How much does a SIEM cost in 2026?
The vendor-neutral SIEM pricing reference. Compare Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, IBM QRadar, Elastic, Sumo Logic, and LogRhythm side by side. No email gates. No vendor bias. Just transparent cost data so you can build a defensible business case.
Sentinel, Blumira, or Wazuh dominate this band. Often a single analyst plus part-time MSSP coverage.
Sumo Logic, Sentinel commitment tiers, or Elastic Cloud. Two to four FTE analysts is the typical floor.
Splunk, QRadar, or Sentinel commitment. Five to ten analysts plus an in-house engineering lead.
Vendor pricing overview
The six SIEM platforms that appear in 90 percent of enterprise shortlists. Each row links to a deep-dive page with cost scenarios and optimisation tips.
| Vendor | Pricing model | Typical range | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Splunk | Per GB ingested | $2,000-$3,500/GB/yr | High-value SecOps, mature SOC |
| Microsoft Sentinel | Per GB (commitment tiers) | $3.43-$5.22/GB | Microsoft / Azure shops |
| IBM QRadar | Per EPS | $2.40-$4.60/EPS/mo | Compliance-heavy, on-prem |
| Elastic Security | Resource-based | $0.55-$1.10/GB | Engineering-strong teams |
| Sumo Logic | Tier flat-rate | $2.30-$3.10/GB | Predictable cloud bills |
| LogRhythm | Per user + base | $40K base + $850/user | Stable analyst headcount |
Ranges are estimates from public list pricing, vendor pricing pages, and Gartner public summaries as of Q1 2026. Negotiated agreements typically deliver 20-40 percent off list. Always obtain a vendor quote.
Where the money actually goes
Licensing is rarely more than 40 percent of total SIEM spend. The other 60 percent splits across staffing, storage, integration, tuning, and threat intelligence. Understanding the full split is what separates a credible business case from a finance-rejected one.
The licensing illusion
Vendor pricing pages quote licensing alone. Year-two costs drop sharply as integration and initial tuning roll off, leaving licensing plus staffing as the steady state.
Which SIEM fits your situation?
Five common buyer profiles with the SIEM that genuinely fits each. Click any card for the deep-dive pricing and TCO breakdown.
Microsoft 365 / Azure shop
Sentinel almost always wins. Free Microsoft 365 ingest, native AAD and Defender integration, and commitment tiers from $3.43/GB make it the lowest-friction option.
Compliance-driven enterprise
QRadar still wins long-tail compliance audits. PCI, HIPAA, and FedRAMP packs ship in-product. Splunk Enterprise Security is the alternative if log volume is the bottleneck.
Cloud-native startup
Sumo Logic flat tiers or Sentinel PAYG. Both keep ops overhead near zero. Avoid Splunk and on-prem QRadar unless you have a security engineer free to operate them.
High-volume enterprise
Splunk Cloud or Splunk Enterprise on a multi-year EA. Negotiated discounts of 25-40% are normal at 500 GB/day plus. Workload pricing softens the per-GB hit.
Engineering-heavy team
Self-managed Elastic Security or Wazuh. The licence is cheap or free, but expect to spend $150K-$200K per dedicated engineer plus infrastructure.
SIEM cost FAQ
How much does a SIEM cost per year?
Which SIEM is cheapest?
Is a SIEM worth the cost?
What hidden costs come with a SIEM?
Can I just use a free SIEM?
Building a full security stack?
SIEM rarely lives alone. Endpoint detection, managed response, and extended detection all carry their own pricing structures. The same vendor-neutral approach applies on every site.