Microsoft Exchange vs Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform comparison

The compared Microsoft and Proofpoint solutions aren't in the same category. Microsoft is ranked #3 in EA , with an average rating of 7.8, and holds a 11.3% mindshare in the category. Proofpoint is ranked #5 in EA , with an average rating of 8.0, and holds a 3.2% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Proofpoint users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Exchange

Read 94 Microsoft Exchange reviews

3,524 Views
2,890 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

Proofpoint Intelligent Com...

Read 1 Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform review

951 Views
333 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Exchange

Proofpoint Intelligent Com...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Microsoft Exchange and Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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Buyer's Guide

Email Applications

August 2025

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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 Exchange

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Email Applications (3rd), Wireless Email (2nd)

Proofpoint Intelligent Com...

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Email Archiving (5th), eDiscovery (9th), Compliance Management (13th)

Mindshare comparison

Microsoft Exchange and Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Microsoft Exchange is designed for Email Applications and holds a mindshare of 11.3%, down 11.6% compared to last year.
Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform, on the other hand, focuses on Email Archiving, holds 3.2% mindshare, down 4.7% since last year.

Email Applications Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Microsoft Exchange	11.3%
Google Workspace	20.6%
Microsoft Exchange Online	12.8%
Other	55.3%

Email Applications

Email Archiving Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform	3.2%
Microsoft Defender for Office 365	27.2%
Barracuda Email Protection	25.8%
Other	43.8%

Email Archiving

Featured Reviews

AnikIslam

Senior Executive at Lakdhanavi Limited

Has a straightforward setup process, but the functionality for replying to conversations needs enhancement

One major area for improvement is the need for repeated authentication when running a meeting. This requirement for users to sign in and authenticate their mail each time they access the service is complicated, as employees need to be able to access their accounts anytime, anywhere. Additionally, the functionality for replying to conversations using a link has deteriorated in the newer version of Outlook, an issue that needed to be present in previous iterations.

Read full review

Anita Brüggemann

System Administrator at emco Bautechnik GmbH

Effectively reduces spam and malicious emails with reliable detection capabilities

It would be helpful to make it easier for end users to filter and see items in the quarantine within the Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform. As an admin, I believe it would be sensible if end users could also see the quarantine folder in the Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform so they can create their own rules. The reports are all predefined, and I cannot create custom reports, so I am not fully satisfied with their visibility. I would appreciate the ability to generate my own reports.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product can scale."

"This solution handles all of our primary functionality including email, message delivery, message archiving and calendars."

"The availability group settings are better, so it has inherent scalability. In 2010, they added several sensible rules."

"It is easy to set up."

"It is user friendly."

"On-premises Microsoft Exchange is good because it protects data privacy."

"It ensures high availability and resilience, allowing seamless recovery from potential failures and making it a reliable option for business-critical operations."

"The product works very well."

More Microsoft Exchange pros

"Our experience with the platform has been positive as it has maintained consistent control over spam and malware threats."

Cons

"Microsoft Exchange could improve the archiving of emails and the performance."

"Microsoft could make it easier to combine comments in the GUI. It isn't easy to do certain things in Exchange, primarily if the administrator isn't used to the command line, so I think the customer interface could be improved."

"The solution should be easier to deploy."

"From a reliability perspective, they need to improve the search engine, it is not very powerful."

"I would like to see the search capability of the Outlook client improved"

"In terms of Microsoft Exchange, I think maybe what can be done is to make it more user-friendly."

"In the version we have, I would like to see better communication between the end device and the Exchange server."

"Microsoft Exchange's customer support could be faster and more knowledgeable."

More Microsoft Exchange cons

"The Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform does not provide features that help reduce manual efforts, so additional human resources are still required to manage security."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Licensing fees are paid monthly."

"There are different prices depending on the customer's use cases and amount of users. The price of the solution could improve."

"I rate Microsoft Exchange a four out of ten for pricing because it is quite cheap, and many companies use the solution."

"They are flexible when it comes to pricing, unlike most of the other vendors I have dealt with."

"Microsoft Exchange is a very well-priced solution."

"The solution is expensive to maintain because it requires frequent updates and ongoing server maintenance."

"Microsoft Exchange is an inexpensive application."

"There is an annual cost to use Microsoft Exchange, and the price could be less expensive."

More Microsoft Exchange pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	41
Midsize Enterprise	27
Large Enterprise	35

No data available

Questions from the Community

How does Zimbra Collaboration compare with Microsoft Exchange?

Zimbra is a free, open source collaborative software suite. The features I like best are the ease of integration and the email, calendar, and collaboration server with web interface. In addition, I...

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What do you like most about Microsoft Exchange?

The initial setup was straightforward and fast.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Exchange?

Microsoft Exchange is costly, and its licensing model can be expensive over time as more users require licenses.

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What needs improvement with Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform?

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What is your primary use case for Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform?

We use the Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform because it has a good ability to detect viruses and malicious emails, and it collects a lot of spam emails. Since we use this platform, the spa...

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What advice do you have for others considering Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform?

It is a cloud-based deployment of the Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform. We worked with an internet provider, who is also a security provider, and it took one day to deploy it on the cloud...

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Comparisons

Open-Xchange vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 17% of the time

KerioConnect vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 16% of the time

Zimbra Collaboration vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 15% of the time

HCL Domino vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 12% of the time

HCL Notes vs Microsoft Exchange

Compared 8% of the time

More Microsoft Exchange Competitors

No data available

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Exchange

August 2025

Download Microsoft Exchange product report

Buyer's Guide

Email Archiving

August 2025

Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform report

Download Proofpoint Intelligent Compliance Platform product report

Also Known As

Exchange, MS Exchange

Proofpoint e-discovery and Analytics, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive

Overview

Built to deliver the enterprise-grade security and reliability that businesses require, Microsoft Exchange provides email, calendar and contacts on your PC, phone and web browser.

Microsoft

It’s not easy to develop a strategy to enable corporate or regulatory compliance. Data growth plagues IT departments. And legal and compliance teams struggle to retain, discover and supervise content across channels. Proofpoint offers an Intelligent Compliance family of products and solutions that make it easier for you to make more informed compliance decisions, manage information risk and improve investigation readiness.

Proofpoint

Sample Customers

Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport, Scitec Nutrition, British Airways, InnoGames, Osteology Foundation, Franz Haniel & Cie. GmbH, NTC Contracting

The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America

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We monitor all Email Applications reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.