BigFix vs ManageEngine Endpoint Central comparison

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26,325 views|18,010 comparisons
92% willing to recommend
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2,358 views|1,331 comparisons
97% willing to recommend
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9,294 views|5,415 comparisons
92% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on Apr 16, 2023

We performed a comparison between ManageEngine Endpoint Central and BigFix based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Setup and deployment of the two solutions is generally described as simple and easy, although BigFix’s deployment is said to need a bit of streamlining.
  • Features: ManageEngine Endpoint Central features useful patch management policies and inventory tracking for locating assets, all in a central management console. However, its compatibility with Amazon vendors and macOS needs improvement. BigFix offers desktop and third-party patching, as well as asset management and software installation. Its integration with vulnerability management and its dashboard functionalities need to be improved.
  • Pricing: Both solutions provide modular licensing plans that can potentially make them a bit expensive for smaller companies, even though the two are described as having competitive prices.
  • Service and Support: The support teams of the two solutions are described as being effective and knowledgeable. They provide fast feedback and help.
  • ROI: Users of both services observed an ROI due to the reduction of human resources that come from automation.

Comparison results: Based on the parameters we compared, BigFix comes out ahead of ManageEngine Endpoint Central. While both solutions offer useful patch management and endpoint protection features, ManageEngine Endpoint’s lack of support for different operating systems, and the fact that not all of its features come in the same box, leave room for improvement.

To learn more, read our detailed BigFix vs. ManageEngine Endpoint Central Report (Updated: May 2024).
772,679 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"It has helped with compliance. It has helped to ensure that devices comply with the organization's policy. If they are not compliant and secure, they cannot access the resources.""The most valuable feature is the policy CSPs.""This product works very well for companies already using the full Microsoft suite.""The device profiling which uses the official Outlook email enabled us to control the screenshot feature and prevent copying outside of the organization's application.""The stability of Microsoft Intune is good.""In terms of technical support, you will get an immediate response.""The ability to wipe data from and reset devices is one of the most important and valuable features. If a device is reported stolen, we can freeze it or wipe the data from it, preventing data leakage.""The best feature is that we don't need to worry about downtime. We don't need to worry about the network connections of our office or the virtual private network. Everything is being done through the internet. Using Intune Autopilot, we can configure and deploy everything to the devices."

More Microsoft Intune Pros →

"The technical support for BigFix is really amazing.""The most valuable features of the solution are Windows patching and the hardware and software inventory.""Being able to intelligently create reports, gather data, export CSVs and give that to the leadership of some of the client groups that my team supports has helped my organization.""BigFix is easy to use.""One of the biggest benefits BigFix has had for our organization is the ease and efficiency to perform many different tasks, across pillars and platforms, all from one pane of glass.""BigFix is incredibly fast and accurate in patching, reporting, and remediation.""It enables us to patch our systems quickly and within expectations and to increase our volume as needed. It has also helped us compress our patch sites. We used to do it monthly but now we do it weekly.""What I like most is that it is a powerful solution."

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"The initial setup is easy.""Page management and ADA integrations are the most valuable features of ManageEngine Endpoint Central.""The setup is pretty simple.""The stability is very good.""The product works perfectly for patch management and software deployments.""The most valuable feature of ManageEngine Endpoint Central is the central management console. Additionally, inventory tracking is helpful for knowing where our assets are.""ManageEngine Desktop Central automatically alerts you if there are newer releases or updates. You do not have to go to their website and check.""The centralized control of all of our Windows hardware that this solution offers has been most valuable to our organization."

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Cons
"Lacking ability to leverage more iOS device management internally.""Technical support is not that great.""In the past, I raised some tickets for the enhancement feature, which was missing in Intune.""They need to add more group policies. Intune currently does not have many group policies that you can deploy. Its reporting, which is very limited at the moment, also needs improvement. It will be great if they can add report customization. Its stability needs to be improved. Sometimes, when you register a device in Intune, it doesn't show up instantly on the engine portal on the admin side. They need to provide better support for complicated issues. They also have a long turnaround time.""There are a lot of small use cases where we realized that some technical solution was missing in Microsoft in comparison to other products. For example, it lacks something similar to sensing or location-based rules and configurations.""It's only good for a Microsoft environment.""Microsoft Intune is not user-friendly to manage and has room for improvement.""I'd suggest adding more features for macOS in Intune. There should be more functionality for managing macOS. There should be a better capability for pushing things down on macOS. Currently, Intune is not capable of managing macOS at the same level as Windows."

More Microsoft Intune Cons →

"I would like to see more emphasis on using the web console, to have the same power as the full fat client console that they do they now. It's a lighter way to log in and it would be faster for our operators to do their work. The console tends to take a long time for a large number of clients.""Around the scalability concern, I would like to see the ability to run teamed, clustered, or hierarchical root servers, in order to provide a more robust, high availability system. The single monolithic root server model does somewhat bother me.""Sometimes there is a lag time for our users.""We would like to see a different license plan, e.g. to include features from lifecycle with Patch Management, as an example.""I'd like to see better integration, with the different applications within BigFix. Instead of sometimes feeling like four or five different applications, they need to be integrated a little better within themselves.""The remote software installation could be better.""I remember doing restarts a few times. So, making sure that it is rock solid from an executable perspective is important.""BigFix can improve the way machines report back to the console. In the external relay management environment, it has become more of a hybrid environment with most of the machines not being on-site. The need of having public-facing reporting items interconnected is becoming more and more crucial. In general, the reporting could use some enhancement."

More BigFix Cons →

"Even when it shows Java as up-to-date, it might not be. So, to make it better, they should improve the accuracy of Java patch reporting.""Each of their products is an independent product, and they don't have anything to do with each other. It is a suite of packages. They all run independently, and they all are a little different because they were acquired differently. They could standardize their portfolio.""We would like to see options for deploying Microsoft 365 accounts into Outlook. For now we only can use it to deploy exchange accounts. Also we would like to see an option do decline Windows 7 ESU patches in a bulk.""Documentation could improve so we don't need to create the support requests first.""It is compatible with the systems such as Windows and Mac but not with Linux systems.""ManageEngine could be improved by giving customers an option to perform certain actions proactively. Since I was a consultant, I worked on different products and some had advantages over ManageEngine. For example, proactive remediation—you want to proactively check something on the computers and run the script. In ManageEngine, you have the option to run the script, but Intune has the option to do so proactively. ManageEngine doesn't have this. You should have the option to act proactively, not just going ahead and fixing it once it's done. Proactive remediation should be a feature.""ManageEngine Endpoint Central’s scalability could be improved.""Improvement should be done as per customer requirements."

More ManageEngine Endpoint Central Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "Consider the Microsoft Enterprise Mobility Suite rather than choosing specific sub-components, e.g. only Microsoft Intune."
  • "There is a cost benefit of using Microsoft Intune because of the packaging with other Microsoft products."
  • "Microsoft Intune is a cost effective choice. It is less expensive than other products on the market."
  • "The purchase of the product was handled by someone else."
  • "I have no comment on pricing of the solution."
  • "The product is offered as part of a Microsoft standard bundle. The pricing can be competitive to Airwatch, and Maas360."
  • "For Microsoft 365 E5 clients, cost is not an issue as this product is one of the benefits."
  • "The price of Intune is included with the license for Office 365, so we don't have to pay anything extra for it."
  • More Microsoft Intune Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "I can estimate the reduced cost of servers maintenance to approximatively $500,000."
  • "When purchasing, buying with other IBM tools provided us with a very good discount in pricing."
  • "I would stay with the Managed Virtual Server license model, which is a 1-to-1 license per OS whether it is virtual or physical."
  • "The product is less costly when compared to other solutions, and this is a good solid solution for what we have paid."
  • "Compliance, inventory, and licensing are really pricey. They should lower the price. It discourages users from getting onboard."
  • "You get what we call the Platform Edition, which you get for free. The patch service is maybe $0.50 per workstation per month. Then there's the basic server cost, which is about $1.50 per server per month. You also get into Lifecycle which does power management, OSD remote control, and those types of things, and that might be about 10 times the price - which works out to about $13 per server and, maybe $5 per workstation per month."
  • "The price is very fair."
  • "The price is reasonable, but our customers find it expensive."
  • More BigFix Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "The licensing is very easy to understand and pricing is right for what you get."
  • "Choose wisely between the Professional and Enterprise editions, based on your needs."
  • "I have been using the free version and am in the stage where I have to decide if I will proceed with the paid license, or instead choose another product."
  • "We pay about $250 a year for our license."
  • "The solution is very affordable."
  • "We had perpetual licenses. The cost was around 36,000, and then you'd have the yearly maintenance fee of 2,000 or 3,000."
  • "The pricing is very low, compared to other products. Compared to Intune or SCCM, it's much less. I can say it's a good product for less of a price."
  • "Affordable for any customer."
  • More ManageEngine Endpoint Central Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes it… more »
    Top Answer:Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of… more »
    Top Answer: Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also… more »
    Top Answer:The most valuable features of the solution are Windows patching and the hardware and software inventory.
    Top Answer:On a scale from one to ten, where one is expensive and ten is cheap, I rate the solution's pricing one out of ten.
    Top Answer:The solution’s pricing could be improved.
    Top Answer:ManageEngine Desktop Central is very easy to set up, is scalable, stable, and also has very good patch management. What… more »
    Top Answer:Well, what we like is that it catch actually a lot of features constantly upgrading. So all the three maybe there there… more »
    Top Answer:ManageEngine Endpoint Central's license in models is all over the place, meaning you have to pay for each individual… more »
    Comparisons
    Also Known As
    Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
    Tivoli Endpoint Manager
    ManageEngine Desktop Central, Desktop Central, ManageEngine Desktop Management MSP
    Learn More
    Overview

    Microsoft Intune is a comprehensive cloud-based service that allows you to remotely manage mobile devices and mobile applications without worrying about the security of your organization’s data. Device and app management can be used on company-owned devices as well as personal devices.

    In an increasingly mobile workforce, Microsoft Intune keeps your sensitive data safe while on the move. Microsoft Intune makes it possible for your team members to work anywhere using their mobile devices. Microsoft Intune provides both the flexibility and the control needed for securing all your data on the cloud, no matter where the device with the data is located.

    Microsoft Intune Device Management Key Features

    With Microsoft Intune Device Management you can:

    • Ensure devices and apps are compliant with your security requirements.
    • Rapidly deploy and authenticate apps on all company devices.
    • Remotely access devices to troubleshoot issues or to remove data from them.
    • Generate reports for all devices in the system.
    • Monitor the way users access and share information to protect company information.
    • Set rules and configure settings on personal and organization-owned devices to access data and networks.
    • Create user groups and device groups, allowing you to rapidly access many users and devices simultaneously.

    Mobile Application Management

    Mobile application management in Intune is designed to protect your organization’s data at the application level.

    With Microsoft Intune Application Management you can:

    • Configure apps to run with specific settings enabled.
    • Update existing apps that are already on the device.
    • See reports on which apps are used and monitor their usage.
    • Selectively wipe organization data from apps.
    • Add mobile apps to user groups and devices.

    As part of Microsoft's Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) suite, Intune integrates with Microsoft Entra ID for access control and with Azure Information Protection for data protection. It also integrates with Microsoft 365 Applications.

    Reviews from Real Users

    Microsoft Intune stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its ability to secure all devices under its management and the flexibility that the solution offers its users.

    A computing services manager notes, "Its security is most valuable. It gives us a way to secure devices, not only those that are steady. We do have a few tablets and other devices, and it is a way for us to secure these devices and manage them. We know they're out there and what's their status. We can manage their life cycle and verify that they're updated properly."

    The head of IT engineering at a financial services company writes, "The one feature we find most useful is the Mobile Application Manager. There are two types: we have the complete MDM and the Mobile Application Manager (MAM). We don't give our users phones, it is their own personal phone, and we need to allow them to have access to the company details on their phone. We need to create a balance between their own personal data and the company data. We deploy the Mobile Application Manager for them so that we won't be able to interfere with their own personal data."

    HCL BigFix is a powerful patch management tool that enables organizations to simply control their patch management operations. It is designed so that IT security and operations teams can collaborate in the most effective way possible. Users that employ BigFix can find and fix issues with their endpoints faster than those that employ its competitors. It comes with thousands of security checks that can be deployed quickly and easily. These enable users to safeguard themselves from a wide variety of digital threats.

    HCL BigFix Benefits

    Some of the ways that organizations can benefit by choosing to deploy HCL BigFix include:

    • Total visibility and simplified control. BigFix provides users with total system visibility while simultaneously enabling administrators to easily manage their networks. It enables organizations to run all of their patch management operations from a single user interface. This UI contains all of BigFix’s system controls. It also contains all of an organization’s network data. Users will never have to search for the features or information that they need as everything is centrally located.
    • Maximum benefit for reduced overhead. BigFix enables businesses to integrate with more than 100 different operating systems. Users can utilize the operating system of their choice without multiplying their overhead costs. They can keep costs down while still achieving their goals. 
    • Flexibility. BigFix is highly flexible. Users can integrate it with the top vulnerability management solutions on the market. This enables users to maximize their protective coverage and minimize the amount of time that they have to spend resolving issues. 

    BigFix Features

    • BigFix Insights. The BigFix insights feature gives users access to a powerful deep analysis tool. This tool enables organizations to gather data from all of their endpoints and compile them into reports that can aid administrators in their work. It can centralize an organization’s data and also enable it to import data from other sources so that it can make more informed decisions.
    • Task automation. BigFix has the ability to automate rudimentary tasks so that users can focus on tasks that require a greater level of attention. This can include tasks such as event remediation and data collection. This feature enables users to focus their attention on other more critical tasks.
    • Data loss prevention tool. This tool enables users to prevent critical data from being leaked or leaking accidentally. It creates policies that limit or prevent sensitive data from being transmitted. It also enforces the privacy protocols that are already in place. Organizations can leverage this tool to bolster the security protecting their data from malicious actors.
    • Web reputation tool. This tool proactively protects networks from malicious websites. It scans for potentially dangerous websites and opens a blocking page when one is detected. Users are also given the ability to set proxy server credentials for the system to recognize and authenticate. Users can use this to ensure that suspicious websites are unable to infect their networks.
    • Centralized UI. BigFix comes with a built-in UI that centralizes all of the solution’s features so that they can be accessed from a single location. It enables administrators to target specific portions of the network when issues arise without requiring them to take actions that will affect the entire network.

    Reviews from Real Users

    HCL BigFix is a highly effective solution that stands out when compared to most of its competitors. Two major advantages it offers are its auto-patching capability and its user-friendly tools.

    Santhosh K., the chief executive officer of Catnip Infotech Private Limited, writes, “The second valuable feature is, BigFix also has an auto patch updating feature, where the latest patches, and what is required for my system are automatically downloaded and kept ready for me. The solution applies the patch and notifies me after applying the patch. BigFix also gives me a ping saying that I should reset my system within a certain period of time, while the patch is being applied. Let's say, the patch is being applied and if there's an issue, the solution can revoke the applied patch, and revert back to the old state.”


    Benedikt S., an application administrator, says, “It's very straightforward. The usability is very close to everyday technical tools that you use as a systems administrator. So it's quite user-friendly.”

    ManageEngine Endpoint Central is a unified endpoint management (UEM) solution offered by ManageEngine, a division of Zoho Corporation. It is designed to help organizations efficiently manage and secure their endpoints from a centralized platform. Endpoint Central provides a comprehensive set of features and capabilities to streamline endpoint management and enhance security across diverse devices and operating systems.

    ManageEngine Endpoint Central Features:

    • Device Management: Endpoint Central enables IT administrators to manage a wide range of endpoints, including desktops, laptops, servers, mobile devices, and IoT devices. It offers features such as device discovery, inventory management, configuration management, and software deployment, allowing administrators to efficiently control and monitor devices from a single console.
    • Patch Management: The solution helps organizations keep their endpoints up to date and protected by automating the patching process. Endpoint Central provides patch management capabilities to deploy security updates and patches to endpoints, ensuring they are patched against vulnerabilities and reducing the risk of security breaches.
    • Security and Compliance: Endpoint Central focuses on strengthening security measures for endpoints. It offers features such as antivirus and anti-malware protection, firewall management, encryption, and data loss prevention (DLP). These capabilities help organizations safeguard their sensitive data and adhere to industry regulations and compliance standards.
    • Remote Control and Troubleshooting: With remote control capabilities, Endpoint Central allows IT administrators to access and control endpoints remotely, facilitating troubleshooting and issue resolution. It enables administrators to remotely troubleshoot software or hardware problems, install applications, and provide technical support to end-users, improving efficiency and minimizing downtime
    • Reporting and Analytics: Endpoint Central provides comprehensive reporting and analytics capabilities, offering insights into endpoint performance, security status, software usage, and compliance levels. These features help organizations assess the health and security of their endpoints, identify potential risks or issues, and make data-driven decisions for improved endpoint management.

    ManageEngine Endpoint Central Benefits:

    • Centralized endpoint management for diverse devices.
    • Improved operational efficiency through automation.
    • Enhanced security with antivirus, firewall, encryption, and data loss prevention.
    • Automated patch management for timely updates and security.
    • Remote control and troubleshooting for efficient issue resolution.
    • Comprehensive reporting and analytics for insights and informed decision-making.
    • Scalability and flexibility to accommodate organizational growth.
    • Cost-effectiveness by reducing manual management efforts and security risks.

    Reviews from Real Users

    PeerSpot user, Sr Engineer Administrator at a university, says that "Its cross-platform capabilities and the ability to do both OS-level patching and third-party patching are valuable. It is difficult to find a software product that will do all that for you out of the box, and you don't have to do any configuration other than your initial setup. Once you do that, there is a very minimalistic approach to getting it operational. You can have it up and running within a 20-minute time span."

    Park Armstrong, Chief Technical and Solution Architect at Vertigo Inc., writes that ManageEngine Endpoint Central is “Helpful for identifying and filling the gaps and meeting compliance needs, but each of their product works as an independent product and lacks integration”.

    Sample Customers
    Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
    US Foods, Penn State, St Vincent's Health US Foods, Sabadell Bank, SunTrust, Australia Sydney, Stemac, Capgemini, WNS Global Services, Jebsen & Jessen, CenterBeam, Strauss, Christian Hospital Centre, Brit Insurance, Career Education Corporation
    Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Strathallan School, BMI Healthcare, Comercial Kywi, First Priority Federal Credit Union, Gerab National Enterprises
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company18%
    Financial Services Firm18%
    Comms Service Provider11%
    Energy/Utilities Company5%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization23%
    Computer Software Company12%
    Government7%
    Financial Services Firm7%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Retailer12%
    Healthcare Company10%
    Manufacturing Company10%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization45%
    Financial Services Firm9%
    Computer Software Company7%
    Government7%
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm20%
    Computer Software Company9%
    Non Profit7%
    Healthcare Company7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization39%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Manufacturing Company5%
    Financial Services Firm5%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business39%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise47%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise33%
    Large Enterprise47%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business25%
    Midsize Enterprise11%
    Large Enterprise64%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business11%
    Midsize Enterprise50%
    Large Enterprise39%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business32%
    Midsize Enterprise21%
    Large Enterprise47%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business18%
    Midsize Enterprise50%
    Large Enterprise32%
    Buyer's Guide
    BigFix vs. ManageEngine Endpoint Central
    May 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about BigFix vs. ManageEngine Endpoint Central and other solutions. Updated: May 2024.
    772,679 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    BigFix is ranked 4th in Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) with 91 reviews while ManageEngine Endpoint Central is ranked 3rd in Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) with 60 reviews. BigFix is rated 8.6, while ManageEngine Endpoint Central is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of BigFix writes "Very stable and easy to deploy with excellent patch compliance". On the other hand, the top reviewer of ManageEngine Endpoint Central writes "An in-depth and intuitive product with good cross-platform capabilities, but they should have a more global support channel". BigFix is most compared with Microsoft Configuration Manager, Microsoft Windows Server Update Services, Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform and Tanium, whereas ManageEngine Endpoint Central is most compared with Microsoft Configuration Manager, VMware Workspace ONE, Jamf Pro, ManageEngine Patch Manager Plus and ManageEngine Mobile Device Manager Plus. See our BigFix vs. ManageEngine Endpoint Central report.

    See our list of best Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) vendors.

    We monitor all Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.