# Microsoft Defender for Office 365: how AI models rank it, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Named in 65 judge labels across 3 categories by 14 of 14 models. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/microsoft-defender-for-office-365

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Email security](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/security/email-security/index.md) | 45% | 1 | 3% | 63 |
| [Client-side protection](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/security/client-side-protection/index.md) | 0% | 81 | 0% | 1 |
| [DNS filtering](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/network/dns-filtering/index.md) | 0% | 32 | 0% | 1 |

## What the models said for it

- "Integrated cloud-native solutions: Microsoft Defender for Office 365, Google Workspace security (native integration, no MX changes)" (Kimi K2, Email security)
- "Best for Microsoft 365 Users: Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (Plan 1) ... often the cheapest path to enterprise-grade features" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, Email security)
- "If I had to pick one default answer: Microsoft Defender for Office 365 if you're Microsoft-centric and want the least friction." (GPT-5.4 mini, Email security)
- "Microsoft Defender for Office 365 is a recommended phishing and email threat protection tool for a mid-sized B2B company" (Llama 4 Maverick, Email security)

## And against it

- "Microsoft 365 users experience 3x more email-related incidents than Google Workspace users" (Grok 4.20, Email security)
- "Good value, but many orgs find native M365 needs supplementing." (DeepSeek V4 Flash, Email security)

## By model

| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Warning | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Grok 4.20 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Mistral Small | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Kimi K2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |

## Sources returned with these answers

The sites and pages cited by the answers that named Microsoft Defender for Office 365, from 166 of the 193 answers that named it (only the models that return a source list).

### Domains cited

- microsoft.com: 74 (its own site)
- g2.com: 65
- huntress.com: 64
- checkpoint.com: 61
- proofpoint.com: 48
- softwareadvice.com: 41
- securityboulevard.com: 37
- expertinsights.com: 35
- costbench.com: 29
- mimecast.com: 28

### Pages cited

- https://huntress.com/business-email-compromise-guide/10-best-email-security-providers: 47
- https://microsoft.com/en-us/security/small-medium-business: 39
- https://checkpoint.com/comparison/best-email-security-companies: 32
- https://microsoft.com/en-us/security/business/siem-and-xdr/microsoft-defender-office-365: 31
- https://softwareadvice.com/email-security/small-business: 29
- https://simplyit.biz/resources/email-security-platforms-small-business-2026: 24
- https://expertinsights.com/email-security/top-email-security-gateways: 22
- https://huntress.com/phishing-guide/best-phishing-protection: 22

## In its own words

What Microsoft Defender for Office 365's own pages state, read 2026-09-28. Stated by the vendor, not checked by the index.

- Positioning: Вградени функции за сигурност за облачната пощенска кутия в Exchange Online, налични и като добавка за локални пощенски кутии в Exchange. (https://www.microsoft.com/bg-bg/microsoft-365/exchange/exchange-email-security-spam-protection)
- For: Kunden mit lokalen Postfächern (https://www.microsoft.com/de-de/microsoft-365/exchange/exchange-email-security-spam-protection)
- Price stated: €0.87 потребител/месец, годишно плащане (https://www.microsoft.com/bg-bg/microsoft-365/exchange/exchange-email-security-spam-protection)
- Starting price: €0.87 (https://www.microsoft.com/bg-bg/microsoft-365/exchange/exchange-email-security-spam-protection)
- Free plan or trial: Изпробвайте сега (https://www.microsoft.com/bg-bg/microsoft-365/exchange/exchange-email-security-spam-protection)
- Hosting: réseau mondial de centres de données

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/it.