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Communications archiving and compliance · October 2026 Edition
Smarsh Enterprise Archive vs Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
Seven of fourteen models named Smarsh Enterprise Archive first on the direct prompt; one named Proofpoint Enterprise Archive. Both were named by all fourteen models and Smarsh Enterprise Archive carries 53 labels and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive 39, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in one category this edition.
Named in one category this edition.
First-choice share20%5%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate21%5%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#8A position in a field of 12; printed, not drawn.
Labels5339A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Smarsh Enterprise Archive reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Mimecast Cloud Archive was named alongside these two in ten of the fourteen direct answers. Smarsh Enterprise Archive vs Mimecast Cloud Archive · Smarsh Enterprise Archive vs Microsoft Purview · Smarsh Enterprise Archive vs Google Vault
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category; every quote names the model and the prompt it came from. Both figures come from the communications archiving and compliance page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Smarsh Enterprise ArchiveFirst choices, of fourteen modelsProofpoint Enterprise Archive
Direct712 against Smarsh Enterprise Archive
Paraphrase412 against Smarsh Enterprise Archive · 1 against Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
Comparative74
Budget-constrained002 against Smarsh Enterprise Archive
Scale-constrained11
Negative005 against Smarsh Enterprise Archive · 1 against Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
Bars are first choices, 0 to 14 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to fourteen.
Across every category in the October 2026 Edition, Smarsh Enterprise Archive and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive were named in the same answer 100 times, of the 150 answers naming Smarsh Enterprise Archive and the 125 naming Proofpoint Enterprise Archive. In those answers Proofpoint Enterprise Archive took the first choice thirteen times and Smarsh Enterprise Archive twenty-four.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Smarsh Enterprise Archive and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive stood in it.
| Model | Direct | Paraphrase | Comparative | Budget-constrained | Scale-constrained | Negative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | | | ||||
| GPT-5.4 mini | | | | | ||
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | | | | | | |
| Perplexity Sonar | | | ||||
| Grok 4.1 Fast | | | | | | |
| Mistral Small | | | | | ||
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | | | | |||
| Llama 4 Maverick | | |||||
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | | | | |||
| Kimi K2 | | | | | ||
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | | | | |||
| MiniMax M2.5 | | | | |||
| GPT-6 Luna | | | | | | |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | | | |
Smarsh Enterprise Archive Proofpoint Enterprise Archive first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Smarsh Enterprise Archive on the left and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Smarsh Enterprise Archive and Proofpoint Enterprise Archive stood in it.
Smarsh Enterprise Archive first, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive an alternative
7 of 14 modelsProofpoint Enterprise Archive was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Claude Haiku 4.5Mimecast Cloud Archive, Smarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Arcserve UDP Archiving, ComplyKEY MailMeter, MailStore Server
GPT-5.4 miniSmarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Archive360, Microsoft Purview, Mimecast Cloud Archive, Theta Lake
Perplexity SonarSmarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Global Relay, Mimecast Archiving, Wordwatch
Grok 4.1 FastSmarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Global Relay, Jatheon
Mistral SmallMimecast Cloud Archive, Smarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Microsoft Purview, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
GLM 4.7 FlashXGlobal Relay, Smarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Mimecast Cloud Archive, Theta Lake, Wordwatch
MiniMax M2.5Global Relay, Smarsh Enterprise Archive alternatives: Mimecast Cloud Archive, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive, Theta Lake
Proofpoint Enterprise Archive first, Smarsh Enterprise Archive an alternative
1 of 14 modelsSmarsh Enterprise Archive was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Qwen 3.7 FlashMimecast Cloud Archive, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive alternatives: Global Relay, OpenText, Smarsh Enterprise Archive, Wordwatch
Neither was the first choice, one was named
5 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Gemini 3.5 FlashMimecast Cloud Archive alternatives: Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive, Theta Lake
DeepSeek V4 FlashJatheon alternatives: Mimecast Cloud Archive, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
Kimi K2Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service, MailStore Server alternatives: Jatheon, Mimecast Cloud Archive, Smarsh Enterprise Archive
GPT-6 LunaMimecast Cloud Archive alternatives: Global Relay, Microsoft Purview, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive, Smarsh Enterprise Archive
Muse Glimmer 30BBarracuda Archiving Service / Barracuda Cloud Archiving Service alternatives: Global Relay, Proofpoint Enterprise Archive, Smarsh Enterprise Archive, Wordwatch
Neither was named
1 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Llama 4 Maverickno first choice
Bold names in an answer are the products the judge labeled a first choice; a model naming several gives each of them that label. The full answer text for every row is in the record.
By buyer segment
The same question asked on behalf of a different buyer. Each standing is computed within its segment and they are never added together. The figures above are the mid-market standing, which is the one the category orders by.
Small business
Smarsh Enterprise Archive leads by four points.
Smarsh Enterprise Archive4%#6 of 10Proofpoint Enterprise Archive0%#10 of 10Mid-marketThe figures above
Smarsh Enterprise Archive leads by fifteen points.
Smarsh Enterprise Archive20%#1 of 12Proofpoint Enterprise Archive5%#8 of 12Enterprise
The order flips: Proofpoint Enterprise Archive leads at enterprise.
Proofpoint Enterprise Archive27%#1 of 10Smarsh Enterprise Archive23%#2 of 10What the models said about Smarsh Enterprise Archive
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Six of eight in this category shown.
“complex, often vague pricing, unavailability of certain functions, slow search performance, and lack of robust technical support and documentation” Mistral Small · negative prompt · hard negative
“Be cautious with platforms like Smarsh, based on consistent user and competitor feedback highlighting key issues” Grok 4.1 Fast · negative prompt · hard negative
“Smarsh and Global Relay are the "gold standards" for massive Wall Street enterprises, they are notoriously complex to implement and often charge heavy fees” Gemini 3.5 Flash · direct prompt · soft negative
“For most mid-market B2B companies, Smarsh or Global Relay offer the best balance of comprehensive features, proven reliability, and scalability.” GLM 4.7 FlashX · direct prompt · first choice
“Smarsh Enterprise Archive is the best choice for regulated enterprises that need governed email capture, legal holds, and defensible retrieval at scale” Muse Glimmer 30B · comparative prompt · first choice
“Smarsh and Intradyn are the top choices due to their balance of affordability, scalability, and support for multiple communication channels” Mistral Small · paraphrase prompt · first choice
What the models said about Proofpoint Enterprise Archive
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Five of six in this category shown.
“Proofpoint is an excellent enterprise-grade tool, but it may require more dedicated administrative overhead” Gemini 3.5 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“Cons: May be overkill for smaller mid-sized companies” Kimi K2 · paraphrase prompt · soft negative
“Proofpoint if you want a modern cloud-first archive with strong governance for mainstream business communications.” Perplexity Sonar · paraphrase prompt · first choice
“Proofpoint (Leader in 2024 Gartner MQ for Digital Communications Governance & Archiving; longest-running leader).” Grok 4.1 Fast · comparative prompt · first choice
“Regulated Industries: Smarsh and Proofpoint lead for financial services and strict compliance.” Mistral Small · comparative prompt · first choice
Also compared
Smarsh Enterprise Archive vs Mimecast Cloud ArchiveSmarsh Enterprise Archive vs Microsoft PurviewSmarsh Enterprise Archive vs Google VaultSmarsh Enterprise Archive vs JatheonSmarsh Enterprise Archive vs MailStore ServerSmarsh Enterprise Archive vs Barracuda Cloud Archiving ServiceMimecast Cloud Archive vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveMicrosoft Purview vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveGoogle Vault vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveJatheon vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveMailStore Server vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveBarracuda Cloud Archiving Service vs Proofpoint Enterprise ArchiveAll twenty-eight head-to-head pages and the full comms archiving standing
Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category, each against each. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.