SIEM, XDR and MDR all promise threat detection, but they differ in how much you build versus how much you buy.
SIEM vs XDR/MDR in one line
SIEM (Security Information & Event Management) ingests logs from everything and lets you write detections and run investigations. Powerful and broad, but it’s a platform you tune and staff.
XDR/MDR narrows the scope to vendor-correlated telemetry (endpoint, identity, email) and — in the MDR case — adds a managed SOC. Faster to value, less to tune.
Choose SIEM if…
you have compliance log-retention needs and a team to build detections and chase alerts.
Choose XDR/MDR if…
you want detections that work out of the box and, with MDR, someone else watching them 24/7.
Leading SIEM tools we track
| Tool | Our score | Starting price | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wazuh | 8.3/10 | $571/mo (Cloud, up to 100 agents) | 4.5/5 (~59 G2 reviews) |
| Blumira | 8.1/10 | Free tier available | 4.6/5 (~120 G2 reviews) |
| Microsoft Sentinel | 8.1/10 | $4.3/GB ingested (PAYG, East US) | 4.4/5 (~289 G2 reviews) |
| Splunk Enterprise Security | 8.1/10 | Custom quote | 4.3/5 (~222 G2 reviews) |
| Graylog Security | 8.1/10 | $18000/yr (Security, 10 GB/day) | 4.4/5 (~116 G2 reviews) |
Best SIEM pick: Wazuh — 8.3/10, from $571/mo (Cloud, up to 100 agents). See best siem software.
Leading XDR/MDR tools we track
| Tool | Our score | Starting price | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntress | 8.6/10 | Custom quote | 4.9/5 (~700 G2 reviews) |
| Blumira | 8.1/10 | Free tier available | 4.6/5 (~120 G2 reviews) |
| Arctic Wolf | 7.8/10 | Custom quote | 4.7/5 (~250 G2 reviews) |
| Todyl | 7.7/10 | Custom quote | 4.8/5 (~60 G2 reviews) |
| Sophos MDR | 7.7/10 | Custom quote | 4.7/5 (~300 G2 reviews) |
Best XDR/MDR pick: Huntress — 8.6/10, on custom-quote pricing. See best mdr / xdr software.