Bitdefender MDR vs Northwave
Bitdefender MDR is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Northwave is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Bitdefender MDR targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Northwave serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Bitdefender MDR includes 1 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint), compared to 2 for Northwave (Endpoint, Network).
Buyer brief
Bitdefender MDR is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Northwave is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Bitdefender MDR targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Northwave serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Bitdefender MDR includes 1 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint), compared to 2 for Northwave (Endpoint, Network).
Bitdefender MDR is the choice if you want a single-vendor stack with deep integration. Northwave is better if you have existing tools and want flexibility.
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | Organizations already on GravityZone wanting to add managed detection without changing their endpoint stack | Benelux, DACH and Nordic buyers that want European MDR with a Utrecht SOC |
| Price | Custom quote | Custom quote |
| Response authority | 6/6 actions · Configurable | 1/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Requires own platform | Works with existing stack |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Warranty | $1,000,000 | None listed |
- Best fit
- Organizations already on GravityZone wanting to add managed detection without changing their endpoint stack
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 6/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Requires own platform
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- $1,000,000
- Best fit
- Benelux, DACH and Nordic buyers that want European MDR with a Utrecht SOC
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 1/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
›› Detailed comparison
| FIELD | Bitdefender MDRPLATFORM | NorthwaveTECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| ›› Fit | ||
| Target size | SMB, Mid-market, Enterprise | Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Positive | Mixed |
| ›› Your stack | ||
| Approach | Requires their platform | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | Bitdefender | Customer endpoint telemetry |
| SIEM integrations | IBM QRadarSplunkMicrosoft SentinelFortiSIEMElasticLogRhythmSumo Logic | Customer log sources |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: Optional add-onIDIdentity: Optional add-onSaaSSaaS: Optional add-onNetNetwork: Optional add-onOTOT/IoT: Not covered | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: LimitedIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: Not coveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Optional add-on |
| ›› Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateKill processContainDisable accountsQuarantineCustom playbooks | Custom playbooks |
| IR included | Separate | Separate |
| ›› Cost | ||
| Price range | Not published. Bitdefender simplified to two tiers (MDR and MDR PLUS) in 2024. MSPs get consumption-based billing. | Not published |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | $1,000,000 | – |
| ›› More details | ||
| Requires own agent | Yes | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cloud workloads | + Optional | ~ Limited |
| Identity | + Optional | ~ Limited |
| SaaS apps | + Optional | Not offered |
| Network | + Optional | ✓ Included |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | + Optional |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | ≤30 minutes | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Per-endpoint, per-month | Custom quote. Northwave does not publish MDR package pricing. |
| Hidden cost warnings | Requires GravityZone agent. Cannot use third-party EDR for core MDR detection.. XDR sensor licenses (network, identity, cloud, email) are additional cost and can significantly increase total spend. DFIR is not included. Forensic investigation runs through CYPFER at separate cost.. Breach warranty requires 1,000+ endpoints | Public pages do not publish response SLAs or named default response actions.. Rapid Response is a separate related service, so buyers should confirm what incident-response support is included in base MDR.. Cloud, SaaS and identity coverage are not named as clearly as endpoint, log and network telemetry.. Detection tuning depends on onboarding log sources and threat-based use cases, which may affect deployment effort. |
| Data portability | Partial | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year, Monthly (MSP) | Custom |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | PortalEmailPhone |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Dedicated analyst | ✓ | – |
| SOC regions | North AmericaEuropeAsia-Pacific | Europe |
| Onboarding | Quick for existing GravityZone users. New deployments require agent rollout and onboarding configuration. | Northwave says implementation starts with a plan covering service elements, phases, planning and threat-based use cases, then onboarding log sources and processes. No standard public onboarding duration was found. |
| Industry focus | HealthcareEducationFinancial ServicesGovernment (Local/State)ManufacturingRetail | Financial ServicesHealthcareManufacturingLogisticsTechnologyPublic SectorCritical Infrastructure |
| MTTD | 24 minutes (MITRE Managed Services Evaluation 2024) | Not published |
| MTTR | Not published | Not published |
| Community view | Gartner Peer Insights 4.8/5 for Endpoint Protection Platforms (223 reviews, Customers' Choice 2026). MITRE ATT&CK evaluations back the detection claims. Note: analyst community ratings are for the GravityZone platform broadly, not the MDR service specifically. | Northwave has limited MDR-specific public review volume. The public buyer case rests on European delivery, Utrecht SOC operations and the connection between MDR, CERT, red team and threat research. Buyers should validate response authority, cloud and identity coverage, pricing and escalation rules before signing. |
| Compliance | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001ISO 27017ISO 27018HIPAAGDPR | NIS2ISO 27001GDPRTISAX |
| Certifications | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001ISO 27017ISO 27018 | – |
| Founded | 2001 | 2006 |
| Data retention | Up to 365 days depending on configuration. 1 year included with MDR. | Not published as a standard MDR retention period. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
›› FAQ
What is the main difference between Bitdefender MDR and Northwave?
Bitdefender MDR is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). Northwave is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). SLA commitments differ: Bitdefender MDR offers ≤30 minutes, Northwave offers Not disclosed. Bitdefender MDR covers 1 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 2 for Northwave.
How do Bitdefender MDR and Northwave differ in response capabilities?
Bitdefender MDR supports 6 autonomous actions (account disable, custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable. Northwave supports 1 autonomous actions (custom playbooks) and approval is configurable.
How does Bitdefender MDR pricing compare to Northwave?
Bitdefender MDR pricing: Not published. Bitdefender simplified to two tiers (MDR and MDR PLUS) in 2024. MSPs get consumption-based billing.. Northwave pricing: Not published. Watch for with Bitdefender MDR: Requires GravityZone agent. Cannot use third-party EDR for core MDR detection.; XDR sensor licenses (network, identity, cloud, email) are additional cost and can significantly increase total spend. Watch for with Northwave: Public pages do not publish response SLAs or named default response actions.; Rapid Response is a separate related service, so buyers should confirm what incident-response support is included in base MDR..
Should I choose Bitdefender MDR or Northwave?
Choose Bitdefender MDR if: organizations already on GravityZone wanting to add managed detection without changing their endpoint stack. Choose Northwave if: benelux, DACH and Nordic buyers that want European MDR with a Utrecht SOC. Bitdefender MDR is not ideal for organizations with existing non-Bitdefender EDR they want to keep (requires GravityZone agent). Northwave is not ideal for buyers that need public MDR pricing or response SLAs before engaging sales.
Daylight Security
AI-native MDR for buyers comparing active remediation across endpoint, cloud, identity, and SaaS. Daylight works with existing EDR/SIEM stacks and uses ChatOps-native collaboration, so it can be a useful third reference point in this comparison.