Understanding the ‘Per Endpoint’ Model in SOCaaS/MDR

At its core, pricing per endpoint means charging clients a set fee for each defined ‘endpoint’ they need monitored and protected. In the context of SOCaaS and MDR, an endpoint typically refers to a device or system that can connect to a network and potentially be a point of attack or data exfiltration.

Common examples of endpoints include:

• Workstations (laptops, desktops)
• Servers (physical or virtual)
• Mobile devices (smartphones, tablets)
• Cloud workloads (VMs, containers)
• Network devices (routers, firewalls - though sometimes priced differently or bundled)

The per-endpoint fee usually covers the core services provided, such as log collection, real-time monitoring, threat detection, incident analysis, and potentially initial response actions. The price can vary based on the level of service, the specific type of endpoint, and the overall volume.

For instance, a basic monitoring package might be \$15 - \$30 per workstation per month, while a server with enhanced monitoring and longer data retention could be \$50 - \$100+ per month.

Advantages of Pricing SOCaaS per Endpoint

The per-endpoint pricing model offers several compelling benefits for both SOCaaS/MDR providers and their clients:

• Simplicity and Clarity: For clients, it’s often straightforward to understand. They count their endpoints and multiply by the price. This transparency can build trust.
• Scalability: As a client’s environment grows (adding more endpoints), the revenue for the provider scales proportionally. This provides a clear growth path for your business alongside your clients’.
• Predictable Revenue: For the provider, once the endpoint count is established, the monthly recurring revenue (MRR) for that client is predictable and easy to forecast.
• Easy Comparison: In a crowded market, per-endpoint pricing allows potential clients to easily compare costs between different providers, assuming the scope of service per endpoint is similar.
• Aligns with Common Licensing: Many underlying security tools and agents required for SOC/MDR are licensed per endpoint, making this model align well with your own operational costs.

Disadvantages and Challenges of Per-Endpoint Pricing

Despite its simplicity, the per-endpoint model isn’t without its challenges, particularly in the complex and evolving world of cybersecurity:

• Endpoint Definition Variability: Not all ‘endpoints’ are created equal. Is a critical domain controller server the same value/risk/effort as a standard user laptop? Is a mobile device monitored the same way? A flat per-endpoint rate might not accurately reflect the differing security needs and monitoring complexities.
• Scope Creep & Undefined Assets: Clients may have assets that don’t fit neatly into the ‘endpoint’ definition (e.g., network traffic monitoring, cloud infrastructure logs, specific applications, IoT devices). Pricing solely per endpoint can lead to disputes about what’s covered or leave significant parts of a client’s attack surface unprotected and unmonitored by your service.
• Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Challenges: In environments with BYOD policies, tracking and securing personal devices can be difficult, making accurate endpoint counts problematic.
• Focus on Quantity Over Value: This model can inadvertently focus conversations on the number of devices rather than the value of the security outcome and risk reduction you provide. This can commoditize your service.
• Doesn’t Capture All Costs: Onboarding, threat intelligence feeds, security orchestration automation and response (SOAR) platform costs, analyst time for complex investigations, and reporting efforts aren’t strictly tied to the number of endpoints. Basing pricing solely on endpoints might not fully cover these operational costs, especially for smaller clients with fewer endpoints but complex environments.
• Doesn’t Account for Environment Complexity: Two clients with the same number of endpoints might have vastly different security postures, regulatory requirements, and existing infrastructure complexity, leading to significantly different levels of effort required from your team. Per-endpoint pricing struggles to reflect this.

Factors to Consider When Using Per-Endpoint Pricing

If you decide that pricing SOC as a service per endpoint is a viable strategy for your business, carefully consider these factors to mitigate the potential drawbacks:

1. Define Your Endpoint Types & Tiers: Don’t treat all endpoints the same. Create tiers with different price points based on device type (workstation vs. server), criticality, or the level of monitoring/response required. Clearly define what constitutes each type.
2. Specify Included Services Per Endpoint: Be explicit about what monitoring, detection, and response activities are included for each endpoint type. Use a clear Service Level Agreement (SLA).
3. Address Non-Endpoint Assets: How will you price monitoring for firewalls, cloud accounts, network segments, or specific applications? Consider these as separate line items, bundles, or factor them into a base platform fee.
4. Implement Minimum Engagements: To ensure profitability and cover fixed operational costs (like platform access, analyst availability), consider setting a minimum monthly fee or a minimum number of endpoints required for an engagement.
5. Consider Data Retention & Storage Costs: Longer data retention periods (e.g., 1 year vs. 90 days) significantly increase storage costs. Price this separately or offer tiers with varying retention.
6. Include Onboarding/Setup Fees: Onboarding a new client has significant upfront costs. Do not bury this in the recurring per-endpoint fee. Charge a separate setup or implementation fee based on complexity and the number of endpoints.

Alternatives and Hybrid Models

While pricing SOC as a service per endpoint is popular, it’s not the only option. Consider these alternatives or hybrid approaches, which often align better with value-based pricing principles:

• Tiered Packaging (Small, Medium, Large): Create predefined service packages based on typical business sizes or complexity profiles (e.g., ‘Essentials’ for small businesses, ‘Advanced’ for medium, ‘Enterprise’ for larger/more complex). Price these tiers at a flat rate or with endpoint ranges included.
• Per-User Pricing: Similar to per-endpoint but focuses on the human user. This can work well if users have multiple devices or if identity is a primary focus.
• Value-Based Pricing: This is often the most profitable but hardest to implement. Price is based on the value you provide the client (e.g., risk reduction, compliance adherence, reduced downtime cost during an incident) rather than just the input (endpoints). This requires deep understanding of the client’s business and risk profile.
• Hybrid Models: Combine per-endpoint pricing with other elements. Examples include:
  • Base Platform Fee + Per Endpoint Fee
  • Tiered Package (covering a base number of endpoints) + Overage Fee Per Additional Endpoint
  • Per Endpoint Fee + Separate Fees for Specific Services (e.g., Incident Response retainer, Vulnerability Management add-on)

Exploring these models allows you to tailor your pricing more closely to the specific needs and structures of different client types.

Presenting Your SOCaaS/MDR Pricing Effectively

Regardless of the model you choose – whether pricing SOC as a service per endpoint, using tiers, or a hybrid – how you present your pricing is critical. Static PDF quotes or complex spreadsheets can be confusing and undervalue your sophisticated service.

Clients often appreciate the ability to see options clearly, understand what’s included, and potentially configure packages to fit their needs. This is where modern pricing presentation tools come in.

While comprehensive proposal software like PandaDoc (https://www.pandadoc.com) or Proposify (https://www.proposify.com) handle full proposals, contracts, and e-signatures, they might be more than you need solely for the pricing configuration step.

If your primary goal is to offer a clear, interactive experience specifically for selecting pricing options, a tool like PricingLink (https://pricinglink.com) can be particularly effective. PricingLink allows you to build configurable pricing guides that clients can interact with via a simple web link. You can define your endpoint tiers, add-ons (like extended data retention or vulnerability scanning), setup fees, and recurring costs. Clients can select their endpoint counts or choose packages and see the total price update instantly. This streamlines the quoting process, saves time, and provides a modern, transparent experience that helps clients understand the value behind your pricing soc as a service per endpoint or other models you employ. It’s laser-focused on making the pricing selection step easy and professional, filtering leads by capturing submissions.