Cloud-native application protection · November 2026 Edition
Wiz vs Microsoft Defender for Cloud
Ten of fourteen models named Wiz first on the direct prompt; zero named Microsoft Defender for Cloud. Both were named by all fourteen models and Wiz carries 62 labels and Microsoft Defender for Cloud 59, so the shares are not directly comparable.
Named in seventeen categories this edition.
Named in fifteen categories this edition.
First-choice share36%17%Of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, 0 to 100.
Negative rate24%7%Negative labels as a share of the product's labels, 0 to 100.
Rank in category#1#3A position in a field of 12; printed, not drawn.
Labels6259A count; the two differ.
The two percentage rows are drawn on one 0 to 100 track, Wiz reading right to left. Rank and label count are printed, not drawn.Orca Security was named alongside these two in thirteen of the fourteen direct answers. Wiz vs Orca Security · Wiz vs Aikido Security · Wiz vs Palo Alto Networks Cortex Cloud
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 cloud-native application protection page.
By framing
How many of the fourteen models made each the first choice, per way of asking, and how many argued against it.
WizFirst choices, of fourteen modelsMicrosoft Defender for Cloud
Direct1002 against Wiz
Paraphrase802 against Wiz
Comparative100
Budget-constrained097 against Wiz
Scale-constrained10
Negative004 against Wiz · 4 against Microsoft Defender for Cloud
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 November 2026 Edition, Wiz and Microsoft Defender for Cloud were named in the same answer 366 times, of the 854 answers naming Wiz and the 719 naming Microsoft Defender for Cloud. In those answers Microsoft Defender for Cloud took the first choice sixty-one times and Wiz 159.
Every model, every framing
The eighty-four answers behind the chart above, one cell each: where Wiz and Microsoft Defender for Cloud 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 4.20 | | | | | | |
| 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 | | | | |
Wiz Microsoft Defender for Cloud first choice named as an alternative argued againstblank: not namedEach cell is one answer, Wiz on the left and Microsoft Defender for Cloud on the right.The direct prompt
The plain question, one answer per model, grouped by where Wiz and Microsoft Defender for Cloud stood in it.
Wiz first, Microsoft Defender for Cloud an alternative
10 of 14 modelsMicrosoft Defender for Cloud was named in the answer but not as the choice, or not at all.GPT-5.4 miniWiz alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Microsoft Defender for Cloud
Gemini 3.5 FlashOrca Security, Wiz alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Datadog Cloud Security, Sysdig Secure, Upwind
Perplexity SonarWiz alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Orca Security, Sysdig Secure
Grok 4.20Wiz alternatives: FortiCNAPP, Orca Security, Sysdig Secure
Mistral SmallWiz alternatives: Orca Security, Sysdig Secure, TigerGate
DeepSeek V4 FlashWiz alternatives: Orca Security
GLM 4.7 FlashXWiz alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Orca Security, Tenable Cloud Security, Tenable One
MiniMax M2.5Wiz alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Orca Security, Prisma Cloud
GPT-6 LunaWiz alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Orca Security
Muse Glimmer 30BOrca Security, Wiz alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Cloud, SentinelOne Singularity Cloud Security, Sysdig Secure
Neither was the first choice, one was named
3 of 14 modelsThe answer put something else first and named one of the two as an alternative.Claude Haiku 4.5Orca Security alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Sysdig Secure
Llama 4 MaverickOrca Security alternatives: Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Wiz
Kimi K2Orca Security alternatives: CrowdStrike Falcon Cloud Security, Wiz
Neither was named
1 of 14 modelsThe answer made no first choice from these two in this category.Qwen 3.7 FlashOrca Security, Palo Alto Networks Cortex Cloud alternatives: Sysdig Secure, Tenable Cloud Security
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
Microsoft Defender for Cloud leads by twenty points.
Microsoft Defender for Cloud30%#1 of 14Wiz11%#4 of 14Mid-marketThe figures above
The order flips: Wiz leads at mid-market.
Wiz36%#1 of 12Microsoft Defender for Cloud17%#3 of 12Enterprise
Wiz leads by thirty-one points.
Wiz51%#1 of 11Microsoft Defender for Cloud20%#2 of 11What the models said about Wiz
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Four of four in this category shown.
“What to Avoid on a Budget - Wiz — Industry leader but pricing is typically enterprise-scale and can get expensive” DeepSeek V4 Flash · budget prompt · hard negative
“Wiz transformed the market by pioneering agentless scanning paired with a visual Security Graph... Want fastest time-to-value, zero deployment friction, and best risk visualization | Wiz or Orca” Gemini 3.5 Flash · comparative prompt · first choice
“Often praised for rapid growth and agentless scanning. Strong in visibility, risk prioritization, and multi-cloud support. Frequently a Customers’ Choice winner.” Grok 4.20 · comparative prompt · first choice
“Wiz is considered the best overall CNAPP platform for its agentless cloud visibility, security graph risk context, and fast cloud risk assessment” Llama 4 Maverick · paraphrase prompt · first choice
What the models said about Microsoft Defender for Cloud
Every negative label with a quote, up to three, then the highest-weighted positives, up to three. Three of three in this category shown.
“Some AI model recommendations advise avoiding it as a primary CNAPP for heavy multi-cloud enterprises due to limitations in full runtime/workload protection at ultra-large scales” Mistral Small · negative prompt · soft negative
“Standalone CNAPP value is weaker than Wiz or Prisma Cloud... Organizations running primarily on AWS or GCP should not choose Defender as their primary CNAPP.” Claude Haiku 4.5 · negative prompt · soft negative
“I'd suggest starting with Microsoft Defender for Cloud if you're on Azure, or Aikido Security for a more cloud-agnostic approach.” MiniMax M2.5 · budget prompt · first choice
Also compared
Wiz vs Orca SecurityWiz vs Aikido SecurityWiz vs Palo Alto Networks Cortex CloudWiz vs FortiCNAPPWiz vs Prisma CloudOrca Security vs Microsoft Defender for CloudMicrosoft Defender for Cloud vs Aikido SecurityMicrosoft Defender for Cloud vs Palo Alto Networks Cortex CloudMicrosoft Defender for Cloud vs FortiCNAPPMicrosoft Defender for Cloud vs Prisma CloudAll twenty-one head-to-head pages and the full CNAPP 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.