Elastic Security vs IBM Watson for Cyber Security comparison

Elastic and IBM are both solutions in the Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) category. Elastic is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.5, while IBM is ranked #56. Elastic holds a 3.8% mindshare in SIEM, compared to IBM’s 0.7% mindshare. Additionally, 86% of Elastic users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM users who would recommend it.

Elastic Security

Read 66 Elastic Security reviews

11,426 Views
7,084 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

IBM Watson for Cyber Security

Read 4 IBM Watson for Cyber Security reviews

916 Views
889 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Elastic Security

IBM Watson for Cyber Security

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 18, 2024

IBM Watson for Cyber Security and Elastic Security are two prominent solutions in the cybersecurity landscape. Elastic Security seems to have the upper hand due to its feature-rich offering and user satisfaction with its complexity and effectiveness.

Features: IBM Watson for Cyber Security excels in advanced threat detection, leveraging artificial intelligence, and analyzing large datasets quickly. Elastic Security shines with its comprehensive observability capabilities, integration with the Elastic Stack, and robust real-time security monitoring.

Room for Improvement: IBM Watson for Cyber Security needs simplified initial setup, better documentation, and more straightforward deployment support. Elastic Security users mention the steep learning curve, performance issues under heavy loads, and the need for enhanced user training resources.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: IBM Watson for Cyber Security offers a complex deployment process but provides extensive support throughout the integration phase. Elastic Security has a more streamlined deployment model with comprehensive support but occasional delays in response times. Elastic Security is favored for easier deployment.

Pricing and ROI: IBM Watson for Cyber Security is considered expensive but offers a good return on investment. Elastic Security provides a flexible pricing model and strong ROI due to efficient threat detection and analysis, offering better value for the price point.

To learn more, read our detailed Elastic Security vs. IBM Watson for Cyber Security Report (Updated: February 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Elastic Security vs. IBM Watson for Cyber Security

February 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

Elastic Security

Ranking in Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

5th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Log Management (9th), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) (14th), Security Orchestration Automation and Response (SOAR) (5th), Extended Detection and Response (XDR) (8th)

IBM Watson for Cyber Security

Ranking in Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

56th

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) category, the mindshare of Elastic Security is 3.8%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Watson for Cyber Security is 0.7%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Elastic Security	3.8%
IBM Watson for Cyber Security	0.7%
Other	95.5%

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

Featured Reviews

Laurentiu Popescu

Chief Product Officer at ClusterPower

Has improved threat detection with deep log analysis and streamlined investigation workflows

The most useful features I find in Elastic Security are the forensic ones that allow us to carry deeper analysis into the logs for in-depth investigations, and the dashboards, with the reporting dashboard being quite user-friendly. Elastic Security is quite good at identifying threats, as it is part of the deep investigation tool that I mentioned before. Unless we need to look further into a certain log, we can carry out a deeper analysis and forensics on those particular logs. I can assess the impact of Elastic Security's real-time data analysis on our threat response efficiency as working pretty good. We are looking for real-time analysis because we have a continuous inflow of logs from different sources: from our cloud, from Active Directory, from our network. So it works pretty well.

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Elena Stefanovska

Sales Account Manager at InTec System

Knowledgeable support, reliable, and useful compliance policies

IBM Watson for Cyber Security can be deployed on-premise or in the cloud and it is used as a SIEM solution The most valuable features of IBM Watson for Cyber Security are ease of use and out-of-the-box reports and compliance policies. Additionally, if there are aspects that are missing IBM add…

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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

"It is the best open-source product for people working in SO, managing and analyzing logs."

"ELK documentation is very good, so never needed to contact technical support."

"The feature that we have found the most valuable is scalability."

"I use the stack every morning to check the errors and it's just so clear. I don't see any disadvantage to using Logstash."

"The scalability is good. It can be scaled easily in the production environment."

"Enables monitoring of application performance and the ability to predict behaviors."

"The most valuable features of Elastic Security are it is open-source and provides a high level of security."

"It's very customizable, which is quite helpful."

More Elastic Security pros

"The most valuable features of IBM Watson for Cyber Security are ease of use and out-of-the-box reports and compliance policies. Additionally, if there are aspects that are missing IBM add them in the next release."

"The most valuable feature of this product is innovation, where the research and upgrading of technology never ends."

"IBM Watson for Cyber Security is very stable."

"The customer support is very good."

Cons

"Sometimes, the solution isn't the easiest to use."

"There is room for improvement in the Kibana dashboard and in the asset management for the program."

"We'd like to see some more artificial intelligence capabilities."

"The problem with ELK is it's difficult to administer. When you have a problem, it can be very, very difficult to rebuild indexes."

"This solution cannot do predictive maintenance, so we have to build our own modules for doing it."

"The solution should generate an automatic product that integrates with ELK Stack to use artificial intelligence."

"The solution's basic setup takes time, and a lot of effort is required from the beginning to make it actually work."

"Elastic sometimes does not correctly identify threats or anomalies. It might not classify an issue as malicious or critical accurately."

More Elastic Security cons

"The dashboard could improve in IBM Watson for Cyber Security."

"They need to continue to build the AI capabilities."

"This is an expensive product, so making it more cost-effective would be an improvement."

"In the future, I would like to see threat intelligence included."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Its price is fine. Its licensing works on a yearly basis. We have to renew the license every year. I also have a good experience with Darktrace. When we buy Darktrace, we get training free of cost, which is not there in Elastic. We have to pay extra for training. There is certainly room for improvement."

"I find it better than Splunk in terms of cost-effectiveness. For cost-effectiveness, I would rate it a nine out of 10."

"Elastic Security is free to use."

"I can say that the product is cheaply priced."

"Elastic Stack is an open-source tool. You don't have to pay anything for the components."

"We are using the free, open-source version of this solution."

"The price is reasonable. It probably costs the same as ArcSight and LogRhythm SIEM. FortiSIEM might cost less than Elastic Security. There are no hidden or additional costs."

"The base product is open-source but if you need advanced security features then you need to pay for the subscription. Elastic Security's price is reasonable in some cases and in other cases it's not."

More Elastic Security pricing and cost advice

"IBM Watson for Cyber Security is very simple to license and is priced well."

"The price of this solution should be lower, although I understand why IBM charges a premium price."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

11%

Government

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	40
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	15

No data available

Questions from the Community

Datadog vs ELK: which one is good in terms of performance, cost and efficiency?

With Datadog, we have near-live visibility across our entire platform. We have seen APM metrics impacted several times lately using the dashboards we have created with Datadog; they are very good c...

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What do you like most about Elastic Security?

Elastic provides the capability to index quickly due to the reverse indexes it offers. This data is crucial as it contains critical information. The reverse index allows fast data indexing because ...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Elastic Security?

I am satisfied with the pricing, setup cost, and licensing cost. It is a pure 10.

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Compared 25% of the time

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Compared 12% of the time

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Compared 11% of the time

Sentinel vs IBM Watson for Cyber Security

Compared 7% of the time

Trellix ESM vs IBM Watson for Cyber Security

Compared 4% of the time

More IBM Watson for Cyber Security Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Elastic Security

February 2026

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Buyer's Guide

Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)

February 2026

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Also Known As

Elastic SIEM, ELK Logstash

No data available

Overview

Elastic Security is a robust, open-source security solution designed to offer integrated threat prevention, detection, and response capabilities across an organization's entire digital estate. Part of the Elastic Stack (which includes Elasticsearch, Logstash, and Kibana), Elastic Security leverages the power of search, analytics, and data aggregation to provide real-time insight into threats and vulnerabilities. It is a comprehensive platform that supports a wide range of security needs, from endpoint protection to cloud and network security, making it a versatile choice for organizations looking to enhance their cybersecurity posture.

Elastic Security combines the features of a security information and event management (SIEM) system with endpoint protection, allowing organizations to detect, investigate, and respond to threats in real time. This unified approach helps reduce complexity and improve the efficiency of security operations.

Additional offerings and benefits:

The platform utilizes advanced analytics, machine learning algorithms, and anomaly detection to identify threats and suspicious activities.
It offers extensive integration options with other tools and platforms, facilitating a more cohesive and comprehensive security ecosystem.
With Kibana, users gain access to powerful visualization tools and dashboards that provide real-time insight into security data.

Finally, Elastic Security benefits from a global community of users who contribute to its threat intelligence, helping to enhance its detection capabilities. This collaborative approach ensures that the solution remains on the cutting edge of cybersecurity, with up-to-date information on the latest threats and vulnerabilities.

Elastic

Watson for cyber security can draw security intelligence from millions of security blogs, online forums and white papers - so you can see threats unseen by other systems.

IBM

Sample Customers

Texas A&M, U.S. Air Force, NuScale Power, Martin's Point Health Care

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Elastic Security vs. IBM Watson for Cyber Security

February 2026

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