Expel vs SentinelOne
Buyer brief
Updated 2026-03-08
If you're already on SentinelOne and happy with the platform, the question is whether you want MDR from SentinelOne directly or from an independent provider who can follow you if you switch EDR later. Expel supports SentinelOne alongside CrowdStrike, Microsoft Defender, Carbon Black, Cortex, Elastic and Cybereason. Switching EDR doesn't mean switching MDR.
Expel covers all six core response actions through API integrations. SentinelOne covers five, with no account disable through the MDR service. Both offer configurable approval and full query access.
Expel publishes 14-minute MTTR for critical incidents with auto-remediation. SentinelOne claims 18 minutes against a 60-minute contractual SLA. Neither is independently validated. Expel communicates through Slack and Teams (Premium tier). SentinelOne uses portal and email. SentinelOne offers a $1M breach warranty and bundles IR in the Elite tier. Expel offers neither, and threat hunting is also a separate add-on. That cost gap narrows once you price Expel's add-ons against SentinelOne's platform prerequisite ($180-230/endpoint/year before the MDR bolt-on).
At a glance
| FIELD |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | Mid-market and enterprise organizations with existing security tools wanting vendor-agnostic MDR | Organizations already running SentinelOne Singularity wanting platform-native MDR without adding another vendor |
| Price | TrustRadius: from $11,640/yr | MDR add-on est $15-30+/endpoint/yr; platform extra |
| Response authority | 6/6 actions · Configurable | 5/6 actions · Configurable |
| Stack | Works with existing stack | Requires own platform |
| Data access | Full query access | Full query access |
| Warranty | None listed | Available |
- Best fit
- Mid-market and enterprise organizations with existing security tools wanting vendor-agnostic MDR
- Price
- TrustRadius: from $11,640/yr
- Response authority
- 6/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Works with existing stack
- Data access
- Full query access
- Warranty
- None listed
- Best fit
- Organizations already running SentinelOne Singularity wanting platform-native MDR without adding another vendor
- Price
- MDR add-on est $15-30+/endpoint/yr; platform extra
- Response authority
- 5/6 actions · Configurable
- Stack
- Requires own platform
- Data access
- Full query access
- Warranty
- Available
›› Detailed comparison
| FIELD | ExpelTECH-AGNOSTIC | SentinelOnePLATFORM |
|---|---|---|
| ›› Fit | ||
| Target size | Mid-market, Enterprise | Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Sentiment | Very Positive | Positive |
| ›› Your stack | ||
| Approach | Works with your tools | Requires their platform |
| EDR integrations | CrowdStrikeMicrosoft DefenderCarbon BlackPalo Alto CortexElasticCybereason SentinelOne | SentinelOne |
| SIEM integrations | Microsoft SentinelPalo Alto Cortex XSIAMGoogle ChronicleExabeamSecuronixSumo Logic Splunk, IBM QRadar | Singularity AI SIEMSwimlane IBM QRadar, Splunk |
| Coverage | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: CoveredNetNetwork: CoveredOTOT/IoT: Not covered | EPEndpoint: CoveredCloudCloud: CoveredIDIdentity: CoveredSaaSSaaS: Optional add-onNetNetwork: Optional add-onOTOT/IoT: Not covered |
| ›› Response | ||
| Response type | Active Remediation | Active Remediation |
| Approval policy | Configurable | Configurable |
| Response actions | IsolateKill processContainDisable accountsQuarantineCustom playbooks | IsolateKill processContainQuarantineCustom playbooks |
| IR included | Separate | Separate |
| ›› Cost | ||
| Price range | Starting at $11,640/year. Custom quotes based on environment size and coverage areas. | SentinelOne platform pricing is separate from the MDR add-on. Third-party comparison data reports Vigilance MDR around $15-30+/endpoint/year, while SentinelOne public platform tiers and enterprise bundles remain separate or custom. |
| Minimum seats | None | None |
| Breach warranty | – | ✓ |
| ›› More details | ||
| Requires own agent | No | Yes |
| Endpoints | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Cloud workloads | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Identity | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| SaaS apps | ✓ Included | + Optional |
| Network | ✓ Included | + Optional |
| OT/ICS | Not offered | Not offered |
| Threat hunting | Extra cost | ✓ Included |
| Response SLA | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| 24/7 coverage | ✓ | ✓ |
| Pricing model | Custom pricing by coverage type: cloud infrastructure (by resources), on-prem (by endpoints), SaaS (by user accounts), phishing (by email count). Three tiers: Starter, Select, Premium. | Platform license + MDR bolt-on. Current platform tiers: Complete ($179.99/endpoint/year), Commercial ($229.99/endpoint/year), Enterprise (custom). MDR pricing not publicly disclosed. Enterprise tier includes MDR. |
| Hidden cost warnings | Threat hunting is NOT included in base MDR, it is a separate add-on. Incident response is NOT included and must be obtained separately. Premium tier required for direct Slack/Teams SOC communication. Pricing scales significantly based on number of integrations and coverage areas | Platform license ($179.99-$229.99/endpoint/year) is required before MDR, significant prerequisite cost. MDR pricing is a bolt-on fee not shown on the public pricing page. IR not included in Essentials tier, only in Elite or as separate purchase. Data retention: 14 days (Complete), 30 days (Commercial), 90 days requires Enterprise tier. Platform-native lock-in, cannot use MDR with non-SentinelOne EDR |
| Data portability | Full | Partial |
| Contract terms | Annual, Multi-year | Annual, Multi-year |
| Channels | SlackTeamsEmailPortal | PortalEmail |
| Data access | Full query access | Full query access |
| Dedicated analyst | – | ✓ |
| SOC regions | North America | North AmericaEuropeAsia-Pacific |
| Onboarding | Hours to days via API integrations. 7-minute initial tool connection demonstrated. | 1-2 weeks typical |
| Industry focus | Financial ServicesHealthcareTechnologyEducationEnergy | Financial ServicesHealthcareGovernmentEducationManufacturing |
| MTTD | Not separately published | Not publicly disclosed for MDR service. |
| MTTR | 14 minutes for critical/high incidents with auto-remediation. 22 minutes average alert-to-fix for critical alerts. | 30-minute mean time to respond for Vigilance MDR (vendor-published public metric). MITRE Managed Services reported 47 minutes from detection to escalation in the evaluated scenario. Current Wayfinder public materials do not expose contractual response SLA terms. |
| Community view | Forrester Wave MDR Leader Q1 2025 (5/5 in 15 of 21 criteria). Gartner Peer Insights 4.6/5 (142 reviews). G2 4.8/5. PeerSpot 9.0/10. Widely praised for transparency, integration breadth, and speed. Primary criticism: threat hunting and incident response are add-ons, not included. | PeerSpot: Vigilance 8.6/10 but MDR market share declined 7.0% to 3.7% YoY (Feb 2026). G2: Vigilance Respond listing exists, 4.7/5 company rating. Gartner: Customers' Choice 2025 for XDR (97% recommend). MITRE Managed Services: 100% detection, best signal-to-noise ratio. Platform technology highly praised but MDR service gets mixed feedback, with support quality and false positive tuning as top complaints in 2026. |
| Compliance | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001:2013ISO 27701:2019GDPR | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001:2022FedRAMP ModerateFedRAMP HighIRAP (Australia)BSI C5:2020 (Germany) |
| Certifications | SOC 2 Type II (annual audit May 1 to April 30)ISO 27001:2013ISO 27701:2019 (processor) | SOC 2 Type IIISO 27001:2022 (Schellman-certified)FedRAMP Moderate (Singularity Platform)FedRAMP High (Purple AI, CNAPP, Hyperautomation, May 2025)IRAP (Australia government security framework)BSI C5:2020 (Germany cloud computing compliance)MITRE ATT&CK: 100% detection, zero delays, 5 consecutive years (platform eval)MITRE Managed Services: 100% detection of 15 attack steps, best signal-to-noise ratio |
| Founded | 2016 | 2013 |
| Data retention | Per-contract basis with automated secure disposal per retention policy | Singularity Complete: 14 days. Singularity Commercial: 30 days. Enterprise: 90 days. Extended retention available as add-on up to 3 years. |
| API available | ✓ | ✓ |
| Website | Visit → | Visit → |
›› FAQ
What is the main difference between Expel and SentinelOne?
Expel is a Pure-play MDR that is technology-agnostic (works with your existing tools). SentinelOne is a Platform vendor that is platform-native (requires their own security stack). Expel covers 5 attack surfaces in base pricing vs. 3 for SentinelOne.
How do Expel and SentinelOne differ in response capabilities?
Expel supports 6 autonomous actions (account disable, custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable. SentinelOne supports 5 autonomous actions (custom playbooks, endpoint isolation, file quarantine, network containment, process termination) and approval is configurable.
How does Expel pricing compare to SentinelOne?
Expel pricing: Starting at $11,640/year. Custom quotes based on environment size and coverage areas.. SentinelOne pricing: SentinelOne platform pricing is separate from the MDR add-on. Third-party comparison data reports Vigilance MDR around $15-30+/endpoint/year, while SentinelOne public platform tiers and enterprise bundles remain separate or custom.. Watch for with Expel: Threat hunting is NOT included in base MDR, it is a separate add-on; Incident response is NOT included and must be obtained separately. Watch for with SentinelOne: Platform license ($179.99-$229.99/endpoint/year) is required before MDR, significant prerequisite cost; MDR pricing is a bolt-on fee not shown on the public pricing page.
Should I choose Expel or SentinelOne?
Choose Expel if: mid-market and enterprise organizations with existing security tools wanting vendor-agnostic MDR. Choose SentinelOne if: organizations already running SentinelOne Singularity wanting platform-native MDR without adding another vendor. Expel is not ideal for organizations wanting platform-native MDR from a single vendor (Expel requires existing security tools). SentinelOne is not ideal for organizations running CrowdStrike, Microsoft Defender, or any non-SentinelOne EDR, platform-native lock-in.
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.