Endpoint detection and response · September 2026 Edition
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint vs Huntress Managed EDR
Two of twelve models named Microsoft Defender for Endpoint first on the direct prompt; two named Huntress Managed EDR. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint was named by twelve of the twelve models and Huntress Managed EDR by eleven and Microsoft Defender for Endpoint carries 38 labels and Huntress Managed EDR 34, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in five categories this edition.
Named in four categories this edition.
First-choice share20%14%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate11%0%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#2#3A position in a field of 13; printed, not drawn.
Labels3834A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.SentinelOne Singularity was named alongside these two in eight of the twelve direct answers. Bitdefender GravityZone vs Microsoft Defender for Endpoint · Bitdefender GravityZone vs Huntress Managed EDR
Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all twelve 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 endpoint detection and response page.
By framing
How many of the twelve models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
Microsoft Defender for EndpointFirst choices, of twelve modelsHuntress Managed EDR
Direct221 against Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Paraphrase32
Comparative10
Budget-constrained53
Scale-constrained00
Negative003 against Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Bars are first choices, 0 to 12 each sideModels that argued againstA model can name both, so the two sides of a row do not sum to twelve.
The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Microsoft Defender for Endpoint and Huntress Managed EDR stood in it.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint first, Huntress Managed EDR an alternative
2 of 12 modelsHuntress Managed EDR was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.GPT-5.4 miniCrowdStrike Falcon, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint alternatives: Huntress Managed EDR, SentinelOne Singularity, Sophos Intercept X
Mistral SmallBitdefender GravityZone, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon, SentinelOne Singularity
Huntress Managed EDR first, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint an alternative
2 of 12 modelsMicrosoft Defender for Endpoint was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.Claude Haiku 4.5Huntress Managed EDR alternatives: Bitdefender GravityZone, CrowdStrike Falcon Insight, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, SentinelOne Singularity, ThreatDown EDR
DeepSeek V4 FlashBitdefender GravityZone, Huntress Managed EDR alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Neither was the first choice, one was named
6 of 12 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Gemini 3.5 FlashSentinelOne Singularity alternatives: Huntress Managed EDR, Sophos Intercept X
Perplexity SonarCrowdStrike Falcon Insight alternatives: Bitdefender GravityZone, Huntress Managed EDR, SentinelOne Singularity, Sophos Intercept X + Sophos MDR
Grok 4.1 FastBitdefender GravityZone alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Insight, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Qwen 3.7 FlashCrowdStrike Falcon alternatives: Huntress Managed EDR, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, SentinelOne Singularity, Sophos Intercept X
Kimi K2Bitdefender GravityZone alternatives: Huntress Managed EDR, Microsoft Defender for Business / Endpoint, SentinelOne Singularity
GLM 4.7 FlashXCrowdStrike Falcon alternatives: Bitdefender GravityZone, Cynet, Huntress Managed EDR, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, SentinelOne Singularity
Neither was named
2 of 12 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Llama 4 MaverickCrowdStrike alternatives: Bitdefender GravityZone
MiniMax M2.5no 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
Huntress Managed EDR leads by forty-two points.
Huntress Managed EDR44%#1 of 9Microsoft Defender for Endpoint2%#6 of 9Mid-marketThe figures above
The order flips: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint leads at mid-market.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint20%#2 of 13Huntress Managed EDR14%#3 of 13Enterprise
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint leads by thirty-nine points.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint39%#2 of 6Huntress Managed EDR0%#– of 6What the models said about Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Five of five in this category shown.
“Market leaders like Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (MDE), SentinelOne, and Palo Alto Cortex XDR are highly capable, but they are also incredibly complex.” Gemini 3.5 Flash · negative prompt · soft negative
“It is a powerful tool, but it is notoriously "noisy." Out of the box, it generates a high volume of alerts that require manual tuning” Gemini 3.5 Flash · direct prompt · soft negative
“Cautions: Non-Windows agents less mature (macOS kernel issues), higher tuning needed for alert quality, slower MTTR in hybrid setups.” Grok 4.1 Fast · negative prompt · soft negative
“the best EDR platform is usually either Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (Business / P2) – if you already have a Microsoft 365 subscription” GLM 4.7 FlashX · budget prompt · first choice
“is often the best value because you may already own it... this is the clear winner—enterprise-grade EDR at no incremental cost” Kimi K2 · budget prompt · first choice
What the models said about Huntress Managed EDR
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Two of two in this category shown.
“Huntress Managed EDR is rated 4.8/5 on G2 based on 800+ user reviews and has repeatedly ranked as the #1 Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solution for small businesses and mid-market” Claude Haiku 4.5 · direct prompt · first choice
“Huntress Managed EDR is an excellent alternative to CrowdStrike, delivering enterprise-grade detection without the complexity, steep learning curve, or high cost” Claude Haiku 4.5 · paraphrase prompt · first choice
Also compared
Comparisons are drawn for the top three products in each category. The output is the models' output; nothing here is a recommendation by the index.