Microsoft Sentinel is a natural choice for organisations built on Microsoft 365 and Azure. Rising data costs and heavy analyst workloads, though, push plenty of teams to research Microsoft Sentinel alternatives.
Where Sentinel stands now
Sentinel is Microsoft’s cloud-native SIEM and SOAR. It is moving fully into the Microsoft Defender portal, and Microsoft has said Sentinel will no longer be supported in the Azure portal after 31 March 2027. Recent additions include the Sentinel data lake for cheaper long-term retention, and Security Copilot can work directly on Sentinel data.
Why teams consider other options
Cost is the top reason. Data in the analytics tier is billed by volume, so teams end up deciding which logs they can afford to keep.
KQL detection rules need regular tuning, and analysts still work many alerts by hand. Organisations with large non-Microsoft estates also find integration less smooth than in an all-Microsoft environment.
Five Microsoft Sentinel alternatives
For a wider view of the market, see our guide to AI SOC vendors.
| Option | How it works | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Exaforce | Agentic SOC platform with MDR | Teams automating investigation across cloud and SaaS |
| Palo Alto Networks Cortex XSIAM | AI-driven SOC platform | Large Palo Alto estates |
| CrowdStrike Falcon Next-Gen SIEM | SIEM on an endpoint platform with Charlotte AI | Existing Falcon customers |
| Google Security Operations | Cloud-native SIEM and SOAR | Very high log volumes and long retention |
| Torq | Hyperautomation-based AI SOC | Keeping Sentinel but adding agentic response |
Exaforce: moving beyond a SIEM-first model
Exaforce can replace a SIEM entirely or sit beside Sentinel while you transition. Its Data Platform links events to a model of identities and resources at ingest, and Exabot agents carry out triage, investigation and response. Analysts review the outcome with the supporting evidence attached.
Weighing it up
Microsoft-first teams with manageable ingest bills may stay on Sentinel and add AI on top.
If cost or analyst workload is the real pain, pilot alternatives using your own data and track two numbers: the bill and the count of alerts that still need a person.
