The short answer
Defender wins on luxury, on-road refinement, brand prestige, interior materials, and serious overland engineering. Bronco wins on price (often half the cost), removable doors and roof, V8 Raptor R availability, manual transmission availability, and dealer + parts ubiquity. Capability comparison is closer than the price gap suggests — both will go where most owners actually drive. Pick by budget and what you value (refinement vs ruggedness + price).
Capability
Defender 110 / 130 with the Adventure Pack: serious wading depth (35.4"), terrain response, air suspension. Bronco Badlands / Wildtrak / Raptor: front + rear lockers, sway bar disconnect, HOSS suspension, Sasquatch 35" tires. Both are genuinely capable. Defender has the engineering pedigree; Bronco has the package flexibility.
Engines
Defender: 2.0L turbo I-4 mild hybrid (296 hp), 3.0L mild-hybrid I-6 (395 hp), 5.0L supercharged V8 (493 hp Defender V8). Bronco: 2.3L EcoBoost (300 hp), 2.7L V6 EcoBoost (330 hp), 4.7L Raptor V6 (418 hp). Defender V8 is the prestige halo; Bronco Raptor V6 is the desert specialist.
Interior and luxury
Defender interior is significantly more luxurious — premium leather, real wood/aluminum trim, Pivi Pro infotainment, optional ClearSight rearview mirror. Bronco interior is rugged-utilitarian by design — washable surfaces, MOLLE points on lower trims. Different design philosophies; Defender wins luxury, Bronco wins ruggedness.
Removable doors / roof
Bronco has removable doors and removable hardtop or soft top — unique vs Defender. Defender has a fixed body design.
Reliability and ownership
Land Rover historically has reliability concerns and high cost of ownership. Defender (new generation) has improved but still trails Toyota / Ford on long-term reliability data. Service and parts cost meaningfully more than Ford. Bronco service is cheaper and dealers are everywhere; Land Rover service is specialized.
Price
Bronco: low $40s (Big Bend) to mid $80s (Raptor). Defender 90: mid $50s. Defender 110: low $60s. Defender 130: mid $70s. Defender V8: $115k+. Loaded Defenders push $120k+. Bronco is roughly half the price for comparable capability.
How to decide
Pick Defender for: luxury interior, brand prestige, on-road refinement, V8 supercharged option, overland engineering, prepared to pay premium. Pick Bronco for: price (often half), removable doors / roof, Sasquatch package, dealer ubiquity, manual transmission availability, much lower service cost. For most buyers Bronco is the rational choice; Defender is the emotional one. Eugenio at Sunrise Ford handles the Bronco side.