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Proofpoint Email Protection vs Sophos Email comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 3, 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
7.0
Proofpoint Email Protection effectively reduced threats and costs, excelling in phishing defense, leading to significant efficiency improvements.
Sentiment score
7.4
Sophos Email offers strong ROI by improving efficiency, cutting costs, enhancing security, and reducing unsolicited emails, benefiting compliance.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.3
Proofpoint Email Protection's customer service is praised for responsiveness and expertise, though some report slow responses or portal issues.
Sentiment score
6.7
Sophos Email support responsiveness varies; users report mixed experiences with speed and effectiveness, especially for complex issues.
When I reported a problem with our firewall, they acted promptly and delivered another piece of equipment.
The technical support from Sophos Email deserves a rating of 10 out of 10.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.6
Proofpoint Email Protection excels in adaptability and scalability, serving both small and large enterprises with ease and flexibility.
Sentiment score
7.4
Sophos Email is scalable, praised for handling various organization sizes, but faces cost and support issues when scaling.
Proofpoint is scalable for multi-site organizations with thousands of users.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.2
Users rate Proofpoint Email Protection highly for reliability and performance, with minor UI challenges and rare stability issues.
Sentiment score
7.8
Sophos Email is praised for stability and reliability, deemed a dependable choice for organizations despite minor user suggestions for improvement.
 

Room For Improvement

Proofpoint Email Protection struggles with setup complexity, feature enhancements, pricing issues, and requires improved support and interface design.
Sophos Email needs improved security features, integration, user interface, and support to enhance performance, accuracy, and user experience.
Proofpoint could expand its phishing detection capabilities to improve its efficiency.
More security could be implemented.
I may advise Proofpoint to adjust marketing solutions based on each country.
Sophos Email does not work with split delivery.
 

Setup Cost

Proofpoint Email Protection is considered costly, with pricing starting at $8 per user and varying by features.
Sophos Email offers competitive, flexible subscription pricing with discounts, deemed fair and valuable by most users despite some cost concerns.
Customers pay around $90,000 yearly for a 1,000-user organization, with the subscription license being the main expense, apart from implementation fees.
Additional costs do come in, but it enhances security.
Sophos Email pricing is a bit high, especially since I purchase through a partner, and they sell it at a higher price since they also seek to make a profit.
 

Valuable Features

Proofpoint Email Protection offers advanced threat defense, user-friendly interface, and seamless Office 365 integration for comprehensive email security.
Sophos Email provides advanced security features and easy management, making it a top choice for protecting organizational communications.
The main feature I find most effective is that Proofpoint Email Protection scans emails and quarantines the doubtful ones.
The most beneficial feature of Proofpoint Email Protection is mostly spam filtering; it was very efficient, and we were very happy with the functionality as only relevant emails were allowed for mailboxes.
It provides a defense layer for email protection, scanning every incoming and outbound email for malware and spam.
The spam reduction feature in Sophos Email provides comfort when using it.
 

Categories and Ranking

Proofpoint Email Protection
Ranking in Email Security
2nd
Ranking in Office 365 Protection
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
52
Ranking in other categories
Security Awareness Training (2nd), Digital Risk Protection (3rd), Secure Email Gateway (SEG) (3rd)
Sophos Email
Ranking in Email Security
10th
Ranking in Office 365 Protection
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
33
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Email Security category, the mindshare of Proofpoint Email Protection is 8.5%, down from 9.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Sophos Email is 2.2%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Email Security
 

Featured Reviews

AhmedRamadan - PeerSpot reviewer
Optimize email security with effective sandboxing and auto Pull for quarantine
Proofpoint is used as an email security gateway for big enterprises, primarily for their on-premises servers. Many customers also use it alongside Office 365 Proofpoint offers a complete solution for email security with features like DLP, email archiving, and encryption. The most valuable…
BhanuPrakash - PeerSpot reviewer
Achieving Seamless Email Security and Encryption while Managing Temporary Email Storage Limits
We continue to use Sophos products and remain with the company. For firewall protection, we use XGS systems. We have provided Sophos Email Gateway for one of our clients. We have integrated Sophos Email with our internal email server, using it for both outbound and inbound traffic. Integration with Office 365 protection for Sophos Email Security works smoothly without any challenges. The solution is totally cloud-based. I recommend Sophos Email for mid-sized companies as it is a good option, though it may not be ideal for large-scale or small businesses. I have not tried incorporating AI technology with Sophos Email yet. I am Bhanu Prakash, Technical Head for Systek Services, and can be reached at b.hanu@teamsistek.com. I am a partner with Sophos. Overall rating for Sophos Email: 10/10.
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865,164 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Proofpoint Email Protection?
In terms of pricing, it is okay compared to others. I would say it is normal. Additional costs do come in, but it enhances security.
What needs improvement with Proofpoint Email Protection?
It became very expensive due to the nature of local circumstances, and I may advise Proofpoint to adjust marketing solutions based on each country.
What do you like most about Sophos Email?
The solution's identity proxy feature is very good and reliable.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Sophos Email?
Regarding Sophos Email pricing, I would rate it between six or seven out of ten.
What needs improvement with Sophos Email?
While Sophos Email is generally sufficient, one challenge we face is the 24-hour email storage limitation. This presents an issue when internal systems are down for more than 24 hours. The solution...
 

Also Known As

Proofpoint Enterprise Protection, Cofense PhishMe, Proofpoint Digital Protection
Sophos Email Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Blocket, University of Waterloo, Lincoln Memorial University, WellSpan Health, U-Haul, Carestream Health, Westinghouse
Del Monte Foods, Terra Verde, spicerhaart, RIVERLITE, Dataprise, SureBridge, Reed's School, Sayfol International School
Find out what your peers are saying about Proofpoint Email Protection vs. Sophos Email and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,164 professionals have used our research since 2012.