Bitdefender vs Sophos: GravityZone and Intercept X compared
By Jean Luc Poitier, SEO and growth marketing strategist · Bitdefender Reviews · Updated October 1, 2026
Disclosure: this site reviews Bitdefender GravityZone and earns a commission if you sign up for it through our links. We earn nothing from Sophos Endpoint. The figures below come from each company's own pages and the test labs, with the dates checked.
On protection and price transparency, GravityZone leads. In three years of AV-Comparatives business tests it was compromised 3 times to Sophos's 55, with fewer false alarms, and you can see its price and buy it online. Sophos publishes no prices.
Sophos is the better pick if you already run Sophos firewalls (the two share threat information), if you want a large, established MDR service, or if you value its bigger review base and AV-TEST record. Reviewers find it heavy on older machines.
Bitdefender vs Sophos at a glance
| Compared on | Bitdefender GravityZone | Sophos Endpoint |
|---|---|---|
| Published price | From $324.99/yr for 10 devices (Small Business Security) | Not published; quote through partners |
| Licensing unit | Per device; servers count as devices | Per user; servers need a separate licence |
| How you buy | Online (up to 100 devices) or through a partner | Partners, MSPs (monthly MSP Flex), or AWS Marketplace |
| Free trial | About 30 days, no card | 30 days |
| Ransomware rollback | Included from the entry package | CryptoGuard, included in Sophos Endpoint |
| Console | Cloud or on-premises | Cloud (Sophos Central, now Sophos Fusion) |
| AV-Comparatives Business Security, 2023-2025 (2,901 cases) | 3 compromised, 11 false alarms | 55 compromised, 25 false alarms (Intercept X Advanced) |
| AV-Comparatives performance, 2025 | 11th and 12th of 17 | 17th of 17 in both rounds |
| AV-TEST business tests | Best Protection 2025 award (corporate users) | Certified in every round since 2022 |
| MITRE Enterprise | Took part in 2024, not 2025 | Took part in 2024 and 2025 |
| MITRE Managed Services 2024, alerts sent | 82 (fewest of 11) | 942 |
| PeerSpot | Business Security 4.3/5 (16 reviews); EDR 4.2/5 (62) | Intercept X Endpoint 4.2/5 (110); Sophos MDR 4.3/5 (35) |
| Company | Private, Bucharest, founded 2001 | Private (Thoma Bravo since 2020), Oxford area, founded 1985 |
Figures checked against each company's published pages and review-platform listings as of 2026-10-01. “Not published” means the company does not publish that figure.
Price and licensing
Sophos sells Sophos Endpoint through partners and on AWS Marketplace and asks you to request a quote; it publishes no per-user price. It licenses per user, with a separate server licence, and reviewers note two consequences: shared PCs are awkward to license, and Linux machines need the costlier server licence.
GravityZone is priced per device, servers included (up to 30% of devices on Small Business Security), and sold online up to 100 devices: $324.99 a year for 10 devices, or $384.99 for Business Security (see pricing). Price is the most common complaint in the Sophos reviews we read (12 of 36):
“It is an expensive product. We are moving away from it partly for that reason.”reviewer2095575, PeerSpot, February 2023
Protection in independent tests
AV-Comparatives tests both twice a year. Across the six Business Security reports from 2023 to 2025, Sophos Intercept X Advanced was compromised 55 times and GravityZone 3, in 2,901 real-world cases. Sophos was compromised 8 to 11 times in every round; GravityZone never more than once (latest report). Sophos wasn't entered in the 2025 Endpoint Prevention and Response test.
AV-TEST gives a kinder picture of Sophos: it has been certified in every business test since 2022, with full protection marks in all but one 2025 and 2026 round. Both took part in MITRE's 2024 Enterprise evaluation; Sophos also entered in 2025 and Bitdefender didn't. In MITRE's 2024 managed services round, Sophos sent 942 alerts against Bitdefender's 82.
Performance on older hardware
Sophos had the heaviest footprint of 17 products in both of AV-Comparatives' 2025 performance tests (impact scores 39.8 and 39.7, lower is better); GravityZone scored 32.8 and 26.5. Resource use comes up in 10 of the 36 Sophos reviews we read:
“Intercept X Endpoint is a very heavy solution that consumes a lot of RAM and should be made lighter.”Khandokar Rabbi, PeerSpot, March 2024
GravityZone isn't light either: its own reviewers mention slowdowns on older PCs and Macs. AV-TEST, for its part, scores Sophos 5.5 or 6 out of 6 for performance.
Managed services and the Sophos ecosystem
Sophos's biggest advantage is its MDR business. It reports more than 40,000 MDR customers and added Secureworks and its Taegis XDR platform in February 2025, a deal of about $859 million (SEC filing). Sophos MDR rates 4.3 out of 5 on PeerSpot, with every reviewer willing to recommend it. Sophos endpoints also share threat status with Sophos firewalls, which is why many firewall customers pick it.
Bitdefender MDR is smaller and quote-only, with a $100,000 breach warranty. Support is mixed on both sides: GravityZone reviewers often call support slow, and some Sophos reviewers say the same:
“Customer support will contact you after two days after you open a ticket.”Shaik Fareed, PeerSpot, September 2025
What reviewers say about each
On PeerSpot, Intercept X Endpoint rates 4.2 out of 5 from 110 reviews (95% would recommend) and GravityZone Business Security 4.3 from 16 (92%). PeerSpot's own summary says Sophos has the edge on pricing and support, while its sentiment scores favor GravityZone on ROI, customer service, scalability, and stability. The two halves of that page disagree, which says something about how much weight 16 reviews can bear.
Where Sophos wins
- A large, well-reviewed MDR service, strengthened by the Secureworks acquisition.
- Threat information shared with Sophos firewalls, a real advantage if you run them.
- Certified in every AV-TEST business test since 2022, with near-perfect protection scores.
- Took part in MITRE's 2025 Enterprise evaluation, which Bitdefender skipped.
- Far more PeerSpot reviews (110 for the endpoint product) and more market share.
- A Leader in Gartner's 2026 Magic Quadrant for endpoint protection, per Sophos; Bitdefender is a Visionary.
Who should pick Bitdefender GravityZone
Businesses that want the stronger AV-Comparatives protection record, a published per-device price that covers servers, and the option to buy online or run the console on-premises. Plan for a learning curve and slower support.
See Bitdefender GravityZone pricingBitdefender vs Sophos FAQ
Is Bitdefender or Sophos cheaper?+
We can't compare list prices, because Sophos doesn't publish them; it sells by quote through partners, priced per user with servers licensed separately. Bitdefender publishes GravityZone prices: $324.99 a year for 10 devices on Small Business Security and $384.99 on Business Security, with servers counted as devices.
Which protects better, Bitdefender or Sophos?+
In AV-Comparatives' Business Security Tests from 2023 to 2025 (2,901 real-world cases), GravityZone was compromised 3 times with 11 false alarms and Sophos Intercept X Advanced 55 times with 25 false alarms. AV-TEST certified both in its business tests, with Sophos scoring 6 of 6 for protection in almost every round.
Is Sophos Intercept X still sold?+
Under a new name. Sophos renamed Intercept X Advanced to Sophos Endpoint in late 2025 and ended sales of Intercept X Essentials. Its Sophos Central console is being renamed Sophos Fusion. Test labs still list the product as Intercept X Advanced.
Is Sophos heavier on computers than Bitdefender?+
In AV-Comparatives' 2025 performance tests, Sophos had the highest impact of 17 products in both rounds; Bitdefender placed mid-pack. AV-TEST scores Sophos 5.5 or 6 out of 6 for performance, so not every lab agrees. Resource use is a common complaint in Sophos reviews.
Which has the better managed detection and response?+
Sophos MDR is larger: Sophos reports more than 40,000 MDR customers, and it bought Secureworks in 2025. In MITRE's 2024 managed services evaluation, Sophos sent 942 alerts and Bitdefender 82, the fewest of the 11 participants.