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LevelBlue USM Anywhere vs Security Onion comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 24, 2026

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

LevelBlue USM Anywhere
Ranking in Log Management
29th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
115
Ranking in other categories
Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) (27th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (37th), Compliance Management (12th)
Security Onion
Ranking in Log Management
22nd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Log Management category, the mindshare of LevelBlue USM Anywhere is 1.5%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Security Onion is 1.6%, down from 4.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Log Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Security Onion1.6%
LevelBlue USM Anywhere1.5%
Other96.9%
Log Management
 

Featured Reviews

Kris Nawani - PeerSpot reviewer
Co-Founder/Director at Bangkok MSP Company Limited
Offers complete coverage without the need to install additional software
USM Anywhere is used for threat detection and investigation. It provides a solution with built-in threat intelligence and various other investigation tools The solution offers complete coverage without the need to install additional software, as it is maintained by the vendor. It helps in saving…
Hiten Nandasana - PeerSpot reviewer
Angular developer at Flourish software
Centralized monitoring has strengthened threat detection and supports faster incident investigations
Security Onion is a completely open-source and free platform, making it a cost-effective solution that works smoothly and effectively for our organization. Security Onion integrates well with our existing tools, primarily using Linux systems in our organization, allowing us to monitor logs and manage threat detection and operations in the public cloud effectively. Security Onion is very helpful in meeting compliance requirements and supports regular standards for our environment. I advise organizations that use Linux or have network security knowledge to consider Security Onion, as it satisfies requirements such as threat detection and log management systems. I would rate this review eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The asset management functionality (active and passive scans) is also really important. You can't protect what you do not know about, so having an inventory of all your devices and software is critical to a security management program."
"Students becoming acclimated to the product can go out into the field and have first-hand knowledge on how to use a USM or SIEM product."
"The best feature of this product is the ease of use. It is extremely easy to set up and get going. This is a very useful tool for a small organization."
"Easy to use, scalable, stable, and very intuitive platform that provides protection against security threats."
"The vulnerability manager and the file integration are very good."
"The all-in-one source for the needs of compliance has put everything into one location without the need of other applications and tools to accomplish the tasks."
"I highly recommend AlienVault USM for anybody that is seeking a SIEM solution that is easy to implement and easy to manage."
"Being the only Security professional in an organisation of well over 1000 people AlienVault lets me keep a watchful eye whilst getting on with my day job."
"We use Security Onion for internal vulnerability assessment."
"The most valuable feature of Security Onion for security monitoring is its ability to find infected ports."
"Security Onion is the most mature solution in the market."
"Security Onion is a completely open-source and free platform, making it a cost-effective solution that works smoothly and effectively for our organization."
 

Cons

"I feel that some areas of improvement would be vulnerability scanning. We use a separate product that seems to do a much better job."
"My biggest challenge has always been the fine tuning that is sometimes required for some networks."
"Backup, restore, and upgrade - some menu options are a bit convoluted."
"I knocked off a point for the learning curve compared to some of the competition and another point for the lack of native user behavior analytics but for the money you really can't do any better."
"For creating new rules, you have to be familiar with regular expressions. I feel there could be something built-in to make sure that process is easier."
"I think plugin management should be self-service on AlienVault USM. The other product is self-service but on the USM side. You have to submit a ticket then AT&T creates and updates the plugins."
"The only complex area of the setup was writing the custom scripts."
"They should improve the reporting capabilities. Different functions to customize reports should be added."
"The initial setup of the solution is a little bit difficult."
"Security Onion's user interface could be improved."
"The product is not easy to learn."
"Security Onion can be made easier to set up initially, as it is somewhat difficult at the start, but once configured, it becomes a great tool to use."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I don't think the product's pricing is a good value because they try to raise the price 50 percent every year... AlienVault needs to understand that not all customers are huge enterprises... Their sales team is way too aggressive. The price they advertise is not always the price you get."
"We ran a few PoCs. The price and feature set were the best with AlienVault."
"AT&T AlienVault USM is an expensive solution and we pay for the license and the support separately. We paid for the license and support for three years."
"Its price is much lower than McAfee ESM."
"They are a little more expensive than Microsoft."
"Do the one month trial and try to work out the kinks during it, as it has free support and service hours."
"The price for this solution is very good, but since the features do not work the price is expensive."
"​The price point is good.​"
"Security Onion is a free solution."
"It is an open-source solution."
"Security Onion is an open-source solution."
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915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
19%
Outsourcing Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
12%
University
12%
Government
9%
Construction Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business65
Midsize Enterprise29
Large Enterprise25
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with AT&T AlienVault USM?
There are scalability issues due to a 60 TB limit, which restricts its use for large customers like banks. It is also limited when used with bigger products and has complex password requirements.
What is your primary use case for AT&T AlienVault USM?
USM Anywhere is used for threat detection and investigation. It provides a solution with built-in threat intelligence and various other investigation tools.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Security Onion?
Security Onion does not require any cost, as it is open-source and free.
What needs improvement with Security Onion?
Security Onion can be made easier to set up initially, as it is somewhat difficult at the start, but once configured, it becomes a great tool to use. I assigned a rating of eight out of ten because...
What advice do you have for others considering Security Onion?
Security Onion is a completely open-source and free platform, making it a cost-effective solution that works smoothly and effectively for our organization. Security Onion integrates well with our e...
 

Also Known As

AT&T AlienVault USM, AlienVault, AlienVault USM, Alienvault Cybersecurity
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Abel & Cole, Bank of Ireland, Bluegrass Cellular, CareerBuilder, Claire's, Hays Medical Center, Hope International, McCurrach, McKinsey & Company, Party Delights, Pepco Holdings, Richland School District, Ricoh, SaveMart, Shake Shack, Steelcase, TaxAct, Taylor Morrison, Vonage and Zoom
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Find out what your peers are saying about LevelBlue USM Anywhere vs. Security Onion and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
915,341 professionals have used our research since 2012.