ESET vs Performanta
ESET is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Performanta is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. ESET targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Performanta serves Mid-market and Enterprise. ESET includes 3 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS), compared to 2 for Performanta (Endpoint, Identity).
Buyer brief
ESET is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Performanta is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. ESET targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Performanta serves Mid-market and Enterprise. ESET includes 3 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS), compared to 2 for Performanta (Endpoint, Identity).
ESET is the choice if you want a single-vendor stack with deep integration. Performanta is better if you have existing tools and want flexibility.
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | SMBs with 25-500 devices that want managed detection without meeting 200+ endpoint minimums | Buyers already committed to Microsoft Defender and Sentinel that want a services firm to manage detection and response |
| 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 | None listed | None listed |
- Best fit
- SMBs with 25-500 devices that want managed detection without meeting 200+ endpoint minimums
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 6/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Requires own platform
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
- Best fit
- Buyers already committed to Microsoft Defender and Sentinel that want a services firm to manage detection and response
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 1/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
Detailed comparison
| FIELD | ESETPLATFORM | PerformantaTECH-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 | ESET | Microsoft Defender |
| SIEM integrations | ElasticSplunk Microsoft Sentinel | Microsoft Sentinel |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: LimitedOTOT/IoT: Not covered | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: LimitedIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: LimitedNetNetwork: LimitedOTOT/IoT: Not covered |
| Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateKill processContainDisable accountsQuarantineCustom playbooks | Custom playbooks |
| IR included | ✓ Included | Separate |
| Cost | ||
| Price range | Not published, custom-quoted based on environment and device count with volume discounts | Not published |
| Minimum seats | 25 | None |
| Breach warranty | – | – |
| More details | ||
| Requires own agent | Yes | No |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Identity | ~ Limited | ✓ Included |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | ~ Limited |
| Network | ~ Limited | ~ Limited |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | Not offered |
| Threat hunting | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Per-device pricing, custom-quoted. Requires ESET PROTECT Enterprise or Elite as the base. MSP partners can get daily billing or monthly invoicing. | Custom quote. Performanta does not publish MDR, Safe XDR or managed SOC package pricing. |
| Hidden cost warnings | Requires ESET PROTECT Enterprise or Elite subscription as the base, which is a separate cost from MDR itself. MDR Ultimate pricing is significantly higher than standard MDR, but the exact gap is not published. Custom-quoted pricing with no published benchmarks means you have no leverage for comparison shopping. If you're not already an ESET customer, factor in the cost and time to migrate your entire endpoint stack | Public pages do not publish MDR pricing, contract minimums or service-credit language.. The explicit MDR offer is tied to Defender for Endpoint, so Microsoft licensing and customer tenant readiness can drive total cost.. Public pages do not define default MDR response authority, so buyers need the managed-technology boundary in writing.. Cloud and SaaS coverage appear tied to Microsoft security controls and Safe XDR scope, so non-Microsoft telemetry should be confirmed early.. Incident response is listed as a consulting service, so buyers should confirm what is included in MDR versus a separate incident-response engagement. |
| Data portability | Limited | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year | Custom, Managed SOC, Safe XDR, MDR for Defender for Endpoint |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | PortalEmailPhone |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Dedicated analyst | ✓ | – |
| SOC regions | North AmericaEuropeAsia-Pacific | EuropeAfrica |
| Onboarding | Fast deployment via ESET PROTECT platform if you're already an ESET customer. Net-new deployments require platform setup first. | Not published. Performanta describes scoping, discovery, prioritisation, validation and mobilisation stages for Safe XDR, but no standard implementation duration was found. |
| Industry focus | SMB (all industries)EducationHealthcareFinancial ServicesGovernmentRetail | Financial ServicesEducationHealthcareGovernmentRetailProfessional ServicesAgricultureTelecommunicationsManufacturingTransportationTourism |
| MTTD | 20 minutes (vendor-published) | Not published |
| MTTR | Approximately 5 minutes (vendor-published time to resolve) | Not published |
| Community view | KuppingerCole named ESET Product and Market Leader for MDR (December 2024). Praised for the low 25-device entry point and fast vendor-published detection times. Criticized for console UI complexity and full platform lock-in. Limited MDR-specific community discussion compared to larger competitors. | No meaningful MDR-specific buyer-review signal was found in major English-language review communities during this pass. The public buyer case rests on Performanta's Microsoft security focus, UK and South Africa SOC operations, Safe XDR platform, threat-hunting process and incident-response consulting depth. Buyers should validate pricing, response authority, non-Microsoft telemetry support and exact incident-response inclusion directly. |
| Compliance | ISO 27001 | – |
| Certifications | ISO 27001 | – |
| Founded | 1992 | 2010 |
| Data retention | Not published | Not published. Performanta says it monitors customer environments and SIEM platforms, but no standard public MDR log-retention period or data-residency term was found. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
FAQ
What is the main difference between ESET and Performanta?
ESET is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). Performanta is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). ESET covers 3 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 2 for Performanta.
How do ESET and Performanta differ in response capabilities?
ESET supports 6 autonomous actions (account disable, custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable. Performanta supports 1 autonomous actions (custom playbooks) and approval is configurable. Incident response is included with ESET and not included with Performanta.
How does ESET pricing compare to Performanta?
ESET pricing: Not published, custom-quoted based on environment and device count with volume discounts (25-seat minimum). Performanta pricing: Not published. Watch for with ESET: Requires ESET PROTECT Enterprise or Elite subscription as the base, which is a separate cost from MDR itself; MDR Ultimate pricing is significantly higher than standard MDR, but the exact gap is not published. Watch for with Performanta: Public pages do not publish MDR pricing, contract minimums or service-credit language.; The explicit MDR offer is tied to Defender for Endpoint, so Microsoft licensing and customer tenant readiness can drive total cost..
Should I choose ESET or Performanta?
Choose ESET if: sMBs with 25-500 devices that want managed detection without meeting 200+ endpoint minimums. Choose Performanta if: buyers already committed to Microsoft Defender and Sentinel that want a services firm to manage detection and response. ESET is not ideal for organizations with non-ESET EDR that want to keep their existing platform and layer MDR on top. Performanta is not ideal for buyers that need public MDR pricing before 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.