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Cybersecurity · head to head

Proton Mail vs VMware Carbon Black

Proton Mail logo

Proton Mail

Cybersecurity

Secure email that protects your privacy

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
V

VMware Carbon Black

Cybersecurity

Cloud-delivered endpoint protection and EDR, now owned by Broadcom and positioned alongside Symantec.

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Proton Mail has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Proton Mail paid plan pricing not displayed on vendor site; VMware Carbon Black broadcom's enterprise model concentrates direct sales and support on its largest accounts and moves everyone else to resellers, so a mid-size customer can lose named support contacts and face a substantially repriced renewal with limited notice.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Proton Mail and VMware Carbon Black actually diverge.

Attributes where Proton Mail and VMware Carbon Black differ
AttributeProton MailVMware Carbon Black
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebDesktop, Api
FoundedUnknown2002

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Proton Mail

Nothing recorded that VMware Carbon Black does not also cover.

Only in VMware Carbon Black

  • Endpoint Standard
  • Enterprise EDR
  • Audit and Remediation
  • Single sensor
  • Live Response
  • Workload protection
  • Container security
  • Watchlists and feeds

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Proton Mail

  • Encrypted email communicationnot VMware Carbon Black
  • Privacy-focused email servicenot VMware Carbon Black
  • Family email protectionnot VMware Carbon Black

VMware Carbon Black

  • A SOC that wants unfiltered endpoint telemetry to hunt over rather than only vendor-generated alertsnot Proton Mail
  • A vSphere estate that wants workload protection deployed through the hypervisor instead of installing an agent in every guestnot Proton Mail
  • Replacing signature antivirus after an incident where the incumbent product had no record of what the attacker didnot Proton Mail
  • An organisation already inside a Broadcom or Symantec enterprise agreement that can consolidate endpoint onto an existing contractnot Proton Mail

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Proton Mail

  • Paid plan pricing not displayed on vendor site
  • Free tier limited to 1 GB storage
  • Free tier limited to single email address

VMware Carbon Black

  • Broadcom's enterprise model concentrates direct sales and support on its largest accounts and moves everyone else to resellers, so a mid-size customer can lose named support contacts and face a substantially repriced renewal with limited notice.
  • Continuous EDR recording is retained for a defined window and longer retention is a paid tier, so the investigation you most need is often the one whose telemetry has already aged out, and that is discovered during the incident rather than before it.
  • The product assumes an operator: watchlists, policy tuning and alert triage are ongoing work, and organisations without a dedicated analyst or an MDR contract typically leave policies in monitor mode and pay for telemetry that is never reviewed.
  • The sensor operates in the same kernel and file-filter territory as other endpoint agents, so running it alongside an incumbent antivirus, DLP or backup agent commonly produces performance complaints and requires maintained exclusion lists on both sides.
  • Linux sensor support is tied to specific distribution and kernel versions, so a routine operating system upgrade can leave hosts without a supported sensor until a matching build ships, and anything outside the supported list gets no coverage at all.

Pricing, plan by plan

Proton Mail

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Proton Mail review.

VMware Carbon Black

On request
  • CB Endpoint StandardFree
    • NGAV
    • Behavioral EDR
    • Device control
  • CB Endpoint AdvancedFree
    • All Standard features
    • Threat hunting
    • Audit and remediation
  • CB Endpoint EnterpriseFree
    • All Advanced features
    • Advanced threat hunting
    • Live response

Which should you pick?

Choose Proton Mail if

  • You want to start without paying.
Proton Mail review

Choose VMware Carbon Black if

  • You need endpoint standard.
  • You work on Desktop, Api.
  • You also want enterprise edr.
VMware Carbon Black review

Questions people ask

Is Proton Mail or VMware Carbon Black better?
Neither clearly leads. Proton Mail starts at Free and VMware Carbon Black at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Proton Mail or VMware Carbon Black?
Proton Mail has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Proton Mail and On request for VMware Carbon Black.
Does Proton Mail or VMware Carbon Black run on more platforms?
Proton Mail runs on Web. VMware Carbon Black runs on Desktop, Api.
Can I use Proton Mail for free?
Yes. Proton Mail has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. VMware Carbon Black starts at On request.
What is Proton Mail best used for?
Proton Mail is most often used for encrypted email communication, privacy-focused email service, family email protection. Of those, encrypted email communication and privacy-focused email service are not what VMware Carbon Black is typically brought in for.
What can Proton Mail do that VMware Carbon Black cannot?
VMware Carbon Black covers Endpoint Standard, Enterprise EDR, Audit and Remediation, Single sensor.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Proton Mail: Is there a free version of Proton Mail?

Yes, Proton Mail offers a free plan with 1 GB storage, 1 encrypted email address, and basic features like folders, labels, and filters.

Source
VMware Carbon Black: Who owns Carbon Black now?

Broadcom. It acquired VMware in November 2023, and Carbon Black now sits in Broadcom's enterprise security business alongside Symantec. VMware branding is being phased out.

Proton Mail: What does the Mail Plus plan include?

Mail Plus includes 15 GB storage, 10 encrypted email addresses, support for 1 custom domain, 10 hide-my-email aliases, priority support, and access to Proton Calendar.

Source
VMware Carbon Black: Why do the docs use names I do not recognise?

The product has been renamed repeatedly. CB Defense is now Endpoint Standard, CB ThreatHunter is Enterprise EDR and CB LiveOps is Audit and Remediation. Older community answers and runbooks still use the previous names.

Proton Mail: What is included in Proton Unlimited?

Proton Unlimited provides 500 GB storage, 15 email addresses, 3 custom domains, unlimited hide-my-email aliases, access to Mail, Calendar, VPN, Drive, and Pass, plus dedicated support.

Source
VMware Carbon Black: Does it replace my existing antivirus?

Yes on supported Windows, macOS and Linux versions, and running it alongside another antivirus is not recommended because the two agents contend for the same hooks. Check your compliance requirements, as some auditors still ask for a named antivirus product.

Proton Mail: Does Proton Mail offer a money-back guarantee?

Yes, Proton Mail provides a 30-day money-back guarantee for paid plans.

Source
VMware Carbon Black: Do I need a full-time analyst to run it?

To get value from Enterprise EDR, effectively yes. The prevention tier can run with part-time attention, but the hunting and recording capability is only worth its cost if somebody is querying it, which is why many customers buy it through an MDR provider.

VMware Carbon Black: How is it licensed?

Per endpoint, per year, with the capability tier determining the rate and workload and container protection priced separately. Extended EDR data retention is an additional line item.

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