If you're evaluating mobile device management (MDM) for a small or medium-sized business and you're on Microsoft 365, the question of Intune vs Jamf comes up constantly. Jamf is the gold standard for Apple device management. Intune is Microsoft's MDM, included in M365 Business Premium. They're both serious products and they serve genuinely different use cases.
This comparison is written from the perspective of someone who deploys Intune for UK SMBs regularly. I'll be direct about where each platform wins and where it falls short.
The short answer
| Question | Winner |
|---|---|
| Windows-first business on M365 | Intune |
| Mac-first or Mac-heavy business | Jamf |
| Mixed Windows and Mac | Intune (with caveats) |
| Budget under £10/user/month for MDM | Intune (included in M365 BP) |
| Depth of macOS management | Jamf |
| M365 and Entra ID integration | Intune |
| Ease of setup for an IT generalist | Intune |
Cost comparison
💰 PricingThis is where the decision often gets made before anything else.
Windows management: Intune wins clearly
Jamf was built for Apple. Its Windows support exists but it is not the core product, and it shows. If your business runs Windows devices, Intune is the right choice, full stop. You get Autopilot for zero-touch device setup, BitLocker management with key escrow to Entra ID, Windows Update rings, Microsoft Defender integration, and Conditional Access enforcement. All of this works natively and is well documented.
Jamf can manage Windows, but you would be paying a premium price for a product that treats Windows as a second-class citizen.
macOS management: Jamf wins clearly
Intune can manage Macs and the capability has improved a lot over the past two years. But if your business is Mac-first, a creative agency, a law firm on Macs, a startup where everyone chose their own hardware. Jamf Pro gives you a depth of macOS management that Intune doesn't match. Package deployment, script execution, configuration profiles, and the macOS-specific compliance rules are all more mature in Jamf.
Jamf also integrates with Apple Business Manager for zero-touch Mac deployment, which is the equivalent of Autopilot for Windows.
Integration with Microsoft services
This is where the decision often gets settled for businesses on M365. Intune connects natively to Entra ID, Defender for Endpoint, Purview, and Conditional Access. A non-compliant device in Intune can automatically block access to Exchange, SharePoint, and Teams. That tight loop between device state and access control is very difficult to replicate with Jamf unless you build custom integrations.
Jamf does have a Conditional Access integration with Entra ID, but it requires additional configuration and the device compliance signal takes longer to propagate. For a business where most users are on M365, this friction is worth thinking about.
Setup complexity
Intune is genuinely setup-friendly for an IT generalist who knows their way around the Microsoft admin portals. Jamf Pro has a steeper learning curve and historically required more dedicated admin time to manage well. Jamf Now is simpler but strips out the features that make Jamf compelling.
The mixed environment question
Some businesses have mostly Windows with a handful of Macs. In that situation, Intune managing the Windows fleet and using basic MDM enrollment for the Macs often works well enough, and avoids paying Jamf's per-device cost for the entire fleet. Only when Macs make up a significant portion of the estate, and you need serious macOS policy control, does adding Jamf make financial sense.