Small businesses are now squarely in ransomware crews’ crosshairs, but most don’t have a security operations center or a six-figure budget for one. That’s created real demand for endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools that are affordable per seat, quick to deploy without a dedicated security team, and don’t require a forklift upgrade of existing infrastructure. CrowdStrike, SentinelOne, and Microsoft have all built (or repackaged) products specifically to meet that demand: Falcon Go, SentinelOne’s Singularity line, and Microsoft Defender for Business. This guide compares what each actually costs and includes, based on their current published pricing pages, so you can shortlist the right one for a 10- to 300-seat environment.
At a Glance
| Tool | Starting Price | Pricing Model | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| CrowdStrike Falcon Go | $7.99/device/month or $59.99/device/year | Per-device, capped at 100 devices | Very small businesses wanting CrowdStrike’s core EDR engine on a budget |
| SentinelOne Singularity Complete | $179.99/endpoint/year (public list price) | Per-endpoint, annual, sized for 5–100 workstations | Businesses wanting AI-driven autonomous response without a SOC |
| Microsoft Defender for Business | $3.00/user/month, billed annually | Per-user (covers up to 5 devices per user) | Microsoft 365 shops up to 300 users wanting EDR bundled cheaply |
Short Verdict
If you’re already a Microsoft 365 shop with under 300 users, Microsoft Defender for Business is the easiest financial decision: at $3 per user per month it undercuts both competitors by a wide margin and already understands your Windows/macOS/iOS/Android fleet. If you want a dedicated, best-of-breed EDR engine and don’t mind paying more, CrowdStrike Falcon Go gives you the real Falcon sensor (not a cut-down version) at a small-business price, capped at 100 devices. SentinelOne sits in between on philosophy — it leans harder on autonomous, AI-driven remediation that doesn’t require an analyst to act — but its cheapest publicly listed tier, Singularity Complete, costs more per endpoint per year than either alternative once you annualize it.
What They Are
CrowdStrike Falcon Go is CrowdStrike’s small-business edition of its Falcon platform, built around the same cloud-native sensor and threat-intelligence graph used in its enterprise tiers, just packaged into simpler bundles. According to CrowdStrike’s own pricing page, Falcon Go, Pro, and Enterprise all include next-gen antivirus, device control, mobile device protection, firewall management, EDR, threat intelligence and hunting, identity protection, IT hygiene, next-gen SIEM, and “Express Support,” with each higher tier adding more depth (centralized firewall policy management at Pro, deeper threat hunting at Enterprise). Falcon Go purchases are capped at 100 devices, positioning it explicitly for small businesses rather than mid-market IT departments.
SentinelOne Singularity is built around autonomous, AI-driven detection and response that can act on a threat (killing a process, rolling back encryption) without waiting for a human analyst — a pitch aimed directly at organizations without 24/7 security staff. SentinelOne’s pricing page names Core, Control, Complete, Commercial, and Enterprise tiers, but only publishes list prices for Complete and Commercial; Core and Control appear in its comparison table without public pricing, and Enterprise is sold through a quote only.
Microsoft Defender for Business is Microsoft’s EDR product purpose-built for organizations with up to 300 employees, sold standalone or bundled inside Microsoft 365 Business Premium. Per Microsoft’s own product page, it includes next-generation antivirus, AI-powered EDR with “automatic attack disruption,” vulnerability management, and wizard-based onboarding meant for IT generalists rather than security specialists, covering Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android with up to five devices per licensed user.
Pricing and Plans Compared
| Plan | Monthly | Annual | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Falcon Go | $7.99/device | $59.99/device | Max 100 devices; 15-day free trial, no card required |
| Falcon Pro | $14.99/device | $99.99/device | Adds deeper firewall management |
| Falcon Enterprise | $19.99/device | $184.99/device | Adds deeper threat hunting/intel |
| Falcon Complete | Contact sales | Fully managed 24/7 MDR with a breach-prevention warranty | |
| Singularity Complete | $179.99/endpoint/year | 14-day data retention; sized for 5–100 workstations | |
| Singularity Commercial | $229.99/endpoint/year | Adds identity detection & response, 90-day retention, managed threat hunting | |
| Singularity Enterprise | Contact sales | Adds agentic SOC-analyst triage and full network forensics | |
| Defender for Business (standalone) | $3.00/user/month, billed yearly | Up to 300 users, 5 devices/user | |
| Microsoft 365 Business Premium | $22.00/user/month, billed yearly | Bundles Defender for Business with productivity apps | |
Two things worth flagging for budgeting purposes. First, CrowdStrike’s and SentinelOne’s publicly listed prices exclude taxes and partner-specific adjustments — SentinelOne explicitly sells through authorized third-party partners and says partner pricing can override the list price shown. Second, nobody in this comparison publishes pricing for their top-end managed-detection-and-response tier (Falcon Complete, Singularity Enterprise); both require a sales conversation, so budget extra time if 24/7 managed response is a requirement rather than a nice-to-have.
Pros and Cons
- CrowdStrike Falcon Go — Pros: real Falcon sensor technology at a small-business price, strong threat-intel pedigree, simple per-device pricing with a no-card 15-day trial. Cons: capped at 100 devices so you’ll need to migrate off it as you grow; managed MDR (Falcon Complete) pricing isn’t public.
- SentinelOne Singularity — Pros: strongest autonomous/AI remediation story for teams without a SOC, Commercial tier adds managed threat hunting and 90-day retention. Cons: its cheapest public tier (Complete) costs more per endpoint annually than either competitor; Core/Control tier pricing isn’t public, and pricing routes through third-party partners who can vary the list price.
- Microsoft Defender for Business — Pros: by far the cheapest list price here, native fit for Microsoft 365 environments, easy generalist-friendly onboarding. Cons: hard cap at 300 users means it’s not a long-term fit for growing mid-market companies; EDR depth and threat-hunting sophistication are generally considered lighter than dedicated EDR vendors.
Who It’s a Good Fit For / Who Should Look Elsewhere
Microsoft Defender for Business is the obvious fit for any small business already paying for Microsoft 365, especially ones under roughly 50 seats where $3/user/month barely registers as a line item. CrowdStrike Falcon Go fits businesses that have outgrown “good enough” antivirus and want a dedicated EDR vendor’s actual engine, not a watered-down one, while staying under the 100-device ceiling. SentinelOne Singularity Complete/Commercial fits businesses that specifically want automated rollback and remediation because they have no security staff to respond to alerts manually, and are willing to pay more per endpoint for that autonomy. Companies expecting to blow past 100–300 endpoints within a year or two should treat all three small-business tiers as a bridge, not a destination, and start evaluating the next tier up (Falcon Pro/Enterprise, Singularity Enterprise, or Defender for Endpoint P1/P2) now.
Bottom Line
There’s no universally “best” EDR for small business in 2026 — there’s a best fit for your budget, your existing stack, and your appetite for hands-on security management. Microsoft Defender for Business wins on price and ecosystem fit for Microsoft 365 users; CrowdStrike Falcon Go wins if you want proven enterprise-grade EDR technology scaled down rather than watered down; SentinelOne wins if autonomous, no-human-required remediation is your top priority and you’re comfortable paying a premium for it. Get a quote for the managed/enterprise tiers before committing either way — list prices only tell part of the story once support SLAs and managed response enter the conversation.
FAQ
Is Microsoft Defender for Business the same as Microsoft Defender Antivirus built into Windows?
No. The built-in Defender Antivirus is free consumer-grade protection; Defender for Business is a separately licensed product ($3/user/month) that adds EDR, centralized management, vulnerability management, and attack disruption on top of it.
Can I buy CrowdStrike Falcon Go month-to-month?
Yes. CrowdStrike’s pricing page lists monthly billing at $7.99/device for Falcon Go, alongside a discounted annual rate of $59.99/device if you commit for a year.
Does SentinelOne publish pricing for every plan?
No. Singularity Complete and Commercial have public per-endpoint annual list prices on SentinelOne’s pricing page, but Core, Control, and Enterprise require contacting sales, and purchases generally route through an authorized partner whose pricing can differ from the listed figure.
What happens if I exceed Falcon Go’s 100-device cap?
You’ll need to upgrade to Falcon Pro or Falcon Enterprise, since Falcon Go purchases are explicitly limited to a maximum of 100 devices according to CrowdStrike’s pricing page.
Is a 24/7 managed SOC included in any of these small-business tiers?
No. Fully managed detection and response (CrowdStrike Falcon Complete, SentinelOne Singularity Enterprise’s managed options) sits above these small-business tiers and is sold only through a custom quote.
Which of these three is cheapest for a 20-person company?
On published list pricing, Microsoft Defender for Business is cheapest at $3/user/month (about $720/year for 20 users), versus roughly $1,200/year for CrowdStrike Falcon Go billed annually, and roughly $3,600/year for SentinelOne Singularity Complete at its public per-endpoint rate.
Sources
- CrowdStrike Falcon Pricing — crowdstrike.com
- SentinelOne Singularity Pricing — sentinelone.com
- Microsoft Defender for Business — microsoft.com
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