ESET vs Sapphire
ESET is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Sapphire is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. ESET targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Sapphire serves SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise. ESET includes 3 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS), compared to 4 for Sapphire (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Network).
Buyer brief
ESET is a Platform vendor that requires its own security platform. Sapphire is a Services firm that works with your existing tools. ESET targets SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise organizations; Sapphire serves SMB, Mid-market, and Enterprise. ESET includes 3 attack surfaces in base pricing (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS), compared to 4 for Sapphire (Endpoint, Cloud, SaaS, Network).
ESET is the choice if you want a single-vendor stack with deep integration. Sapphire 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 | UK organisations that want MDR from a UK-owned provider with a UK-based CREST-accredited 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 | 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
- UK organisations that want MDR from a UK-owned provider with a UK-based CREST-accredited SOC
- Price
- Custom quote
- Response authority
- 1/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Dashboards
- Warranty
- None listed
›› Detailed comparison
| FIELD | ESETPLATFORM | SapphireTECH-AGNOSTIC |
|---|---|---|
| ›› Fit | ||
| Target size | SMB, Mid-market, Enterprise | SMB, Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Positive | Mixed |
| ›› Your stack | ||
| Approach | Requires their platform | Works with your tools |
| EDR integrations | ESET | EDR toolsMicrosoft technologies |
| SIEM integrations | Microsoft SentinelElasticSplunk | ExabeamSIEM tools |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: LimitedOTOT/IoT: Not covered | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: LimitedSaaSSaaS: 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 | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| ›› 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 | ✓ Included |
| Identity | ~ Limited | ~ Limited |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Network | ~ Limited | ✓ Included |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | + Optional |
| 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. Sapphire does not publish MDR 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 response SLAs or exact response-authority rules.. MDR, MXDR and OT SOC scope can differ materially, so buyers should define monitored surfaces in the order form.. The page publishes vendor-reported comparative metrics without independent methodology.. IR hours are included as standard, but buyers should confirm number of hours, coverage triggers and overage rates. |
| Data portability | Limited | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year | Custom |
| Channels | EmailPortalPhone | PortalEmailPhone |
| Data access | Dashboards | Dashboards |
| Dedicated analyst | ✓ | – |
| SOC regions | North AmericaEuropeAsia-Pacific | Europe |
| Onboarding | Fast deployment via ESET PROTECT platform if you're already an ESET customer. Net-new deployments require platform setup first. | Sapphire references onboarding and implementation that can be shorter than expected, but no standard public MDR onboarding timeline was found. |
| Industry focus | SMB (all industries)EducationHealthcareFinancial ServicesGovernmentRetail | Public SectorDefenceFinancial ServicesProfessional ServicesIndustrialsManufacturingOperational TechnologyHealthcare |
| 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. | Sapphire has limited MDR-specific community review volume. The public buyer case is strongest for UK ownership, UK-based SOC delivery, CREST SOC accreditation and IT/OT services depth. Buyers should validate response authority, price, metrics and the exact split between MDR, MXDR, OT SOC and incident-response work. |
| Compliance | ISO 27001 | ISO 27001NISTHIPAADORACyber Essentials PlusCRESTGDPRPCI DSS |
| Certifications | ISO 27001 | CREST SOCCREST Penetration TestingCyber Essentials PlusISO 27001 |
| Founded | 1992 | 1996 |
| Data retention | Not published | Not published as a standard MDR retention period. |
| API available | ✓ | – |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
›› FAQ
What is the main difference between ESET and Sapphire?
ESET is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). Sapphire is a Services firm that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). ESET covers 3 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 4 for Sapphire.
How do ESET and Sapphire 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. Sapphire supports 1 autonomous actions (custom playbooks) and approval is configurable.
How does ESET pricing compare to Sapphire?
ESET pricing: Not published, custom-quoted based on environment and device count with volume discounts (25-seat minimum). Sapphire 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 Sapphire: Public pages do not publish response SLAs or exact response-authority rules.; MDR, MXDR and OT SOC scope can differ materially, so buyers should define monitored surfaces in the order form..
Should I choose ESET or Sapphire?
Choose ESET if: sMBs with 25-500 devices that want managed detection without meeting 200+ endpoint minimums. Choose Sapphire if: uK organisations that want MDR from a UK-owned provider with a UK-based CREST-accredited SOC. ESET is not ideal for organizations with non-ESET EDR that want to keep their existing platform and layer MDR on top. Sapphire is not ideal for buyers that need public MDR pricing or contractual response SLAs before sales engagement.
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.