CRITICALSTART vs Exabeam comparison

Critical Start and Exabeam are both solutions in the Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR) category. Critical Start is ranked #26, while Exabeam is ranked #11 with an average rating of 7.6. Critical Start holds a 1.2% mindshare in SOAR, compared to Exabeam’s 3.1% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Critical Start users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 76% of Exabeam users who would recommend it.

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 5, 2024

Exabeam and CRITICALSTART are competing security solutions providing distinct advantages aligning with specific requirements. Data comparisons suggest Exabeam is favored in pricing and support, while CRITICALSTART offers exceptional features and is considered worth the investment.

Features:Exabeam offers advanced security analytics, automated threat detection, and a user-friendly interface. CRITICALSTART provides comprehensive incident response, managed detection service capabilities, and a mobile app for on-the-go management.

Room for Improvement:Exabeam could enhance its application logging capabilities, while improving training resources would benefit new users. CRITICALSTART might enhance integration with various data sources and speed up its UI responsiveness. The cost of integrating additional data sources can be a factor for improvement as well.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service:Exabeam simplifies deployment with a straightforward model and strong customer support for seamless system integration. CRITICALSTART offers a flexible and adaptable deployment process with a reputation for exceptional personalized customer service that stands out.

Pricing and ROI:Exabeam is known for competitive setup costs and promising ROI, making it attractive to budget-conscious buyers. CRITICALSTART has a higher initial cost but offers significant ROI through effective features and tailored services. The difference is Exabeam's affordability compared to CRITICALSTART's premium pricing for high-end features.

To learn more, read our detailed CRITICALSTART vs. Exabeam Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

CRITICALSTART vs. Exabeam

June 2026

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Torq

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR) category, the mindshare of Torq is 3.8%, down from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of CRITICALSTART is 1.2%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Exabeam is 3.1%, up from 1.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Torq	3.8%
Exabeam	3.1%
CRITICALSTART	1.2%
Other	91.9%

Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR)

Featured Reviews

AdityaDesai

Solutions Architect at ProArch

Automation has streamlined multi-tenant SOC workflows and improves alert handling efficiency

Although the reporting within Torq is not that great, we did ask for many features regarding reporting in Torq, but due to some platform constraints, they could not make the whole dataset available for us to be used in reporting. Except for that, we used some basic reporting. When I used Torq, it was indeed in the early stages of AI capabilities. Only a few customers were allowed to use it, and we were among them. It functioned well as long as we summarized the data properly. If you input garbage, you would get garbage out. Thus, we had to do significant fine-tuning regarding what data context we provided to the AI orchestrator to get meaningful results. In terms of Torq's unified platform approach to AI SOC automation and case management compared to managing multiple point solutions across my security stack, I find it case-centric. The unified view in case management is good since it provides clarity, although there are limitations regarding how many items in case management can be modified at once. Bulk operations are very limited, potentially due to their back-end database or data retrieval processes that can be improved. Regarding improvements for Torq, when we were onboarded, there were aspects we were uncertain about, such as the number of cases that could be generated, what data we could bring in, how many clients we could onboard, and similar concerns. Initially, we also lacked clarity about the number of playbooks or workflows we could build. Different triggers like system triggers, case-based triggers, and others can be employed without restrictions, but when it comes to on-demand and scheduled jobs, there is a limitation based on the subscription and pricing tier that notably caps the number of workflows we can create. No bulk editing across cases was one issue, along with limited filtering related to single grouping constraints. Additionally, the out-of-the-box case templates provided require substantial modifications before they become usable. There is also a feature in the cases for notes that cannot be searched. They are only visible through the UI, which is another area for improvement. The workflow and execution-based charges seem misleading as this was not discussed initially. I am not sure if new customers are made aware of this. It seems that workflows revolving around cases hinder functionality outside of case management, as we have many use cases needing on-demand triggers and schedules for functions like reporting or polling devices. Creating additional workflows to achieve basic functionalities raises costs significantly, which disadvantages customers. While they facilitate optimization and scaling, the support received tends to be very basic. Improvements can be made in that area as well.

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Justin Hadley

Sr. Manager, Security Engineering at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees

The transparency of data in the platform is perfect: You see everything as they are seeing it

Their Zero Trust Analytics Platform (ZTAP) engine, which is kind of their correlation engine, is by far and away one of the best in the business. We can filter and utilize different lists to build out different alerts, such as, what to alert on and when not to alert. This engine helps reduce our number of alerts and false positives. The service's Trusted Behavior Registry helps the provider solve every alert. The way that they have it built out is very intelligent. The way every alert comes in, it gets triaged one direction or another. If it is already a false positive, then it is still getting addressed and reviewed on a regular cadence. Also, true positive alerts get escalated to the appropriate personnel. Its mobile app is great. The ability just to be able to quick reference and see what's coming in when you're on the move or go. You don't always need to have your computer or laptop handy, because you can operate it just from the mobile app. It can communicate with analysts, which is great. The mobile app is great at affecting the efficiency of our security operations. Those guys are using it throughout the day, whether that be at the office, home, or off hours. Typically, they triage from the mobile app. Then, if an escalation needs to be done on a computer, they will pull out a computer. We were on the original UI for a few years, so the updated UI has been a refreshing change. It has significantly more ability to filter and translate data, then load that data. It is rather intuitive to click through for some of our junior analysts or interns, especially as we are starting to onboard and teach them different aspects of the security operations team.

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reviewer2265966

Enterprise Account Manager South at a outsourcing company with 201-500 employees

Advanced analytics have transformed our threat detection and streamlined incident investigations

I would appreciate seeing additional dashboards in Exabeam Fusion SIEM or perhaps more options or the ability to customize them further. While we can customize them currently, there may be additional options available. I value the outcomes navigator because it matches the log piece to the use cases, which is helpful. The correlation rules are excellent. I am interested in whether there are additional threat intelligence feeds available that we could use, whether we can integrate our own, or if we could ingest different ones.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"What I liked the most about Torq is the actual workflow builder, which is really great because they offer a lot of features and convenience features that are useful for any automation engineer."

"Once I started to use the system and I saw the potential, it changed all of our work in IT."

"According to positive outcomes, Torq reduced manual work and made incident response more efficient."

"We have seen fewer failures of automations from the time Torq came into the picture, we've had a more streamlined process of handling incidents, and at the same time, we've learned to embed the AI into our incident types, and that is how it has helped us in the automation."

"As an analyst, it has demonstrated potential to reduce workforce requirements and time needed for related activities."

"Torq's unified platform approach to AI, SOAR, automation, and case management is superior compared to my experience managing multiple point solutions."

"Since we started working with Torq, I am handling much fewer alerts, it is becoming really easy for me to handle an alert, I have all the information that I need, I do not need to connect to different vendors to receive this information, and the main thing I got from Torq is time, which now helps me to build another automated system and learn."

"Any request that comes in, regardless of how complex it is, I can accomplish it with Torq."

More Torq pros

"My impression of the transparency of the data is that it has good detail. It allows you to see how many events have come in, how many of those events have made it down to their analysts to review, and then however many from their analysts to be able to close out, have been able to been escalated to us. It's a good metric that we can share with my management. They see the value of what the SOC is bringing on top of what my team is already doing."

"Outside of using the platform to manage alerts, the feature of the service that we get the most value from is being able to reach out to them and say, "Hey, we might go buy a SIEM," for example. They give us their overview of what's out there, what they've dealt with, what they integrate with, and what that looks like. That's been pretty powerful over the years for us."

"Their Zero Trust Analytics Platform (ZTAP) engine, which is kind of their correlation engine, is by far and away one of the best in the business. We can filter and utilize different lists to build out different alerts, such as, what to alert on and when not to alert. This engine helps reduce our number of alerts and false positives."

"Out of all the service providers I've had to work with over the years—I've been here six years—CRITICALSTART is my favorite to work with."

"From where we were prior to going into them, the service has increased our analysts’ efficiency to the point that they can focus on other areas of the business."

"The most valuable feature of their service is their tuning... If we were getting 1,000 alerts a day without them, they tune it until they know what to do for 999 of them, and one will make it through to us per day. That tuning is the most valuable part of their solution."

"The new mobile app is awesome. It is one of the best I've ever seen. It's much better than its predecessor. It's more intuitive, a whole lot easier to navigate and get where you need to go. It's less repetitive and just generally easier to use. It allows me to not have to be sitting at my computer all the time. I can be on my phone or tablet or wherever I'm at. It makes it a lot easier to answer tickets and do that kind of thing."

"After a year of using the service, our expectations have been met in terms of services delivered on time, on budget, and on spec."

More CRITICALSTART pros

"It's a very user-friendly product and it's a very comprehensive technology."

"Exabeam Fusion SIEM has a good performance and more advantages than traditional solutions."

"The solution has great technology, it's a very user-friendly product and a very comprehensive technology, the security on offer is very good, and cost-wise, compared to other technology, it's affordable."

"Overall, this is a fantastic tool and it is one of the best SIEMs that I've come across."

"The platform is not extremely expensive compared to its direct competitors; I would rate its pricing around six out of ten."

"The user interface and the timelines they use are the most valuable features, and the price model is very simple so that one can understand it easily and there are no surprises within it."

"The solution's initial setup process is easy."

"I have seen a return on investment with Exabeam Fusion SIEM, and it is worth the money."

More Exabeam pros

Cons

"I wish Torq's AI assistant for building templated workflows from scratch worked better; when you start with a blank slate, asking AI to help you build or template the workflow out does not go well."

"The workflow and execution-based charges seem misleading as this was not discussed initially, and creating additional workflows to achieve basic functionalities raises costs significantly, which disadvantages customers."

"We have MCP that we are working with our cloud security platform, and we wanted to connect this MCP to the case management."

"Regarding stability, I have noticed some lagging, crashing, and downtime, which is one of my largest gripes."

"Torq can probably use more ML and look at what can be closed and what cannot be closed in terms of data classification."

"Even now, we have workflows that are in production that use AI steps and I get different results, making it unusable to some degree."

"Regarding the pricing of Torq, I would say it is expensive."

"Additionally, the documentation for Torq is not very clear. Most of the information is presented in videos, which are not ideal for reading; there are mostly paragraphs and other text-based content."

More Torq cons

"It costs a lot for what we felt comfortable to spend."

"The only thing I can think of that I would like to see, and I'm sure they could work this into a service pretty easily, is not only alerts on issues that are affecting my company, but some threat intelligence of a general nature on what's out there in the environment. That might be a nice add-in."

"The biggest room for improvement is not necessarily in their service or offering, but in the products that they support. I would like them to further their knowledge and ability to integrate with those tools. They have base integrations with everything, and we haven't come across anything. They should just continue to build on that API interface between their applications and other third-party consoles."

"They could dig a little bit deeper into the Splunk alerts when they feel like they need to be escalated to us."

"They could dig a little bit deeper into the Splunk alerts when they feel like they need to be escalated to us. For example, if a locked account shows up, they could do a little extra digging to verify that the locked account was due to a bad password on the local system. They could just do a little extra digging within the Splunk environment instead of pushing it onto us to go do that extra little digging."

"There is room for improvement with the new UI, and that's about it. I would like to see a more intuitive design."

"During the six-month integration and rollout, there were some bumpy roads along the way. There were communication breakdowns between the project manager, CRITICALSTART leadership, and us (as the customer). I expressed my displeasure during the integration in their inability to effectively communicate when there were holdups or issues. They were going through some growing pains at that time, but they have been right there for us ever since."

"The biggest room for improvement is not necessarily in their service or offering, but in the products that they support."

More CRITICALSTART cons

"I would say the pricing for Exabeam Fusion SIEM is not cost prohibitive, but it was a little more than I initially thought."

"There is a lack of Indonesian support, it would benefit us to have more support for the customers."

"The customer service and support are not satisfactory."

"Adding to the number of certifications that they have, for example, ISO 27001, would be helpful. Currently, they only have SOC 2."

"Exabeam's integration capabilities are not good, as Exabeam has a very limited number of integrations and no out-of-box integration, which is an area where Exabeam should improve."

"The solution's reporting and dashboarding could be improved."

"We use the on-prem Exabeam product and face limitations using the web UI and administration of custom models and rules."

"One area for the solution's improvement is integration capabilities, particularly out-of-the-box integration which sometimes requires additional professional services."

More Exabeam cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"As far as the expense goes, it's very competitive pricing and the services you get are almost like you have a person on your team."

"I've told CRITICALSTART that I think the managed service they provide is cheaper than it should be. It's a really good deal."

"It costs a lot for what we felt comfortable to spend."

"The pricing has always been competitive. They have always been good to us. They will make it a fight. They don't try to hide anything; it's always been fully transparent and well-worth what we pay for it."

"There are contractual penalties if their SLAs are not met. This commitment was very important in our decision to go with this service, because not having downtime is extremely important to us. The providers has not missed an SLA in the 18 months that I have worked with them."

"Overall, for what I'm paying for it, and the benefit I'm getting out of it, it is right where it needs to be, if not a little bit in my favor. For what it costs me to actually have this service, I could afford one internal person to do that job, but now I have a team of 10 or more who are doing that job, and they don't sleep because they work shifts."

"The pricing of other services was so insane that they weren't even an option."

"Exabeam is not a cheap solution."

"The platform is not extremely expensive compared to its direct competitors; I would rate its pricing around six out of ten."

"They have a great model for pricing that can be based either on user count or gigabits per day."

"Exabeam Fusion SIEM's pricing is reasonable."

"The solution is expensive."

"There is an annual license required to use Exabeam Fusion SIEM. The price of the solution should be reduced."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

13%

Construction Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

11%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	6

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	4
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	4

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	12
Midsize Enterprise	5
Large Enterprise	7

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Torq?

I do not dislike anything about Torq because it has satisfied all of our use cases and requirements. We contacted sup...

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What is your primary use case for Torq?

Initially, we were using Slack for small automations, such as creating pipelines or shutting down servers. For exampl...

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What advice do you have for others considering Torq?

I have been working for five years with experience in the IT field. Torq is very good. It manages everything. I would...

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What are the biggest differences between Securonix UEBA, Exabeam, and IBM QRadar?

It mostly depends on your use-cases and environment. Exabeam and Securonix have a stronger UEBA feature set, friendli...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Exabeam Fusion SIEM?

I would say the pricing for Exabeam Fusion SIEM is not cost prohibitive, but it was a little more than I initially th...

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What needs improvement with Exabeam Fusion SIEM?

I would appreciate seeing additional dashboards in Exabeam Fusion SIEM or perhaps more options or the ability to cust...

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Comparisons

Tines vs Torq

Compared 25% of the time

Splunk SOAR vs Torq

Compared 14% of the time

Blink Ops vs Torq

Compared 11% of the time

Palo Alto Networks Cortex XSOAR vs Torq

Compared 10% of the time

Swimlane vs Torq

Compared 8% of the time

More Torq Competitors

ServiceNow Security Operations vs CRITICALSTART

Compared 12% of the time

Palo Alto Networks Cortex XSOAR vs CRITICALSTART

Compared 9% of the time

SentinelOne Wayfinder Threat Detection and Response vs CRITICALSTART

Compared 8% of the time

Binary Defense MDR vs CRITICALSTART

Compared 8% of the time

Expel vs CRITICALSTART

Compared 6% of the time

More CRITICALSTART Competitors

Splunk Enterprise Security vs Exabeam

Compared 5% of the time

Securonix Next-Gen SIEM vs Exabeam

Compared 4% of the time

IBM Security QRadar vs Exabeam

Compared 4% of the time

Dtex Systems vs Exabeam

Compared 3% of the time

Splunk User Behavior Analytics vs Exabeam

Compared 3% of the time

More Exabeam Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Torq

June 2026

Download Torq product report

Buyer's Guide

CRITICALSTART

June 2026

Download CRITICALSTART product report

Buyer's Guide

Exabeam

June 2026

Download Exabeam product report

Also Known As

No data available

Critical Start, CriticalStart

No data available

Overview

Torq is the enterprise AI SOC solution that effectively combines adaptive insights and automation to handle critical threats efficiently. It manages threat lifecycles, swiftly moving from triage to response, ensuring effective risk management.

Torq is designed to streamline security operations by aggregating telemetry across your security stack. It investigates significant risks and manages threats from triage to containment and remediation. This AI-driven tool enhances the capabilities of your SecOps team, allowing them to achieve more impactful results without introducing complicated processes.

What are the key features of Torq?

Adaptive Agentic Insights: Provides real-time threat intelligence tailored to specific security challenges.
Automation: Automates responses to security incidents, minimizing manual intervention requirements.
Threat Lifecycle Management: Comprehensive handling of threats from detection to remediation.
Telemetry Aggregation: Integrates data across platforms for a unified security overview.

Why consider Torq based on reviews?

Efficiency: Users notice significant reductions in time spent managing threats.
Risk Reduction: Enhanced ability to identify and address critical threats promptly.
Resource Optimization: Allows teams to allocate effort to other critical tasks by reducing manual security operations.
Scalability: Adaptable to meet the demands of growing or changing infrastructures.

In industries like finance and healthcare, Torq shows effectiveness by adapting to specific risk scenarios often encountered in these fields. Its integration with existing infrastructures makes it a valuable asset for maintaining stringent security standards, essential for protecting critical data and operations in diverse high-stakes environments.

Torq

CRITICALSTART enhances cybersecurity through advanced alert management, expert guidance, and a user-friendly interface. It promotes efficient monitoring and response to alerts, utilizing a Zero Trust model for heightened security.

CRITICALSTART is designed for organizations seeking to manage security alerts and streamline monitoring processes. Known for its quick response times and efficient alert filtering, it integrates tools like Cylance and Carbon Black to offer managed detection and response services. Users experience enhanced security by focusing on critical threats while the platform's easy navigation aids in efficiently responding to alerts. Improvement areas include better alert prioritization, enhanced compliance disclosure, and smoother integration with third-party communication tools.

What are the key features of CRITICALSTART?

Alert Management: Efficient handling and filtering of alerts to minimize noise.
Expert Guidance: Insights for integrating SIEM and optimizing response strategies.
Mobile Access: Easy access through a mobile app to manage alerts on the go.
Zero Trust Model: Enhances security by minimizing unnecessary access and noise.
User-Friendly Interface: Seamless navigation enhances user interaction and response times.

What advantages and ROI should users consider?

Improved Security Confidence: Advanced alert handling promotes a secure environment.
Increased Efficiency: Streamlined monitoring allows focus on critical threats.
Expert Insight: Professional guidance enhances security strategies and operations.
Quick Response Times: Rapid handling of threats reduces potential impacts.

In industry applications, organizations use CRITICALSTART to bolster cybersecurity measures across finance, healthcare, and technology sectors. Managed detection services and third-party integration make it suitable for enterprises looking to optimize security operations and minimize alert fatigue while ensuring 24/7 monitoring and protection.

Critical Start

Exabeam offers intuitive interfaces, detailed dashboards, and powerful analytics to enhance security investigations. Its machine learning detects complex threats with automation streamlining tasks for efficiency and integration with AWS.

Exabeam stands out with its robust cybersecurity management capabilities, offering advanced user behavior analytics and incident detection tools. Security teams can use its systems to monitor events, create investigative timelines, and analyze log data. While praised for easy use, it benefits from initial training for optimal utilization. Challenges include the need for better flexibility, cost-management, and enhanced AI integration. However, it facilitates seamless AWS integration, real-time updates, and vulnerability prioritization within business contexts. Improvements in dashboard customization and overall performance, especially in UI and log ingestion, could enhance usability.

What are Exabeam's key features?

User-Friendly Interface: Simplifies navigation with clear dashboards.
Advanced Analytics: Uses behavior and machine learning for threat detection.
Automation: Reduces workload and streamlines security workflows.
Seamless Integration: Works efficiently with AWS services.
Real-Time Updates: Provides configuration updates instantly.

What benefits and ROI can be found in user reviews?

Enhanced Security: Provides thorough threat detection.
Efficiency: Automation reduces time and labor costs.
Comprehensive Support: Facilitates integration across platforms.
Risk Management: Assists in prioritizing vulnerabilities effectively.

Exabeam is widely used across industries such as finance and government for cybersecurity management. Organizations leverage its capabilities for integrating logs, protecting sensitive environments, and supporting compliance efforts. Its tools aid in detecting anomalies and managing security operations within infrastructures effectively.

Exabeam

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Hulu, ADP, Safeway, BBCN Bank

Buyer's Guide

CRITICALSTART vs. Exabeam

June 2026

Free Report: CRITICALSTART vs. Exabeam

Find out what your peers are saying about CRITICALSTART vs. Exabeam and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.

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