ESET PROTECT vs. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
ESET PROTECT
Score 9.2 out of 10
N/A
ESET provides Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) capabilities via the ESET PROTECT Platform, covering Windows, Mac, Linux, and both Android and iOS operating systems, providing Mobile Device Management functionality. It comes with multi-tenant management, ensuring real-time visibility for both on-premises and off-premises endpoints as well as full reporting for ESET enterprise-grade solutions. ESET PROTECT management platform can be deployed on-premise or in-cloud. For organizations looking to…
$49.99
per year 1 device
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (formerly Microsoft Defender ATP) is a holistic, cloud delivered endpoint security solution that includes risk-based vulnerability management and assessment, attack surface reduction, behavioral based and cloud-powered next generation protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), automatic investigation and remediation, managed hunting services, rich APIs, and unified security management.
$2.50
per user/per month
Pricing
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Editions & Modules
Essential
$49.99
per year 1 device
Premium
$59.99
per year 1 device
Ultimate
$179.99
per year 5 devices
Academic
$2.50
per user/per month
Standalone
$5.20
per user/per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalNo setup fee
Additional DetailsESET offers are tailored to each customer’s needs. ESET takes pride in working with customers and partners to find the perfect solution for their security challenges at the right price. Contacting an ESET partner or sales representative ensures each solution is made-to-measure and precisely fits the size, complexity of IT environment and level of protection to match the customer’s business requirements. Pricing percentage is dependent on number of years and devices purchased.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Considered Both Products
ESET PROTECT
Chose ESET PROTECT
User-friendly interface and centralized management, dashboard is innovative, making security management straightforward even without a dedicated security team. ESET PROTECTis easy-to-deploy solution with a user-friendly interface and strong protection. ESET PROTECT real-time …
Chose ESET PROTECT
Both are great products, but the resource footprint on ESET seems to be smaller, and the multitenancy of ESET makes it so much easier to use.
Chose ESET PROTECT
The two main competitors We compared ESET PROTECT against was Bitdefender and Withsecure:
Chose ESET PROTECT
Much better performance, features and experience !
Chose ESET PROTECT
Choosing ESET PROTECT rather than McAfee Security or other secuty softwares helps me more evaluate specific security requirements of the company. Considering the scalability of solution it provides, the ease of use of its interface, the level of support provided by the vendors, …
Chose ESET PROTECT
Our team had used ESET PROTECT in the past and decided to use it again without shopping around for other vendors. Our overall experience has been a great one over the last 10 years of using it.
Chose ESET PROTECT
ESET PROTECT was the easy choice, with the web interface, the ability to be installed on all OSs including Mobile, built-in MDM. Having the ability to package Anti-virus, real-time scanning, Encryption, and Firewall into one package was perfect. The Support team has helped …
Chose ESET PROTECT
ESET Firewall is better by 20% it is a more stable firewall which remembers previous config after updates. ESET is more expensive than AVG but runs smoother on newer desktops. Management console on ESET is easily better that AVG console. Deployment of ESET has proven easier …
Chose ESET PROTECT
We used ThirtySeven4 antivirus before eSet, and we were underwhelmed with its protection and another of our offices was compromised with ransomware under its protection. We had changed to eSet about a month prior and it stopped the attack when one of our staff opened the email …
Chose ESET PROTECT
Far more cost effective, doesn't slow computers down as much, far easier to use and better central management.
Chose ESET PROTECT
NOD32 is the only paid antivirus software that is not a memory hogger. That's all that is important. Why would I install software on my PC that hogs up all my memory? And the free ones are full of ads, and popups trying to trick you into getting their paid plans. They were …
Chose ESET PROTECT
eSetEndpoint Antivirus is hands down the best anti-viral application I have come across. This was recommended to me to help cut back on the amount of resources being used on the computer when the antivirus program is running.
Chose ESET PROTECT
I prefer Eset [Endpoint Antivirus] because it tends to not consume resources on devices like Kaspersky. I have also had better success with Eset [Endpoint Antivirus] in a domain environment than I have with Kaspersky.
Chose ESET PROTECT
We reviewed quite a few solutions when we first started the process of finding a new antivirus/protection suite. There were some other very good candidates such as Kaspersky Endpoint Security, Symantec Advanced Threat Protection, and McAfee Endpoint Security. However as the …
Chose ESET PROTECT
They all offer similar benefits, such as being free of viruses and other types of infections, but when tested and evaluated against Eset Endpoint Antivirus, they all have some weakness--that is, some are very good but consume most of the computer resources, in others the …
Chose ESET PROTECT
It was pre-existing when I came to this company so ESET is dug in deep and removing it would be a process. Defender was nice and is a solution I wouldn't mind moving to. My biggest concern is web protection due to the amount of password compromise request emails the user base …
Chose ESET PROTECT
While the detection rate may not be as great as McAfee, Eset Endpoint Antivirus has offered a more affordable pricing model. Active protection also has less of a performance impact on workstations when compared to Mcafee, making it a generally leaner product overall. It was …
Chose ESET PROTECT
We previously used NOD32 which was a more consumer oriented product. From our research Eset Endpoint Antivirus is a Signiant improvement for MS Virus & Threat protection.
Chose ESET PROTECT
For us we thought ESET was stronger that Norton. More well rounded in its all its features for business. Price point was also a big factor and no treats or issues while using this software in the past 7 years.
Chose ESET PROTECT
We have tried the Norton, and Avast, Neither compare to ESET as far as the capability to maintain virus signature databases, also the ransomware protection is great. All aspects of this product are beneficial to whom ever purchases this for their protection. I have been …
Chose ESET PROTECT
Cost is reasonably low and feature-wise it gives all the same capabilities of similar products so we chose Eset as our organization's antivirus solution.
Chose ESET PROTECT
When considering the price, price of Eset is reasonable. Also, it has higher threat detection ratio than other products. Another thing is Eset Endpoint Antivirus does not consume high system resources.
Chose ESET PROTECT
The overall experience of support and deployment was better with ESET. Any questions we ran into were answered by their support team quickly and accurately. The tools and reporting made our IT department happy by allowing us to put out higher-level reports for upper management …
Chose ESET PROTECT
It is playing a significant role in our organization. It offers great features and functions. I would say its services are completely matchless.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
It's very convenient and very well integrated with our environment.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Majorly because our suite is Microsoft, so make totally sense to have this in the company and the price. It is Microsoft is better than CrowdStrike.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Sophos. Because of the integration with Microsoft ecosystem, we selected Defender.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We have not used anything else other than Microsoft Defender for Endpoint. Maybe we've used other antivirus software like Sophos and things like that. They're just not all encompassing and that's why we moved to use this product.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I have been working with customers that they are transitioning from Sentinel One, CrowdStrike to Defender for Endpoint, right? So I think it's because they see the value in the product and also they see how much they can save in terms of the cost for companies because they …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We previously used CrowdStrike on our servers. However, the seamless integration of Microsoft Defender (MD) with XDR and the entire Microsoft ecosystem led us to choose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (MDE).
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
What we love more about this product is the way this pro gets integrated into the other family of solutions, especially Defender for Identity or the XDR solutions. We think that the market, the customers are full of unattended consults coming out from different vendors and that …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
The technical features, usability and the support was nice as compared to the other products.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is more advantageous in our windows heavy infrastructure and it was unparalled in the ease of integration with windows endpoints. Security breaches, system crashes and outages with other competitors like Crowdstrike made it easier for us to go …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Norton is much much more expensive and difficult to use. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easy to use and can be operated by a new joiner as well.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
CrowdStrike Falcon is also a good solution for endpoint protection which offer EDR Soultion, threat hunting and AI driven threat protection. Sophos Intercept X combines next-gen antivirus with advanced EDR capabilities with its deep learning technology, exploit prevention, and …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is unique for its effortless deployment into the Microsoft ecosystem, where it taps the broadest set of threat intelligence from more than 1.5 billion endpoints. Its state-of-the-art AI-powered automated investigation and remediation minimize …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We started onboarding macOS devices on jamf and started managing it. Because Defender for Endpoint is not working as expected for and compared to price and functionality we are switching from it.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
CrowdStrike and SentinelOne. CrowdStrike, you have to deploy it, but it's the defender, it's already baked into the operating system. Same thing with SentinelOne.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Easier to integrate, less hidden fees, easier to maintain, and easier to update. Support is much better on the Microsoft side than CrowdStrike.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I don't think, it's not really something that we were just using Microsoft and it was just an easy thing to do.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I'm not familiar. It's just been one year plus that I started using, so I've just started using Defender, so I really don't know how to compare it with others.
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I would say at the end all they are doing the same, but with the benefit that we don't need to install anything. So it's just kind of enabling and then the functionality is available, so other products need to be installed, which is not necessary with the defend
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
We use Defender in the cloud. We are currently using Defender in the cloud and also evaluating the XDR solution for programmatic. It's just arguments, the defense in depth. You have Defender Endpoint and then you have what you have in the cloud as well, so it's just augmenting …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Before using Defender for Endpoint, we basically had the starter version of the Microsoft product, which comes prebuilt into the system. We had them using in the initial run, but then what usually happened was the employees started disabling it, and that usually made, we guys …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I am a big fan of Tanium actually, so I think it is good. Tanium seemed like it was maybe a little bit easier, but maybe the capability was lacking. Maybe that's the reason why it seems like Defender for Endpoint might be a little harder to understand. There might just be more …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
CrowdStrike Falcon, and Sentinel One are other big ones that we use a bit. Cisco Secure Endpoint we've evaluated as well. Cisco Secure endpoint capability-wise doesn't match up to Defender, SentinelOne, and CrowdStrike both do, but the cost profiles are a bit higher. So most of …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
I would say not to name specific company names, because I'm a partner with one of them and that's the account that I work with. But I use some competing solutions that I would say are pretty heavy from an overhead perspective with the agent that has to be installed in the …
Chose Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Because this product is easier to use and has a lot of development and Microsoft's behind it.
Features
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Endpoint Security
Comparison of Endpoint Security features of Product A and Product B
ESET PROTECT
9.3
Ratings
8% above category average
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
8.4
Ratings
2% below category average
Anti-Exploit Technology9.20 Ratings7.80 Ratings
Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)9.60 Ratings9.10 Ratings
Centralized Management9.20 Ratings8.90 Ratings
Hybrid Deployment Support9.00 Ratings7.10 Ratings
Infection Remediation9.40 Ratings9.30 Ratings
Vulnerability Management9.70 Ratings7.40 Ratings
Malware Detection9.40 Ratings8.80 Ratings
Best Alternatives
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Small Businesses
ThreatLocker
ThreatLocker
Score 9.5 out of 10
ThreatLocker
ThreatLocker
Score 9.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
Score 9.1 out of 10
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
BlackBerry Protect (CylancePROTECT)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 9.8 out of 10
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
BeyondTrust Endpoint Privilege Management
Score 9.8 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Likelihood to Recommend
9.6
(0 ratings)
8.4
(0 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(0 ratings)
8.4
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.5
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
10.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
ESET PROTECTMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint
Likelihood to Recommend
Comprehensive threat prevention against a variety of threats, such as viruses, ransomware, and spyware is effectively provided by ESET PROTECT. The cross platform compatibility of this software is advantageous for business with diverse IT environments such as those combination of Windows, macOS, and Linux systems. Some industries, such highly regulated sectors with specific compliance needs, may find it more cost-effective, however it is less suitable for small enterprises with limited IT resources and for organizations with severe budgetary limits.
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Because of its integration with Windows, it is very easy to deploy and manage. Any IT department should be able to leverage the software and interface. The admin portal provides weighted recommendations that comprise the Secure Store, offering admins, security teams, and business owners valuable insights into their security footprint without requiring a strong security background. The software would be ideal for small and mid-sized businesses that cannot dedicate resources to security. Larger enterprises would also benefit, but may require the enhanced license.
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Pros
  • ESET provides comprehensive, transparent protection for my MacOS devices without interfering with the efficiency of my operating system.
  • It's easy to install, configure (default settings are great for just about everyone), and update.
  • ESET's customer communications, including a very detailed knowledge base online, make it clear I've chosen the right antivirus solution!
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  • One, it's crazy lightweight, so compared to some of the competitors that we also have used with our security services, it's really lightweight and so I don't have a lot of overhead on the system that it's running on.
  • It does really fantastic PowerShell integration.
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Cons
  • Price a little expensive - ESET is a great product, but it is priced at a high price and in a market as competitive as antivirus and security tools, this can weigh in the balance.
  • Complexity in creating rules - it's quite complex to create rules in ESET, you end up wasting some time on it, it could be more intuitive.
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  • So the fact that Defender for Endpoint still works with signatures is actually, I don't know, a little difficult for us because, I mean, since Microsoft trusts those signatures, you can easily inject code. And we've done it many times. To show that you can inject code through vulnerabilities like CV 2013, 99, and 33 but still keep the signature. So because of the trust of those signatures, the malware just kind of slides into the environment without Defender knowing. That's the first part. The second part is that the behavioral analysis is not precisely its Prime. It's not Defender's best capability for endpoints. So, Defender does not identify all behaviors considered by other EDRs in the market.
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Likelihood to Renew
I'm giving it a 10, because I would totally have no reservations about staying on with eSet for another 3 years once our contract comes up for renewal. We are looking to transfer to a different product in January, however. This is due to a special pricing contract with the state of Ohio that made a normally much more expensive product very affordable and was cheaper than our coming eSet renewal cost. This is a very special case only available to government and educational organizations, but had that not been offered, we would have gladly stayed with eSet.
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Microsoft Defender is closely catching -up in market with existing competitors they have added DLP endpoint & DLP Network and Cloud DLP solution last year with OCR capabilities. I would say Microsoft Defender is not legacy Vendor in end point security, the need to learn from other vendors in market and focus on new XDR technologies, which is going to be new battle for all vendors
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Usability
Provide execllent security agains malware, ransomware, and phishing. Easy to use and monitoring multiple devices and managing security settings remotely. Software firewall ability to secure network traffic and blocking websites and application at software level its gives very easy to configure .Zero-day threats as some other security products is missing with more advanced machine learning and behavioral analysis capabilities.
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Because in terms of the usability is easy to understand, it's easy to manage, obviously you need to have specific skills to do that, but I would say that even the console and the product is walking through the flow that you are looking for on this console.
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Reliability and Availability
No answers on this topic
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint chugs along just fine no matter what we throw at it and what systems it's running on. It doesn't take up a lot of resources either, so that's welcomed.
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Performance
No answers on this topic
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easy on memory and resources on clients.
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Support Rating
Excellent support from ESET and when we had questions regarding the initial deployment they were there. The questions we put forth were answered immediately with great detail. Any of the items we put forth, scenarios, were given a good solution from ESET to fit our needs. This company stands by their product and are happy to step up when needed.
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Overall support is really good for this product. Since it's a Microsoft product, you will get good support from a number of different resources, including knowledgebase articles on the web, support from Microsoft technicians, and documentation (which tends to very thorough). Also, there is a vast user support community for this product, so user support forums would also be another valuable channel to get help if needed. I don't envision too many people will have issues/problems with the product, as it tends to run good overall.
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Implementation Rating
Do the full scan at the beginning and be prepared to wait until it is done. It will find things you did not know were there. You can leave on the Apple firewall as well as the ESET firewall. There have been no conflicts. Remember to remove emails from being backed up, so you do not have spam on your backup! This was the mistake I made.
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Deployment was handled by our team here and everything went pretty smoothly. We did have a few hiccups in our test group, but that only took a bit to get ironed out.
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Alternatives Considered
The two
main competitors We compared ESET PROTECT against was Bitdefender and Withsecure:

·
Performance: ESET PROTECT was the lowest performance compared to other competitors.

·
Console/dashboard: ESET PROTECT had the most intuitive UI, had great automation features and is the only
one that has an on prem option.

·
Security:
Bitdefender was the strongest but only by a few % but due to the cost being
double there was no way our management would accept the cost difference.
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Microsoft Defender for Endpoint offers strong integration with Microsoft 365 and Azure services, which provide a unified security experience. While McAfee Trellix is known for solid antivirus, Microsoft Defender excels in integration in the ecosystem.
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Scalability
No answers on this topic
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is easily scaled from small orgs to giant enterprises.
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Return on Investment
  • My computer operation improved drastically so it was very effective in business execution.
  • I think it is a very easy software to introduce to small and medium-sized businesses at a reasonable price.
  • Even in license management, you will receive an email as soon as possible, so you can handle the renewal procedure in a lot of time.
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  • Reduced incidents of security breaches lead to lower remediation costs and avoid potential financial losses and reputational damage.
  • Reduces the need for additional third-party security solutions and training, thereby lowering overall security management costs.
  • Increased efficiency and productivity of IT staff lead to better allocation of resources and cost savings.
  • Reduces the risk of fines and sanctions associated with non-compliance, ensuring business continuity and protecting revenue.
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ScreenShots

ESET PROTECT Screenshots

Screenshot of ESET PROTECT Dashboard.
Unified cybersecurity platform interface providing network visibility and control. Available as cloud or on-prem deployment.

Ensures real-time visibility for all endpoints as well as full reporting and security management for all OSes.Screenshot of ESET Endpoint Security.

Advanced multilayered protection for computers and smartphones powered by ESET LiveSense technology.Screenshot of ESET Server Security.
Provides real-time protection for the company’s data passing through all general servers, network file storage including OneDrive, and multi-purpose servers to ensure business continuity.Screenshot of ESET PROTECT - Reports. 
Meets reporting requirements and saves time with scheduled reporting and dozens of customizable templates.Screenshot of ESET Full Disk Encryption. 
An encryption managed natively by ESET remote management console. It increases the  organization's data security that meets compliance regulations.Screenshot of ESET LiveGuard Advanced. 
A cloud-based technology that uses scanning, machine learning, cloud sandboxing, and in-depth behavioral analysis to prevent targeted attacks as well as new or unknown threats, especially ransomware.

Microsoft Defender for Endpoint Screenshots

Screenshot of blocked activitiesScreenshot of Detects & respondsScreenshot of discovers vulnerabilityScreenshot of Eliminates blind spotsScreenshot of Risk management