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VMware NSX vs Vectra AI comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 6, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
6.9
Vectra AI enhances security efficiency, offers cost savings, improves incident response, and is valued despite challenges in quantifying ROI.
Sentiment score
6.4
VMware NSX enhances infrastructure efficiency, CAPEX savings, cybersecurity, and ROI, but initial costs and security effectiveness have mixed reviews.
The payback period is roughly six months.
Strategic RAN Lead | Network Transformation & Optimization | Philippines & South Africa at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
8.0
Users highly praise Vectra AI's customer service for its knowledgeable, responsive, and proactive support, with effective issue resolution.
Sentiment score
6.7
VMware NSX customer service is praised for efficiency and expertise, but improvements in accessibility and responsiveness are desired.
The support is quite reliable depending on the service engineer assigned.
Cyber Security Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
When I create tickets, the response is fast, and issues are solved promptly.
Planning& Performance Analyst at National Information Center, Ministry of Interior, Saudi Arabia
Customer support receives a rating of nine out of ten due to being very supportive and responding quite efficiently.
Strategic RAN Lead | Network Transformation & Optimization | Philippines & South Africa at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
They were always helpful.
Senior VMware Administrator at Johnson Controls, Inc.
They are quick and understand things easily, so the support is aligned very effectively.
Windows Redhat Linux Vmware & Azure & Cloud & Nutanix Ahv-Vmware & Backup Senior System Administrator at AlDawaa Medical Services
Our technicians have a good support experience from the company.
Joint Staff Officer at Hellenic National Defence General Staff
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.3
Vectra AI efficiently scales across large networks with planning, handling vast data traffic and numerous endpoints smoothly with proper infrastructure.
Sentiment score
7.7
VMware NSX is praised for its scalability, robust performance, and efficient network integration, despite some complexity in scaling.
Vectra AI is scalable because it can work through different kinds of solutions and is compatible with all kinds of cloud solutions.
Strategic RAN Lead | Network Transformation & Optimization | Philippines & South Africa at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
There is a high level of satisfaction with its ability to scale.
Senior IT Strategy Consultant at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Vectra AI is stable with rare downtime, quick bug fixes, and easy monitoring despite occasional throughput-related slowness.
Sentiment score
8.1
VMware NSX is highly stable, with strong performance, scalability, and frequent updates addressing most bugs and integration concerns.
The product performs at 99% efficiency without any showstoppers or significant issues.
Windows Redhat Linux Vmware & Azure & Cloud & Nutanix Ahv-Vmware & Backup Senior System Administrator at AlDawaa Medical Services
For stability, I would rate VMware NSX as a nine out of ten.
Services Presales Solutions Architecture - UAE & Gulf at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Room For Improvement

Vectra AI should improve integration, reporting, orchestration, reduce false positives, enhance accuracy, flexibility, and refine pricing and documentation.
VMware NSX faces challenges in costs, complexity, and user satisfaction, needing enhancements in automation, scalability, and security features.
ExtraHop's ability to decrypt encrypted data is a feature that Vectra AI lacks.
Planning& Performance Analyst at National Information Center, Ministry of Interior, Saudi Arabia
You need to have a Linux server, and from the Linux server, you must perform AI tasks, and there is a lot to be handled in the back end.
Owner at Fortibits
All threats, including hacking attempts, should be comprehensively addressed.
Consultant at a retailer with 5,001-10,000 employees
The initial configuration and integration within our existing environment were not easy.
Senior IT Strategy Consultant at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
The pricing for the product is another area for improvement as I'm not satisfied nowadays.
Senior VMware Administrator at Johnson Controls, Inc.
The licensing model is expensive and could be more flexible, especially after Broadcom bought VMware.
Services Presales Solutions Architecture - UAE & Gulf at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Setup Cost

Vectra AI pricing is seen as high but justified by its robust features, though expensive for some, like schools.
VMware NSX is viewed as costly, with complex licensing and high initial costs, particularly impacting smaller organizations.
Vectra is cheaper in terms of pricing and features compared to Darktrace.
Cyber Security Engineer at a tech services company with 1,001-5,000 employees
It is very acceptable when you compare it with Darktrace, for example.
Owner at Fortibits
The cost of VMware NSX is considered high.
Senior IT Strategy Consultant at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
VMware NSX is a little higher in price compared to the competition.
Joint Staff Officer at Hellenic National Defence General Staff
There is room for improvement in terms of pricing.
Senior VMware Administrator at Johnson Controls, Inc.
 

Valuable Features

Vectra AI excels in AI-driven threat detection, risk scoring, and seamless integration while enhancing visibility and handling high-risk behaviors.
VMware NSX offers enhanced security, seamless management, and flexibility with automation, scalability, and integration for cloud and on-premises solutions.
Our company used Vectra AI to detect the malicious threats and viruses before they could cause more damage, and we successfully stopped the threats.
Consultant at a retailer with 5,001-10,000 employees
Alert noise was dramatically reduced by nearly 80%, allowing SOC analysts to focus more on true threats, which made them more productive and resulted in higher operational efficiency.
Strategic RAN Lead | Network Transformation & Optimization | Philippines & South Africa at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
There are extensive out-of-box detection capabilities.
Owner at Fortibits
Micro-segmentation enhances security and provides more secure data in your data center.
Services Presales Solutions Architecture - UAE & Gulf at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
The most powerful feature of VMware NSX is the micro-segmentation that allows us to separate the different protocols our application works with.
Joint Staff Officer at Hellenic National Defence General Staff
I value the ability to dynamically configure our network on the fly using VMware NSX.
Senior IT Strategy Consultant at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Vectra AI
Ranking in Network Detection and Response (NDR)
2nd
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
47
Ranking in other categories
Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (5th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (16th), Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) (11th), AI-Powered Cybersecurity Platforms (6th)
VMware NSX
Ranking in Network Detection and Response (NDR)
7th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
106
Ranking in other categories
Network Virtualization (2nd), Cloud and Data Center Security (2nd), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (5th), Network Automation (3rd), Microsegmentation Software (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Network Detection and Response (NDR) category, the mindshare of Vectra AI is 13.3%, down from 16.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware NSX is 1.3%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Network Detection and Response (NDR) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Vectra AI13.3%
VMware NSX1.3%
Other85.4%
Network Detection and Response (NDR)
 

Featured Reviews

RR
Consultant at a retailer with 5,001-10,000 employees
Threat detection has improved and malicious emails are now identified quickly
Vectra AI offers artificial intelligence capabilities with visibility that can be integrated into our day-to-day operations and other tools, including malware detection tools and cyber threat tools. Vectra AI has positively impacted my organization. Last year while using it, we received many malicious email threats and virus incidents, including a trojan virus that had reportedly been deployed by someone. Our company used Vectra AI to detect the malicious threats and viruses before they could cause more damage, and we successfully stopped the threats. Using Vectra AI, I notice that server downtime has decreased significantly. We now experience only two to three hours of downtime, whereas without Vectra AI and other tools, our downtime would exceed 48 to 72 hours.
TAIYAB HASAN - PeerSpot reviewer
Windows Redhat Linux Vmware & Azure & Cloud & Nutanix Ahv-Vmware & Backup Senior System Administrator at AlDawaa Medical Services
Has improved network visibility and security through micro-segmentation and SDN capabilities
This feature gives us flexibility and allows us to manage everything under one pane. We can see everything on one console, including network operations and behavior. Monitoring and security are among the best features for VMware NSX. For micro-segmentation, it's integrated with our endpoint security. If there are any issues with servers or VMs, it notifies us so we can isolate the servers and investigate. It provides distributed security features such as firewall and intrusion, IDS, IPS. The security level with IPS and IDS in VMware NSX is excellent. It also provides logical switching and routing which gives an extra layer for Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching requirements. The solution provides flexibility, automation, and self-service capabilities, resulting in cost savings as extensive expertise isn't required. Once automation and self-service are implemented, many tasks can be completed automatically. Load balancing is another excellent feature. Multiple servers can run on load balancing features, which is particularly useful since we have many application servers running. Sharing loads between servers provides the best performance.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise29
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business33
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise69
 

Questions from the Community

What is the biggest difference between Corelight and Vectra AI?
The two platforms take a fundamentally different approach to NDR. Corelight is limited to use cases that require the eventual forwarding of events and parsed data logs to a security team’s SIEM or ...
What do you like most about Vectra AI?
The solution is currently used as a central threat detection and response system.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Vectra AI?
It is very acceptable when you compare it with Darktrace, for example.
What are the biggest differences between Cisco ACI and VMware NSX?
There are some very major differences between both the Products and to name a few. -Cisco ACI have physical network gear (9K Switches) where the Code runs in ACI Policy Mode & the UCS server wh...
What are the biggest differences between Cisco ACI and VMware NSX?
Once you know your way around the Cisco ecosystem, using Cisco ACI is not so difficult. It is a global product, so when you change one interface, changes are automatically reflected on every switch...
What do you like most about VMware NSX?
The product has valuable features for security and network extension.
 

Also Known As

Vectra Networks, Vectra AI NDR
VMware Nicira, Lastline Defender
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Tribune Media Group, Barry University, Aruba Networks, Good Technology, Riverbed, Santa Clara University, Securities Exchange, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association
City of Avondale, Lumeta, Kroll Ontrack, Heartland Payment Systems, Baystate Heallth, Exostar, Tribune Media, iGATE, NTT Communications, Synergent, California Natural Resources Agency, Bloomington Public Schools, Columbia Sportswear, Join Experience S.A, Schuberg Philis
Find out what your peers are saying about VMware NSX vs. Vectra AI and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
880,745 professionals have used our research since 2012.