Bridewell vs Northwave
Bridewell is a Microsoft-ecosystem that works with your existing tools. Northwave is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Bridewell targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations; Northwave serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Bridewell includes 5 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity, Network), compared to 2 for Northwave (Endpoint, Network).
Buyer brief
Bridewell is a Microsoft-ecosystem that works with your existing tools. Northwave is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. Bridewell targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations; Northwave serves Mid-market and Enterprise. Bridewell includes 5 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Identity, Network), compared to 2 for Northwave (Endpoint, Network).
Bridewell (Microsoft-ecosystem) and Northwave (Services firm) serve different buyer profiles. Your decision depends on whether you prioritize Bridewell's strong choice for uk/eu critical national infrastructure needing microsoft-native mdr with ncsc/c... or Northwave's northwave mdr fits european buyers that want a soc service connected to incident response, red te....
At a glance
| FIELD | ||
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | Organizations with Microsoft 365 and Azure footprints wanting native Sentinel/Defender XDR managed services | Benelux, DACH and Nordic buyers that want European MDR with a Utrecht SOC |
| Price | Not published | Custom quote |
| Response authority | 4/6 actions · Configurable | 1/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Works with existing stack | Works with existing stack |
| Data access | Full query access | Dashboards |
| Warranty | None listed | None listed |
- Best fit
- Organizations with Microsoft 365 and Azure footprints wanting native Sentinel/Defender XDR managed services
- Price
- Not published
- Response authority
- 4/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Full query access
- Warranty
- None listed
- 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 | BridewellTECH-AGNOSTIC | NorthwaveTECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| ›› Fit | ||
| Target size | Mid-market, Enterprise | Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Positive | Mixed |
| ›› Your stack | ||
| Approach | Works with your tools | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | Microsoft Defender for EndpointCustomer choice of EDR (integrated via Sentinel) | Customer endpoint telemetry |
| SIEM integrations | Microsoft Sentinel | Customer log sources |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Optional add-on | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: LimitedIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: Not coveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Optional add-on |
| ›› Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateContainDisable accountsCustom playbooks | Custom playbooks |
| IR included | Separate | Separate |
| ›› Cost | ||
| Price range | Not published | Not published |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | – | – |
| ›› More details | ||
| Requires own agent | No | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Identity | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | Not offered |
| Network | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| OT/ICS | + Optional | + Optional |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Custom pricing based on environment size, coverage areas, and Microsoft licensing footprint. Offered via Azure Marketplace as managed service. Pricing model not publicly disclosed. | Custom quote. Northwave does not publish MDR package pricing. |
| Hidden cost warnings | Incident response is NOT included in base MDR, it is a separate 24/7 service. Requires Microsoft Sentinel and Defender XDR licensing (customer cost). OT/ICS coverage requires specialist engagement beyond standard MDR. UK/Europe focus, US expansion underway but limited North American SOC presence historically. I-Tracing merger (May 2025) introduces integration risks during transition period | 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 | Full | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year | Custom |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | PortalEmailPhone |
| Data access | Full query access | Dashboards |
| Dedicated analyst | – | – |
| SOC regions | EuropeNorth America | Europe |
| Onboarding | Less than a week for MDR capabilities deployment | 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 | EnergyUtilitiesTransportAviationGovernmentFinancial ServicesCritical National Infrastructure (CNI) | Financial ServicesHealthcareManufacturingLogisticsTechnologyPublic SectorCritical Infrastructure |
| MTTD | Not published | Not published |
| MTTR | Not published | Not published |
| Community view | Limited public reviews due to CNI/government client base where testimonials are restricted. Published case studies from Northern Gas Networks and Manchester Airport Group praise technical depth and organized delivery. No G2/Gartner Peer Insights presence and zero Reddit mentions suggest limited visibility outside UK CNI and public sector markets. Hard to assess independently. | 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 | ISO 27001ISO 27701ISO 9001ISO 22301Cyber Essentials PlusCREST SOCCREST CSIRNCSC AssuredISA/IEC 62443GDPRPCI DSS | NIS2ISO 27001GDPRTISAX |
| Certifications | ISO 27001ISO 27701ISO 9001ISO 22301Cyber Essentials PlusCREST SOC (SOC accreditation)CREST CSIR (Cyber Security Incident Response)CREST Intelligence-led Penetration TestingCREST Penetration TestingCREST Vulnerability AssessmentCREST Incident ExercisingNCSC CHECK (penetration testing)NCSC CIR (Cyber Incident Response, Standard Level)NCSC CIE (Cyber Incident Exercising)NCSC Cyber Resilience AuditNCSC Risk Management ConsultancyNCSC Audit and ReviewNCSC Security Architecture ConsultancyMicrosoft Solutions Partner for Security (Cloud Security and Threat Protection specialisms)Microsoft Verified Managed XDR Solution | – |
| Founded | 2013 | 2006 |
| Data retention | Not publicly disclosed. Determined by customer's own Microsoft Sentinel workspace retention settings and contract terms. | Not published as a standard MDR retention period. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
›› FAQ
What is the main difference between Bridewell and Northwave?
Bridewell is a Microsoft-ecosystem that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). Northwave is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). Bridewell covers 5 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 2 for Northwave.
How do Bridewell and Northwave differ in response capabilities?
Bridewell supports 4 autonomous actions (account disable, custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, network containment) and approval is configurable. Northwave supports 1 autonomous actions (custom playbooks) and approval is configurable.
How does Bridewell pricing compare to Northwave?
Bridewell pricing: Custom-quoted pricing. Northwave pricing: Not published. Watch for with Bridewell: Incident response is NOT included in base MDR, it is a separate 24/7 service; Requires Microsoft Sentinel and Defender XDR licensing (customer cost). 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 Bridewell or Northwave?
Choose Bridewell if: uK and European Critical National Infrastructure organizations (energy, transport, utilities, government) needing NCSC/CREST-assured MDR. Choose Northwave if: benelux, DACH and Nordic buyers that want European MDR with a Utrecht SOC. Bridewell is not ideal for organizations requiring multi-vendor, platform-agnostic MDR beyond the Microsoft ecosystem. 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.