybrid implementations, especially in a country like Pakistan where most are transitioning to cloud but not fully migrating, instead opting for hybrid solutions."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Defender is a little bit more expensive as compared to others. We are in the manufacturing environment. So, we don't have a high budget for all of our endpoint devices. Its cost is a major concern for us."
"While Microsoft Defender for Office 365 necessitates pricier E3 or E5 subscriptions, the extensive functionality offered by these licenses across various Microsoft products justifies the investment."
"The pricing is normal. Considering its popularity, it's not overpriced."
"I was working in the government and it was too expensive for us to use our Microsoft products."
"It is much more expensive than using another solution because we have had to include some options and upgrade our license."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is an add-on to the Office license. Many customers are purchasing this solution."
"I know that the product is incredibly expensive."
"Microsoft Defender for Office 365 comes with Microsoft Windows. It is free with the operating system."
"If one is cheap and ten is very expensive, I rate the product price as seven."
"I still feel the pricing is on the higher side for larger customers. They don't pay anything for on-prem Active Directory. Although we receive additional features with Microsoft’s SSO, pricing is an area Microsoft can work on."
"The pricing and setup are standard. With Entra, you choose between P1 and P2 licenses. We recommend having at least one P2 license in a company for better alert management, even though P2 is more expensive."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Microsoft Security Suite solutions are best for your needs.
881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business23
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise31
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business4
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
The inbuilt analysis of false positives can be faster. It's not slow, but it can be faster.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Defender for Office 365?
My use case for Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is for email protection, safe links, protection of links, documents, protecting my documents, and protecting attachments. I also use it to conduct ...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
It is hard for me to say how Microsoft Entra Verified ID can be improved. I really do not know the extent of how that can benefit everything. I am trying to learn that here at the Ignite conference.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
My main use cases for Microsoft Entra Verified ID are verifying the end user saying who they are and being able to back that up with government-issued proof.
What advice do you have for others considering Microsoft Entra Verified ID?
My organization has not implemented the Face Check feature yet; we are using YubiKeys. My organization's trust in digital interactions really has not changed since implementing Microsoft Entra Veri...
 

Also Known As

MS Defender for Office 365
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is trusted by companies such as Ithaca College.
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender for Office 365 vs. Microsoft Entra Verified ID and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,114 professionals have used our research since 2012.