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McAfee Application Control vs ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 17, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

McAfee Application Control
Ranking in Application Control
8th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
ThreatLocker Zero Trust Pla...
Ranking in Application Control
1st
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
111
Ranking in other categories
Network Access Control (NAC) (4th), Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP) (5th), Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (4th), ZTNA as a Service (5th), ZTNA (4th), Ransomware Protection (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Application Control category, the mindshare of McAfee Application Control is 5.9%, down from 6.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform is 14.6%, down from 21.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Control Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform14.6%
McAfee Application Control5.9%
Other79.5%
Application Control
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1437648 - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Security Specialist at a tech services company with 201-500 employees
Easy to configure, reliable, secure, and has good support
With some specific versions, we are experiencing some issues where the policy configuration has some problems with the parent and child processes. There have been problems with the relationship between the parent and child process, from time to time. I would like to see better reporting and alerting features in the future.
Santo Joy - PeerSpot reviewer
Head Of Cyber Security at a outsourcing company with 201-500 employees
Security controls have been strengthened with granular application, ringfencing, and access policies
The features of ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that I like the most are the Ringfencing, elevation control, storage control, and application whitelisting functionality. For examples of how these features benefit my company, we were looking for a solution across various vendors to actually implement application whitelisting controls. ThreatLocker's agent, which is very lightweight and does not use much CPU or RAM, helped us achieve that solution. Ringfencing was an add-on that ticked off a lot of Australian framework security controls, which is the reason we chose it. My impression of the allowlisting feature in terms of managing which software, scripts, and libraries run on my devices is that ThreatLocker's community page has a lot of information around this, which is very helpful. Not only that, the Cyber Hero support that ThreatLocker provides gives us insights and best practices, helping us achieve that solution and guiding us to the right platform. The impact of Ringfencing on controlling the behavior of approved applications has been a big winner for us because it is something that many other platforms do not provide as a functionality. Having that allowed us to identify what applications talk to each other, which is something that many other platforms do not do. The network control feature impacts my ability to manage network traffic across my endpoints and servers. We have not used this widely across all our partners, but wherever required, we use it. It has been an easy solution for those customers to get that control implemented. The elevation feature's role in facilitating just-in-time administrative access for approved applications shows that elevation control helps in many use cases involving remote control platforms, door usage, and security system platforms that require local admins. There are many solutions that provide this functionality, but the licensing cost seems to be expensive, and it also adds another solution into the mix. Rather than doing that, we try to use ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform to achieve that control. Regarding the storage control feature, I have used it. The primary function is USB blocking, which is very widely adopted, and also just locking down and allowing certain users to access certain file locations helps us there. When it comes to enforcing policy-driven access over various storage devices, it depends on the business risk adapted by the companies that we support, but generally the use case is USB and external storage devices where companies know that is a risk, but they do not have appropriate solutions. There are EDR platforms that claim to do this, but ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform does it at an advanced level. My assessment of the efficiency of the real-time threat intelligence and category controls employed by Web Control in blocking malicious and non-compliant sites leads me to think that Web Control is another functionality within ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform that is an add-on on top of the current set. That is another solution that we use based on what is required for the company, but again, that is not widely adapted yet for our partners.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"It does its job well, and it's not causing a lot of trouble."
"This is a basic solution; the policy screen is okay, and it's easy to configure."
"The most valuable feature is the whitelisting; I can test the applications and we can also predefine rules for Windows, rules for the application and control."
"We also like the Change Control. We can control how things get executed. It has signatures for different kinds of protocols."
"We have gotten a lot of use out of the feature of removing local admins from a lot of computers with ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform."
"The most valuable feature is probably the ability to block programs from running. ThreatLocker has some built-in features that make it super easy. You can also contact their support within the program. If you're having issues, you can click on that button and connect with someone in five to 10 seconds."
"It's easy to use in regards to reducing attack surfaces."
"The single pane of glass management for all this functionality is really the best feature, as it unifies many utilities that would have been separate costs before and lets us sleep at night knowing that things are being monitored 24 hours."
"By using ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform, our company has been able to eliminate or consolidate security tools, such as BeyondTrust PAM, and we removed USB-Lock software by adopting ThreatLocker."
"The environment with ThreatLocker always blocked suspicious activity and anything that was not added to the whitelist, proving to be a very secure tool."
"The customer service and technical support of ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform are phenomenal, top-notch and top drawer, always willing to help and showing exactly where we need to look to ensure we can have the tools we need for the next time, reducing the need to call into support."
"While it can be frustrating at times, we appreciate the low-level security provided by the application whitelist."
 

Cons

"The initial setup is not straightforward, it was complex. The manuals don't have all the information you need to deploy it."
"I would like to see better reporting and alerting features in the future."
"With some specific versions, we are experiencing some issues where the policy configuration has some problems with the parent and child processes."
"The intrusion detection features should also be improved. It is a very good feature but it should be maximized."
"Sometimes, there are dependencies on the applications when they upgrade their patches, where the older version is already allowed, but when the newer version comes, DLL files and other components get blocked."
"The support could be quicker. There are times when there is a delay in getting a response. This is problematic when immediate attention is needed."
"In my opinion, it is a love-hate relationship with ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform; everybody hates it because it causes so much need for user input to request to allow applications, but it is a necessary evil because security is paramount and it is the most important feature of ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform."
"I think ThreatLocker Zero Trust Endpoint Protection Platform can be improved with an identity and multi-factor authentication module so that it can help manage situations when you elevate a command prompt to run as an administrator by incorporating its own MFA into that process."
"Better visualizations of what exactly is happening in our logs would be helpful. There can be more visuals on what has been elevated. Presenting this in a more refined manner would be beneficial."
"ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform can be improved by adding budget control, so that we are more aware of our spending, because I know sometimes it can get out of control."
"I'm not sure if I'm using it wrong; however, I find that I have to babysit it too much."
"I cannot suggest anything that they are not already doing. They should keep adding features as they have been."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"Others say ThreatLocker is too expensive, and I tell them they're dreaming. It's well-priced for what it does."
"The price is very reasonable, and we have been able to integrate ThreatLocker with all of our clients."
"The pricing is pretty fair, considering other solutions. Licensing-wise, it did not take long."
"ThreatLocker's pricing seems justifiable."
"So far, it has been great. I have no complaints. Of course, everybody wishes it was cheaper."
"I can't complain. Cheaper would always be nice, but I think it's reasonable compared to other software in the cybersecurity market."
"The pricing is fair and there is no hard sell."
"The price of ThreatLocker Allowlisting is reasonable in the market, but it is not fantastic."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Manufacturing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
9%
Outsourcing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business74
Midsize Enterprise21
Large Enterprise24
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ThreatLocker Allowlisting?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing with ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform is that it is owned by my organization, so I am not certain about the pricing and licensing details. Howe...
What needs improvement with ThreatLocker Allowlisting?
I believe ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform's marketing strategy has to be changed because only fewer organizations, such as small and mid-scale organizations, have been using it right now. It h...
What is your primary use case for ThreatLocker Allowlisting?
My main use case for ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform is that it helps to prevent somebody from accessing scripts. It will allow access if it is a valid one; otherwise, we can reject it. This helps...
 

Also Known As

McAfee Application, Change Control
Protect, Allowlisting, Network Control, Ringfencing
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Contec
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about McAfee Application Control vs. ThreatLocker Zero Trust Platform and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
921,523 professionals have used our research since 2012.