Endpoint Security
Best EDR Tools in 2026: 6 Endpoint Detection and Response Platforms
Isolate the process on the box. You cannot contain a host you never saw, and an XDR SKU is not that agent.
Expertise: Endpoint Security · Level: Intermediate · 6 min read
CISA’s #StopRansomware Guide (September 2023) tells operators to keep antivirus signatures current and, separately, to put endpoint detection and response on the assets so unauthorized software is blocked. A current signature pack still does not give you a process tree, and it does not isolate the host.
The contradiction is that the AV console looks finished while the box still cannot answer which pid spawned the child. EDR is telemetry plus a contain action on that laptop. XDR correlates host and identity after the agent exists. MDM decides whether the laptop is a company laptop. Those 3 get sold as one SKU.
A commercial agent, a pipeline you compose, and SQL against the fleet ask the same host in different ways. The correlation story lives on XDR tools. Enrollment and wipe live on MDM tools. Isolation starts on the box you operate, not on a pack that never named the process.
How we evaluated
We read first-party docs, source, licenses, and release notes, and we treat a marketing page as a claim, not as proof that two products do the same work.
We cared about whether the product sits on the host, whether isolate or contain is documented, whether you operate the server, and whether the docs name an artifact you can collect on a device you own.
We read first-party docs, licenses, and release notes. Unless a write-up says otherwise, we did not run a paid tenant.
| Tool | Best for | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| osquery | SQL on the host you own | SQL tables · Apache-2.0 / GPL-2.0 · you operate the agent |
| Elastic Defend | Endpoint agent on an Elastic stack | Endpoint prevention · Elastic License / subscription · on the Elastic stack |
| CrowdStrike Falcon | Known EDR agent | Cloud agent · commercial |
| Microsoft Defender for Endpoint | Known agent on a Microsoft estate | Windows-first depth · Microsoft 365 / Defender plans · known agent |
| SentinelOne | Commercial autonomous-response EDR | Host containment on the public docs · commercial · console included |
| OpenEDR | Open EDR you operate | Open agent · CASL · you operate the server |
osquery
Best for SQL on the host you own
osquery is also on the detection-as-code list as SQL. Here it is the agent you deploy to ask the box.
When the EDR console is dark, SQL on the host is the practical fallback. It is not a blocker. It is not a malware family pack. You write the query.
Key features
- SQL tables
- Scheduled queries
- Works with Fleet
- You operate it
Why we like it
A question you can ask the host without a new RFP is the fallback every dark console needs.
Limits
Not a blocker. Not a malware family pack. You write the query.
Elastic Defend
Best for endpoint agent on an Elastic stack
Elastic Defend is the agent next to Elastic Security. The SIEM list already covers Elastic. This is the box.
If the SIEM is already Elastic, this is the agent that does not add a fourth vendor. You own the stack. The license is not Apache. It is not a CrowdStrike clone.
Key features
- Endpoint prevention
- On Elastic
- Self-host or cloud
- Tied to Elastic SIEM
Why we like it
The agent next to the SIEM you already staff is the no-new-vendor row.
Limits
You own the stack. License is not Apache. Not a clone of the known commercial agents.
CrowdStrike Falcon
Best for known EDR agent
CrowdStrike Falcon is on the XDR list. Here it is the agent.
A familiar commercial option. Host-and-identity correlation is on the XDR list. Overlap is declared.
Key features
- Cloud agent
- Detection and response
- Threat intel add-ons
- Sales-led
Why we like it
Naming the agent those estates already deploy keeps this page from pretending the RFP is empty.
Limits
Commercial. Overlap with the XDR list is declared.
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
Best for known agent on a Microsoft estate
Microsoft Defender for Endpoint is the Microsoft agent. The XDR list rows Defender XDR. This is the device plan.
If the laptop is already Entra-joined, start here before a third agent. Plan SKUs split features. We did not run E5. The IdP is on the identity protection list.
Key features
- Windows-first depth
- M365 integration
- Automatic investigation features on the public docs
- Licensed by plan
Why we like it
Defender is already on the Microsoft estate, so the contain action does not wait on a second agent RFP.
Limits
Plan SKUs split features. We did not run E5. The IdP is on the identity protection list.
SentinelOne
Best for commercial autonomous-response EDR
SentinelOne sells an agent that can contain on the host. The brochure says autonomous. Treat that as first-party language.
A third commercial option so the list is not only Microsoft and CrowdStrike. You still own the policy. We did not measure autonomy.
Key features
- Agent on the host
- Containment on the public docs
- Console
- Commercial
Why we like it
A documented contain action on the host is why this option exists next to the other two names.
Limits
Commercial. We did not measure autonomy. You still own the policy.
OpenEDR
Best for open EDR you operate
OpenEDR is on the XDR list as the open agent. Here it stays the open EDR row: source-available CASL, not OSI GPL.
If the requirement is source you can read, this is the EDR-shaped option. You staff it. It is not a commercial replacement in a quarter. The stitch across hosts is on the XDR list.
Key features
- Open agent
- You operate the server
- Windows-focused roots
- CASL
Why we like it
An agent whose source you can read is the pick when the RFP says inspectable.
Limits
You staff it. Not a commercial replacement in a quarter. Windows-focused roots.
What we left out
- Carbon Black. Enterprises already have the agent from a VMware-era buy. Three commercial EDR shelves already sit on this page, and a fourth would reprint an XDR bake-off.
- LimaCharlie. Teams want detection-as-code on an agent they can pay as they go. Osquery and OpenEDR already cover asking the host without a commercial contract.
osquery’s launch thread is still the practical pitch: SQL on the host. That is the agent question this page asks.
Questions before you buy
If procurement cannot get written answers, you are still buying a brochure.
- Can I ask this host whether a named process is running if the console is down?
- Are we buying an agent, a console, or both, and which one is already on the laptop?
- Which plan SKU includes containment on the device, and which only alerts?
Sit on the box. Use XDR when you need the join across host and identity. Use MDM when you need to wipe the laptop that left in a backpack.
FAQs
Is this the XDR list?
No. XDR is the console job. EDR is the agent. Two names overlap on purpose.
Does EDR replace MDM?
No. MDM ships the policy. EDR watches the process. Different door.
Can I skip an agent if I have a SIEM?
Only if you like being blind on the host. Logs you never sent are the SIEM list’s hole.
Is this a scored bake-off?
No. Order is editorial. We did not detonate malware.
