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Cortex Xpanse vs Darktrace comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 28, 2025

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

Cortex Xpanse
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
7th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Darktrace
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
84
Ranking in other categories
Email Security (9th), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Software (IDPS) (2nd), Network Traffic Analysis (NTA) (1st), Network Detection and Response (NDR) (1st), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (6th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (11th), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (9th), AI-Powered Cybersecurity Platforms (4th), AI Observability (9th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Attack Surface Management (ASM) category, the mindshare of Cortex Xpanse is 3.0%, down from 4.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Darktrace is 4.9%, down from 13.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Attack Surface Management (ASM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Darktrace4.9%
Cortex Xpanse3.0%
Other92.1%
Attack Surface Management (ASM)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer1442496 - PeerSpot reviewer
System Administrator at a retailer with 5,001-10,000 employees
Ensures robust security management with seamless integration
We work with the cloud version of Cortex Xpanse. We are working with Palo Alto products right at the moment. We have Cortex and GlobalProtect that we are using. I'm not sure if we utilize Cortex Xpanse's capability to identify internet-facing assets. I'm not sure about the automated threat assessment of Cortex helping prioritize vulnerabilities. I would assess the integration capabilities of Cortex Xpanse as good; no issues so far with integration with other tools from different vendors. Cortex Xpanse supports our organization's regulatory compliance efforts 100%, and it's what we need from it. Right now, I am working only with Palo Alto for security. I am not planning to work with some other vendors. On a scale of one to ten, I rate Cortex Xpanse a nine.
AM
Technical Consultant - Unix Platform Services at BITS AND BYTE IT CONSULTING PVT LTD
Consistent threat hunting and anomaly detection deliver valuable insights for network security management
In terms of improvement for Darktrace, pricing is the main concern. Pricing bothers me and this is one of the major factors when choosing a solution. When we get feedback from customers, that's the only felt need. When we factor in Darktrace, we do it only limited. We put it on where the perimeters and connections are, but still, some gray areas are left out, especially if we have multiple branches. We need Darktrace on each branch to get the data out, and I suggest having some kind of a centralized product that gets data from multiple sources to aggregate and provide the data.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"Cortex Xpanse has an easy-to-use user interface."
"The most valuable features of the solution are its firewall and antivirus."
"Cortex Xpanse is a strong solution for attack surface management, including digital brand protection and continuous monitoring."
"As an attack surface manager, I highly recommend Cortex Xpanse, especially if there are many services exposed publicly on the internet."
"When there is an alert from Cortex Xpanse regarding a certificate or surface, it prompts us to take immediate action."
"The most valuable aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"The best feature of the product is that it's easy to manage when we have set it up, and the beneficial impact of Cortex Xpanse for the company is security."
"We liked their approach to identifying intrusions or network anomalies using AI."
"I have found the automation and AI features to be valuable. If someone were to come in to the office at midnight and log in, Darktrace would flag it."
"The solution is stable. We've never had any problems with it."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is that it does not require human intervention to eliminate a threat."
"We have found the product to be stable and issue-free."
"Its most valuable feature is its ability to identify malicious connected IPs from outside and the attacks that get through to the inside."
"It's a very stable product."
"It is a stable solution without downtime."
 

Cons

"Regarding technical support, I would rate it as a seven."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"Cortex Xpanse needs to add dark-web scanning."
"Some improvements are needed in the user interface."
"Some improvements are needed in the user interface. It may require more enhancements."
"It's challenging to confirm the absolute coverage and penetration of Cortex Xpanse into the Dark Web. The solution lacks comprehensive intelligence on adversaries and risks, which other competitors might provide."
"There is an issue with the old versions of Cortex, and so when we have an older one with Windows or any OS, we have a problem with its connectivity with the cloud."
"They just need to make it a little bit more accurate as far as their alerts are concerned. It does generate some false positives that you have to tune. You have to do a lot of tuning when you first get it because of the false positives, but once it is all tuned up and ready to go, it will do its thing from there."
"Although we haven't detected any network threats since implementing Darktrace, we are unsure of its efficacy. It would be beneficial if the solution could offer additional details to the user regarding any potential or prevented threats. Additionally, there could be better search tools and integration."
"I think there is some MSSP missing."
"I would like for the product to work on the endpoints as well. I would like to see enhanced visibility into the endpoints and network but this solution only sits on the network itself."
"There aren't so many third-party vendor platforms natively integrated with the platform."
"I would like to see some additional enhancements."
"One thing I would like is for Darktrace to flag SMB traffic more accurately. Currently, it only flags that SMB traffic has occurred, but it doesn't specify which file was being transferred. This makes it difficult to investigate incidents involving SMB traffic, as we don't have concrete evidence of what was being sent."
"The product is considered expensive compared to others."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Cortex Xpanse is cheaper than other solutions."
"The tool's cost is too high."
"The pricing is very flexible for Darktrace. Sometimes, a customer does not have the appropriate budget, but Darktrace can handle that. They offer monthly payments, so the customer can acquire the solution very easily."
"The pricing is subscription-based and it is high."
"The product is expensive."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"If you consider the features and the cost of market leaders, we are satisfied with the pricing."
"The cost is moderate."
"When it comes to large installations, it can be expensive, but for small accounts it's fine."
"The price of Darktrace is high and could be reduced. We pay approximately $30,000 to $54,000 annually."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business45
Midsize Enterprise19
Large Enterprise29
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cortex Xpanse?
I don't know the licensing or setup cost; I have no idea about the cost.
What needs improvement with Cortex Xpanse?
I'm not sure right now; I have nothing to comment on regarding what could be improved in the product. We are using it and we are satisfied. I have nothing to comment right now on what other feature...
What is your primary use case for Cortex Xpanse?
Cortex Xpanse is usually used for security from clients.
How does Crowdstrike Falcon compare with Darktrace?
Both of these products perform similarly and have many outstanding attributes. CrowdStrike Falcon offers an amazing user interface that makes setup easy and seamless. CrowdStrike Falcon offers a cl...
Which is better - SentinelOne or Darktrace?
Which solution is better depends on which is more suitable specifically for your company. Darktrace, for example, is meant for smaller to medium-sized businesses. It is also a good option for organ...
What do you like most about Darktrace?
A very useful feature in Darktrace for real-time threat analysis is the packet inspection that analyzes the packet traffic in real time.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Irwin Mitchell, Open Energi, Wellcome Trust, FirstGroup plc, Virgin Trains, Drax, QUI! Group, DNK, CreaCard, Macrosynergy, Sisley, William Hill plc, Toyota Canada, Royal British Legion, Vitol, Allianz, KKR, AIRBUS, dpd, Billabong, Mclaren Group.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cortex Xpanse vs. Darktrace and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,707 professionals have used our research since 2012.