# Check Point Harmony Email alternative: an honest comparison

URL: https://iblockspam.com/compare/check-point-harmony-email-alternative
Last updated: 2026-10-22

> Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration (built on Avanan) vs iBlockSpam: API-based inline protection vs an MX filter, per-user licences vs per-domain.

Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration, built on the Avanan technology Check Point agreed to acquire in August 2021, connects to Microsoft 365 or Gmail by API and inspects mail inside the tenant. iBlockSpam is a per-domain MX filter. Here's how they compare on facts checked in October 2026.

## The short answer

Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration suits Microsoft 365 and Gmail organizations that want threat protection inside the tenant: sandboxing, attachment cleaning, click-time URL checks, account takeover detection and, on the higher package, data loss prevention, plus coverage for Teams, Slack, OneDrive and other collaboration apps. iBlockSpam suits businesses that want inbound filtering in front of any mail server, with a flat per-domain price, unlimited mailboxes, flexible quarantine digests, free DNS tools and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

They're built differently. Check Point's main model connects by API and applies its own mail flow rules and connectors in your tenant; iBlockSpam sits at your MX and delivers clean mail to your server. Our guide to [secure email gateways vs API email security](https://iblockspam.com/blog/secure-email-gateway-vs-api-email-security) explains the two designs.

Competitor details below were checked on Check Point's own pages and admin guides in October 2026.

## Side by side

| | Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration | iBlockSpam |
|---|---|---|
| How it connects | API connection to Microsoft 365 or Gmail, without changing MX; modes from monitoring to inline prevention before delivery. Separate Cloud SEG option routes inbound mail by MX | MX records point to our filtering servers; clean mail is delivered to your mail server |
| Mail platforms | Microsoft 365 (Exchange Online) and Gmail. Cloud SEG lists Microsoft, on-premises Exchange and custom mail servers, inbound only | Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, cPanel/WHM, Exchange and other mail servers |
| Beyond email | Teams, Slack, OneDrive, SharePoint, Google Drive, Dropbox, Box and ShareFile on the Email & Collaboration package | Email only |
| Pricing model | Per user: each account with a Microsoft or Google licence and a mailbox uses a licence; unlicensed shared mailboxes and group mailboxes aren't counted | Per domain, unlimited mailboxes (mailbox count, not message volume) |
| Published price | None; plans page asks you to get a quote | Protect $12 per domain/month billed annually ($144/year) or $15 month-to-month; Protect Plus $19 annually or $24 monthly. Beta pricing, USD, excluding tax |
| Packages | Email Only or Email & Collaboration, each as Advanced Protect or Complete Protect (adds data loss prevention) | Protect and Protect Plus |
| How to buy | Through a Check Point sales representative; MSPs can assign pay-as-you-go licences | Sign up directly; partners (MSPs and web hosts) by conversation |
| Trial or guarantee | 14-day trial with all features for unlimited users | No free trial; 30-day money-back guarantee on a domain's first annual subscription |
| Setup | Microsoft 365 onboarding needs the Privileged Role Administrator role or higher; Check Point adds mail flow rules, connectors, journal rules and groups to the tenant | MX change plus platform steps, with a guided setup wizard and rollback steps |
| Sandboxing and URL rewriting | Sandbox, attachment cleaning (CDR) and click-time URL rewriting in both packages | No sandboxing or URL rewriting; attachment-type filters and a Microsoft Office macro filter |
| Archive | Archiving add-on, stores email for up to 10 years | 30-day message history (not a compliance archive) |
| If your server is down | Not stated on the pages we checked | Mail spooled for up to 5 days |
| Free tools | Not listed on the pages we checked | Email Health Check, MX, SPF, DKIM, DMARC, blacklist, PTR, MTA-STS, BIMI, header analyzer, SPF and DMARC generators |

## What it costs at 10 and 50 mailboxes

Assumptions: one domain, published prices only, USD, excluding tax.

| | 10 mailboxes | 50 mailboxes |
|---|---|---|
| Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration | Not published (quote on request) | Not published |
| iBlockSpam Protect, annual | **$12/month** ($144/year) | **$12/month** ($144/year) |
| iBlockSpam Protect Plus, annual | **$19/month** ($228/year) | **$19/month** ($228/year) |
| iBlockSpam Protect, month-to-month | $15/month | $15/month |

The comparison isn't like for like. Check Point's packages include sandboxing, click-time URL protection, account takeover detection and collaboration-app coverage, which iBlockSpam doesn't offer. Because Check Point counts licensed users, its cost will follow your headcount; iBlockSpam's follows your number of domains. See [per-domain vs per-user pricing](https://iblockspam.com/compare/per-domain-vs-per-user-pricing) for worked examples.

## When Check Point Harmony Email is the better choice

- **You want protection inside Microsoft 365 or Gmail, not in front of it.** In inline mode, Check Point inspects mail in the tenant before it reaches the inbox, and its 2021 acquisition announcement says the technology inspects internal as well as external mail.
- **You want sandboxing, attachment cleaning and click-time URL checks.** Both packages include them. iBlockSpam doesn't sandbox or rewrite links.
- **You also need to protect Teams, Slack, OneDrive or SharePoint.** The Email & Collaboration package covers them; iBlockSpam only filters email.
- **You need data loss prevention or long-term archiving from the same vendor.** Complete Protect adds DLP, and the archiving add-on keeps mail for up to 10 years.
- **You'd rather not change MX at all.** The API deployment leaves your MX record where it is.
- **You already run Check Point** for other security and want one console and one vendor.

## When iBlockSpam is the better choice

- **Your mail isn't on Microsoft 365 or Gmail.** iBlockSpam filters in front of cPanel/WHM, Exchange and other mail servers, not just the two big cloud platforms.
- **You want prices you can read without a quote.** Prices and per-domain limits are on the [pricing page](https://iblockspam.com/pricing), and a domain's first annual subscription has a 30-day money-back guarantee.
- **You have many users, shared mailboxes or aliases.** One price per domain covers unlimited mailboxes and domain aliases, with 100,000 inbound messages a month.
- **You'd rather not grant a security vendor admin roles in your tenant.** iBlockSpam needs an MX change and platform steps such as a [Microsoft 365](https://iblockspam.com/platforms/microsoft-365) inbound connector, not API access to mailboxes.
- **You want mail held if your server goes down.** [Outage spooling](https://iblockspam.com/features/outage-spooling) keeps inbound mail for up to 5 days.
- **You want users to manage their own held mail.** Every user gets a personal quarantine with [digests](https://iblockspam.com/features/quarantine-and-digests) as often as hourly, plus [domain monitoring](https://iblockspam.com/features/domain-monitoring) for DNS drift.

## How to switch from Check Point Harmony Email

1. Note what you rely on beyond spam filtering, such as DLP, collaboration-app scanning, archived mail or click-time URL protection, and decide how you'll cover it.
2. Export allow and block lists and any custom policies so you can recreate them.
3. Save your current DNS with the [Email Health Check](https://iblockspam.com/tools/email-health-check) and lower the MX TTL a day or two ahead.
4. Add your domain in iBlockSpam and follow the guided setup for your platform, such as the [Microsoft 365](https://iblockspam.com/platforms/microsoft-365) inbound connector with Enhanced Filtering for Connectors, or the [Google Workspace](https://iblockspam.com/platforms/google-workspace) inbound gateway.
5. Change MX, send test messages and check the headers with the [Email Header Analyzer](https://iblockspam.com/tools/email-header-analyzer).
6. Once mail flows through iBlockSpam, deactivate Check Point's Office 365 Mail or Gmail connection using its admin guide, then confirm in your tenant that none of the mail flow rules, connectors or journal rules it added remain.

Our [migration plan](https://iblockspam.com/migrate) covers each step and the rollback. The vendor-neutral guide to [switching spam filter providers](https://iblockspam.com/blog/switch-spam-filter-provider) explains why mail goes missing during a cutover and how to avoid it.

Check Point, Harmony and Avanan are trademarks of their owner; iBlockSpam is not affiliated with Check Point Software Technologies.

## Sources

Checked October 2026.

- [Check Point: Email Security product page (deploys through API without changing MX records, monitor mode to inline prevention, supported apps, trial and demo)](https://www.checkpoint.com/harmony/email-security/)
- [Check Point: Email Security plans and packages (Email Only and Email & Collaboration, Advanced Protect and Complete Protect, sandbox, CDR, URL rewriting, DLP, archiving add-on up to 10 years, "Get a Quote")](https://www.checkpoint.com/harmony/email-security/plans-and-packages/)
- [Check Point admin guide: introduction to Email Security (API-based inline protection service, Exchange Online and Gmail, collaboration apps)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/introduction/introduction-to-Email-Security.html)
- [Check Point admin guide: licensing the product (packages, add-ons, 14-day trial for unlimited users)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/license-management/licensing-overview.html)
- [Check Point admin guide: managing licences (per-user counting, shared mailboxes, purchase through sales, MSP pay-as-you-go)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/license-management/managing-licenses.html)
- [Check Point admin guide: activating Office 365 Mail (Privileged Role Administrator, Exchange Administrator role)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/activating-office365-mail/activating-office-365-mail.html)
- [Check Point admin guide: Microsoft 365 footprint (mail flow rules, connectors, journal rules, groups)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/o365-footprint-automatic-mode/automatic-mode-onboarding-microsoft-365-footprint.html)
- [Check Point admin guide: deactivating Office 365 Mail (stopping the app, removing leftover mail flow rules and the enterprise application)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Email_Security/Admin_Guide/Topics/o365-deactivation/deactivating-office-365-mail.html)
- [Check Point Cloud SEG overview (MX routed to Check Point, inbound only, supported destinations, enabled through Support)](https://sc1.checkpoint.com/documents/Harmony_Email_and_Collaboration/Cloud_SEG/Topics/cloud-seg/cloud-seg-overview.html)
- [Check Point press release: definitive agreement to acquire Avanan, 30 August 2021 (patented API solution, inline protection, internal and external email)](https://www.checkpoint.com/press-releases/check-point-software-technologies-acquires-avanan/)

## Frequently asked questions

### Does Check Point Harmony Email require me to change my MX records?

Not for its main deployment. Check Point's Email Security page says it deploys through API without changing MX records, with modes from monitoring to inline prevention. Its separate Cloud SEG option does change MX, routes inbound mail through Check Point first, and is enabled by contacting Check Point Support. iBlockSpam always works at the MX.

### Which mailboxes use a Check Point Email Security licence?

Check Point's admin guide says each user account with a Microsoft or Google licence and a mailbox uses one licence. Unlicensed shared mailboxes and group mailboxes are protected but not counted; licensed shared mailboxes are counted, and someone with both a Microsoft and a Google account uses two. Prices aren't published. iBlockSpam charges per domain, with unlimited mailboxes.

### Can an MX filter stay in front of Harmony Email & Collaboration?

Not documented on the Check Point pages we checked. The API deployment connects to your Microsoft 365 or Gmail tenant and leaves your MX record unchanged, but Check Point's public pages don't describe running it behind another vendor's gateway. Ask Check Point how mail flow and sender settings should work before you run both.

### Is Avanan a different product from Check Point Harmony Email?

Avanan was the company. On 30 August 2021 Check Point announced a definitive agreement to acquire Avanan, describing a patented API solution that stops threats before they reach the inbox. Check Point now sells the product itself, and its current admin guide calls it Email Security (Harmony Email & Collaboration).

---

Source: iBlockSpam, https://iblockspam.com/compare/check-point-harmony-email-alternative (this is a Markdown copy; the HTML page is canonical). Quote with attribution and a link. Site index for AI assistants: https://iblockspam.com/llms.txt