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Bitdefender licensing

This article is an overview of how Bitdefender licenses its GravityZone business security platform, add-ons, managed services and consumer products. Deeper articles cover GravityZone yearly licensing and add-ons, GravityZone MSP monthly licensing, and the business agreement, audit and MDR terms. It is not legal advice.

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Bitdefender licensing is the set of terms under which Bitdefender sells its GravityZone business security platform, add-on modules, managed detection and response (MDR) and professional services, and its consumer security products. Bitdefender publishes separate agreements for home users and for business customers, plus specific agreements for Email Security, advisory services, threat intelligence, the Technology Access Program and the Cybersecurity Warranty.[2] Business solutions are governed by a single Master Service Agreement, which covers orders placed directly or through Bitdefender partners and, through its exhibits, the MDR service and the Security Data Lake.[1] GravityZone is sold under two primary licensing models: yearly licensing through individual licence keys, and monthly subscriptions that a Partner buys from a Distributor and shares with the companies it manages.[4] For the general models, see concurrent and device licensing and subscription and consumption licensing.

Editions

Bitdefender groups its business offerings by customer size. The small-business packages can be bought online, the larger packages and MDR through partners, and MSP packages through distributors.[3]

Offering What it contains (vendor description) How it is sold 
GravityZone Small Business Security Protection against phishing, ransomware and web-based attacks, with a security overview of protected endpoints[3] Online, per device[3] 
GravityZone Business Security Small Business Security plus Network Attack Defense, Web Access Control, Device Control and Endpoint Risk Analytics[3] Online or through partners, per device[3] 
GravityZone Business Security Premium Business Security plus tunable machine learning (HyperDetect), Sandbox Analyzer, Fileless Attack Defense and Microsoft Exchange coverage[3] Online or through partners, per device[3] 
GravityZone Business Security Enterprise Premium capabilities plus cross-endpoint detection, investigation and response (EDR)[3] Through partners[3] 
GravityZone Defense XDR / XDR sensors Business Security Enterprise plus native sensors for identity, network, productivity and cloud[3] One separately purchasable add-on per sensor category[14] 
Bitdefender MDR and MDR PLUS 24x7 monitoring, threat hunting and response by Bitdefender security operations centres[3] Service subscription that includes the Business Security Enterprise platform[9] 
GravityZone Cloud Security for MSP (Secure, Secure Plus, Secure Extra) EDR, MDR and MXDR packages for managed service providers[3] Monthly usage-based billing through distributors and RMM partners[8] 

Add-ons sold separately include Patch Management, Full Disk Encryption, Security for Mobile, Security for Email, Security for Containers, Integrity Monitoring, Security for Storage, data retention extensions and cloud security posture management.[3] Bitdefender publishes no part numbers, and its online store loads prices dynamically, so no price points are recorded in the catalog. Editions, add-ons and seat rules are covered in Bitdefender GravityZone yearly licensing and add-ons.

Metrics

Bitdefender term Catalog row Where it applies What Bitdefender says 
Licensed seat Licensed seat (endpoint) Yearly GravityZone licences and add-ons Install on as many devices as necessary within the licensed seats in the Order; covers physical computers, endpoints, virtual machines, Amazon EC2 instances or Exchange mailboxes depending on the product.[1] 
Licensed endpoints (monthly) Monthly licensed endpoint (MSP) Cloud Security for MSP Endpoints licensed during the month, including physical and virtual servers and workstations and container hosts.[6] 
Active device Active mobile device Security for Mobile Devices online at least once in the calendar month; Chrome extensions count as mobile devices.[1] 
Active mailbox Active primary mailbox Security for Email (end-of-life) Primary user mailboxes that sent or received at least one email in the month.[1] 
Billable resource Billable cloud resource GravityZone Cloud Security Use limited to the billable resources in the purchase order.[1] 
Daily Ingestion Volume Daily Ingestion Volume Security Data Lake Content ingested and made searchable in a calendar day, measured after parsing, normalization and enrichment.[1] 
XDR category usage XDR sensor category usage XDR sensors (MSP) Each enabled category with a deployed sensor counts the company’s licensed endpoints.[6] 
Uptime hours SVE VDI uptime hour Security for Virtualized Environments (MSP) Uptime hours of virtual desktops using Central Scan through a Security Server.[6] 

Counting / floors

Seats in the Order (as retrieved 2026-09-30). The customer may install the Solutions on as many devices or endpoints as necessary, limited by the total licensed seats in the Order.[1] Receiving the software for several platforms, on several media or bundled with other software does not raise that total.[1] Catalog proof: Deployment is capped at the licensed seats in the Order.

Servers. The online packages include desktops and laptops plus file servers up to 30% of the seats, and Bitdefender treats Linux operating systems as servers.[3] Catalog proof: Online packages cover file servers up to 30% of seats; Linux counts as a server.

Monthly usage. For MSP companies, any endpoint that gets a licence during the month is billed, even if it is uninstalled soon after. Usage resets on the first day of each month at 00:00 UTC.[7] Add-ons are counted separately, as the number of endpoints on which each add-on was deployed during the month.[6] Catalog proof: MSP usage counts every endpoint licensed in the month.

Floors. The online store sells 1 to 100 devices, and larger quantities go through partners.[3] The MSP programme page states that there are no minimum commitments.[8] A Partner can nevertheless set a minimum usage for a managed company, and that minimum then becomes its monthly billing floor. See Bitdefender GravityZone MSP monthly licensing.

Virtualization & partitioning

Bitdefender counts virtual machines like physical machines. Depending on the Solution, the licence covers physical computers, endpoints, virtual machines or Amazon EC2 instances, and there is no host-based or core-based alternative in the business agreement.[1] Under monthly licensing, virtual servers and workstations and container hosts all count as licensed endpoints.[6] Virtual endpoints that offload scanning to a Security Server with Central Scan are counted under Security for Virtualized Environments instead. Virtual servers count per endpoint, and virtual desktops count by uptime hours.[6] Catalog proof: Only the highest protection model used in a month is counted. For the cross-vendor background, see virtualization and partitioning.

Cloud / BYOL

A GravityZone licence may run on only one console instance at a time, either GravityZone Cloud or on-premises but not both. Moving between consoles goes through Enterprise support.[1] Bitdefender Security for AWS is an exception to the licence-key model. Customers buying directly are billed monthly through an Amazon Payments account and are not given a licence key.[1] GravityZone Cloud Security is limited to the purchased number of billable cloud resources. If an environment contains more, scanning is restricted to that number.[1] Catalog proof: A licence may run on only one console instance at a time; Cloud Security scans are restricted to purchased billable resources.

Programs

Contract terms

Use rights (as retrieved 2026-09-30). The grant is limited, non-exclusive and non-transferable, and covers use solely for the customer’s internal business operations, including its Affiliates. It is subject to the Agreement, the Order and the Documentation.[1] The customer may not use the Solutions to provide services to third parties, or let third parties use them other than contractors or consultants acting on its behalf.[1] Catalog proof: Licence grant is limited to internal business operations; No resale, sublicensing, service bureau or third-party use.

Term. The Validity Period starts on the Start Date and runs for the period purchased, whether or not the product is used. The Start Date is the activation date, but no later than 60 days after the partner places the Purchase Order.[1] Catalog proof: The Validity Period runs from the Start Date whether or not the product is used.

Orders and refunds. Orders are non-cancellable, fees are non-refundable, and purchased seats cannot be decreased or exchanged for other subscriptions.[1] Catalog proof: Orders are non-cancellable and seats cannot be reduced or exchanged.

Managed service providers. An MSP acting for a customer must inform the customer of the Agreement and obtain its acceptance.[1] Catalog proof: An MSP must obtain the customer's acceptance of the agreement. The full agreement is summarized in Bitdefender business agreement, audit and MDR terms.

Audits and compliance

Bitdefender may audit usage against the Documentation on reasonable notice, during normal business hours. Audits are limited to once a year unless a prior review found a material discrepancy. The customer must keep records sufficient to certify compliance.[1] If unlicensed or excess use exceeds 5% of licensed use in aggregate, the customer reimburses the difference and Bitdefender’s reasonable audit costs.[1] Catalog proof: Bitdefender may audit usage once a year and require certified reports; Over-deployment above 5% triggers reimbursement and audit costs. The platform also enforces the licence technically. Registration requires a valid licence key so that the product runs only on validly licensed devices, virtual machines and mobile devices.[1] The general discipline is covered in software license audit and license compliance.

Consumer products

Bitdefender’s consumer products are licensed under the home user agreement. It grants a non-exclusive, non-commercial right to use the product for personal use only.[13] Consumer subscriptions renew automatically at then-current rates unless cancelled.[13] The agreement also sets device limits per product type. The Family Plan covers up to 5 members and 25 devices.[13] Catalog proof: Home user licences are personal and non-commercial. Consumer installations found on corporate devices therefore fall outside the business grant.

Out of scope

  • Signed enterprise agreements, public-sector contracts and distributor price lists, which were not retrievable.
  • Prices. The online store loads them dynamically, and partner and MSP prices are set by distributors.
  • Extended Email Security, which is licensed under a separate access agreement with Mesh Security Limited, a Bitdefender-owned company.[15]
  • Offensive security and advisory services, threat intelligence feeds and OEM technology licensing, each of which has its own terms.[2]

References

  1. Master Service Agreement for Bitdefender Business Solutions and ServicesListed as License and Services Agreement for Business Solutions. Part I definitions; Part II orders, payment and term; Part III s.5 evaluation, s.12 MSP, s.16 audit, s.19 miscellaneous; Exhibits A (solutions), B (MDR and warranty), E (Security Data Lake). Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  2. Legal EulaIndex of Bitdefender agreements: home user, business, Email Security access, advisory services, threat intelligence, Technology Access Program, Cybersecurity Warranty.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  3. Bitdefender Business Cybersecurity Solutions ComparisonPackage tables for small business, medium-to-large business and MSPs; server allowance and auto-renewal footnotes. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  4. GravityZone License managementYearly licensing and monthly subscriptions; trials; activation. Last modified 2026-07-15.Effective 2026-07-15. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  5. General licensing information for MSP partnersDistributor, Partner and Customer roles; product types, protection models, add-ons, services. Last modified 2026-09-02.Effective 2026-09-02. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  6. Calculate the endpoint usage with the Monthly License Usage reportPage title Use cases. Monthly usage columns and add-on counting. Last modified 2024-07-23.Effective 2024-07-23. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  7. GravityZone MSP monthly licensing FAQTrials, reserved seats, usage reset, hybrid licensing. Last modified 2026-08-27.Effective 2026-08-27. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  8. Security for Managed Service Providers - BitdefenderMSP pricing model FAQ. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  9. Bitdefender Managed Detection and Response (MDR) ServiceMDR includes the Business Security Enterprise platform; breach warranty. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  10. Bitdefender Terms and Conditions for Cybersecurity Warranty Service (Warranty Agreement)Warranty provided by Cysurance for MDR subscribers. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  11. Bitdefender Partner Advantage Network MSP Partner Program Guide24-page PDF; no printed date (PDF created 2025-06-13).Effective 2025-06-13. Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  12. Bitdefender Enterprise Support PoliciesStandard support scope, licensing modification requests, EOL window. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  13. Subscription Agreement and Terms of Services for Home User SolutionsConsumer agreement; s.3.4 grant, s.4 device limits, s.7 automatic renewal. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  14. Bitdefender GravityZone Extended Detection and Response (XDR)XDR sensors as separately purchasable add-ons per category. Undated.Retrieved 2026-09-30.
  15. Email Security Solutions - Access AgreementAgreement with Mesh Security Limited, a Bitdefender owned company. Last updated August 2025.Retrieved 2026-09-30.

See also

Catalog Rows Cited

8Metrics14Rules8Programs

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