Compare · EDR
LightEDR vs Huntress Managed EDR - 2026
Huntress is a managed EDR built for MSPs and SMBs, with a fully staffed 24/7 SOC included in the price. LightEDR is a self-managed platform for teams who want direct control of their detection and response operations. The right choice depends on whether you want to run your own SOC or outsource it.
Based on publicly available documentation as of May 2026.
Feature comparison
| Feature | LightEDR | Huntress |
|---|---|---|
| SOC operations model | Self-managed - you own the triage and response | Fully managed - Huntress SOC analysts triage for you |
| Zero Trust (continuous) | Built in - NIST SP 800-207, 5 signals, 4 trust levels | Not available |
| Pricing | From £5/agent/month (published) | ~$3-5/agent/month via MSP channel (not publicly listed) |
| Multi-tenant console | Native - single control plane, you control the platform | MSP partner portal with per-client views |
| MITRE ATT&CK detection | Yes | Yes |
| AI-assisted triage | Bring-your-own LLM (5 providers) | Managed analysts handle triage |
| Managed ITDR | Not included | Managed Identity Threat Detection and Response |
| Process Insights | Full process-tree forensics, 90-day telemetry | Process Insights with persistence mechanism detection |
| Linux support | eBPF-based, no kernel module | Primarily Windows and macOS focused |
| Sigma rule support | Native | Not available (managed detection rules) |
| 24/7 human review | Your analysts (or yours + AI triage) | Included - Huntress SOC reviews every alert |
| Free tier | Free up to 5 agents, no card required | No public free tier |
Where Huntress wins
Huntress's genuine strengths
- Managed SOC included. Huntress's most meaningful differentiator is that real human analysts review every alert, 24 hours a day. If your organisation does not have SOC capacity, this eliminates the biggest gap in your detection programme - and it is included in the per-agent price.
- Managed ITDR. Huntress includes Managed Identity Threat Detection and Response, covering Microsoft 365 and Active Directory compromise. This is a capability that goes beyond endpoint-only detection.
- SMB and MSP focus. Huntress is purpose-built for the MSP market and SMB environments. The onboarding, tooling, and support model reflects that. If your clients are small businesses without internal IT security staff, Huntress is designed for exactly that scenario.
- Persistence mechanism detection. Huntress has invested heavily in detecting persistence techniques specifically. Their Process Insights module is known for surfacing subtle persistence that generic MITRE detection misses.
Where LightEDR wins
LightEDR's genuine advantages
- You own the SOC actions. With Huntress, the managed SOC decides what to escalate and when. With LightEDR, your analysts make those calls - with AI triage and trust context to help them. If direct control of your response operations matters, LightEDR is the self-managed option.
- Zero Trust built in. Huntress does not offer continuous endpoint trust scoring. LightEDR's NIST SP 800-207 architecture addresses compromised agent scenarios and lateral movement through the EDR layer itself - a threat vector Huntress does not cover.
- Linux coverage. Huntress is primarily Windows and macOS focused. LightEDR supports Linux natively via eBPF, with full feature parity across platforms. If your environment includes Linux servers, containers, or infrastructure hosts, this is a significant gap in Huntress's coverage.
- Detection engineering control. LightEDR supports native Sigma rules, giving your detection team control over the rule set. With Huntress, detection rules are managed by Huntress analysts. If you want to write and tune your own detections, LightEDR is the right choice.
- AI triage with your own LLM. LightEDR integrates with five LLM providers, including local Ollama instances for data sovereignty. Huntress's managed analysts handle triage - there is no bring-your-own-AI option.
Which to choose
Choose Huntress if:
- You're an MSP serving SMB clients who have no internal security staff
- 24/7 managed SOC coverage is a requirement you cannot staff yourself
- Managed ITDR (M365, Active Directory) is in scope
- You want a fully managed service with minimal operational overhead
Choose LightEDR if:
- You have your own SOC analysts and want direct control of triage and response
- Zero Trust continuous verification is a requirement
- You need Linux coverage with full feature parity
- Your detection team writes Sigma rules and wants native support
- You want to choose your own LLM for AI-assisted triage
The clearest decision factor: do you want to run your own SOC or outsource it? Huntress is a managed service. LightEDR is a platform. They are solving adjacent but different problems.
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