Choose Critical Start or Rapid7
Choose Critical Start if
- Mid-market to large enterprises wanting technology-agnostic MDR that works with their existing security stack
- Organizations suffering from alert fatigue wanting TBR's deterministic auto-resolution to reduce noise
- Companies needing OT/ICS monitoring alongside IT MDR through Claroty, Dragos and Nozomi integrations
Choose Rapid7 if
- Mid-market to enterprise organizations (500+ assets) wanting full SIEM data transparency alongside MDR
- Security teams wanting active remediation via Velociraptor without a fully outsourced model
- Organizations that value analyst pod continuity and environment familiarity over time
- Breach warranty matters to you (Rapid7 offers one, Critical Start does not)
- You want direct Slack integration with your SOC
What’s actually different
Buyer brief
Fit. Critical Start is a Pure-play MDR that works with your existing tools. Rapid7 is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Critical Start targets Mid-market and Enterprise organizations; Rapid7 serves Mid-market and Enterprise.
FAQ
What is the main difference between Critical Start and Rapid7?
Critical Start is a Pure-play MDR that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). Rapid7 is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). SLA commitments differ: Critical Start offers ≤1 hour, Rapid7 offers Not disclosed.
How do Critical Start and Rapid7 differ in response capabilities?
Critical Start supports 6 autonomous actions (endpoint isolation, process termination, network containment, account disable, file quarantine, custom playbooks) and approval is configurable. Rapid7 supports 6 autonomous actions (endpoint isolation, process termination, network containment, account disable, file quarantine, custom playbooks) and approval is configurable. Incident response is not included with Critical Start and included with Rapid7.
How does Critical Start pricing compare to Rapid7?
Critical Start pricing: Custom-quoted pricing. Rapid7 pricing: Third-party estimate: starting ~$17/asset/month. Mid-market deployments typically $60K-$80K/year. Enterprise $150K+/year. (500-seat minimum). Watch for with Critical Start: No public pricing at all, requires sales call for any ballpark; OT/ICS monitoring and vulnerability management are separate purchases on top of base MDR. Watch for with Rapid7: Requires Rapid7 Insight Agent on 80%+ of supported assets, minimum 500 assets; Breach warranty and unlimited DFIR only available on Ultimate tier.