The best SOAR tools connect your security products, pull alerts into one place and run playbooks that enrich, triage and respond to incidents automatically, so analysts spend their time on the cases that need judgement. Newer platforms add AI agents that investigate alerts themselves. Eleven options follow in no particular order.
Security teams drown in alerts. A SOAR platform takes the repetitive steps, such as checking an IP, pulling user details or isolating a laptop, and does them in seconds, every time. That's not about replacing analysts; it's about letting them spend their day on the cases that'll matter.
The eleven platforms below are listed alphabetically and in no particular order, and every description comes from the vendor's own website, read this week. My piece on building a strong cybersecurity culture covers the human side automation can't replace.
SOAR tools side by side
I checked the free plan column on each tool's own website, as of Oct 2026. Yes means the site names a free plan, a free version, a free edition or an open source edition. Trial only means a time-limited trial. Not stated means the pages I read named neither, even where there's a button inviting you to try it, so check the vendor's page before you sign up.
| Tool | Type | Good for | Free plan |
|---|---|---|---|
| BlinkOps | Agentic security operations | Building SecOps workflows with AI | Not stated |
| Cortex XSOAR | Security orchestration and response | Large SOCs with many integrations | Not stated |
| D3 Security | Agentic SOC platform | Hundreds of integrated apps | Not stated |
| FortiSOAR | SOAR software | Fortinet security estates | Not stated |
| Rapid7 SOAR | SOC security automation | Rapid7 platform customers | Not stated |
| Shuffle | Open source SOAR | Teams wanting open source automation | Yes |
| Splunk SOAR | Security orchestration and automation | Splunk security customers | Trial only |
| Sumo Logic Cloud SOAR | Cloud SOAR | Cloud-first security teams | Trial only |
| Swimlane | AI security automation | MSSPs and regulated industries | Not stated |
| Tines | AI agents and automation | Security and IT teams building workflows | Not stated |
| Torq | AI SOC platform | Scaling SOC capacity with AI | Not stated |
Eleven SOAR platforms worth a look
BlinkOps
Best for: Security teams who want an operating layer for every SecOps workflow, built with AI agents instead of hand-coded playbooks.
Cortex XSOAR
Best for: Large security operations centres who want security orchestration with a visual playbook editor from Palo Alto Networks.
D3 Security
Best for: Security teams who want AI-driven security operations across more than 800 apps, with response and orchestration built in.
FortiSOAR
Best for: Organisations already using Fortinet security products who want orchestration and response software from the same vendor.
Rapid7 SOAR
Best for: Rapid7 customers who want security automation inside the same command platform they use for exposure and detection.
Shuffle
Best for: Smaller security teams who want an open source SOAR they can run, adapt and extend themselves without a big licence.
Splunk SOAR
Best for: Splunk users who want orchestration and automated response alongside their security data, with a free trial.
Sumo Logic Cloud SOAR
Best for: Cloud-first teams who want security orchestration, automation and response delivered as a cloud service, with a free trial.
Swimlane
Best for: MSSPs and organisations in finance, healthcare and government who want AI security automation built on one platform.
Tines
Best for: IT and security teams who want a secure environment for AI agents, apps and automation that any team can build in.
Torq
Best for: SOC leaders who want agentic AI that acts across triage, investigation and response to expand their team's capacity.
Where to start
- Open source automation: Shuffle.
- Building workflows any team can use: Tines or BlinkOps.
- AI agents for triage: Torq or D3 Security.
- MSSPs and regulated industries: Swimlane.
- Splunk, Sumo Logic or Rapid7 shops: Splunk SOAR, Sumo Logic Cloud SOAR or Rapid7 SOAR.
- Large SOCs on Palo Alto or Fortinet: Cortex XSOAR or FortiSOAR.
Playbooks should match current guidance
NIST published SP 800-61 Revision 3 in 2025, superseding Revision 2 from 2012. The new version ties incident response recommendations to the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) 2.0.
If your playbooks were written to the old guide, map them to CSF 2.0 before you automate them. Automating an outdated process just makes the wrong steps happen faster.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
Classic SOAR or AI SOC platform?
Classic SOAR runs playbooks you design step by step. It's predictable and auditable, which suits regulated teams that need to show exactly what happened.
AI SOC platforms use agents to investigate alerts and suggest or take actions. They can cover more ground with a small team, so check how decisions are logged and when a person must approve.
Integrations matter more than features. If a platform can't talk to your email security, identity provider and endpoint tools, it won't automate much, however clever it looks. Ask for the exact list, and check it's maintained, before you sign anything.
Playbooks need something to trigger them, and our list of file integrity monitoring lines up tools that raise the alarm when files change.
Questions to ask before you choose
- Which security tools must it connect to?
- Which three alerts waste most analyst time?
- Can analysts build playbooks without coding?
- Which actions need human approval?
- How are automated actions logged for audit?
- Do we run it ourselves or as a service?
Alerts from your gateways can feed playbooks, and this guide to API security tools lines up tools that produce them.
Signs your SOC needs automation
- Alerts go unread. Automate triage first.
- Analysts copy and paste between tools. Connect them.
- Response steps vary by person. Write playbooks.
- Night shifts are thin. Automate safe containment.
Do you make SOAR or security automation tools? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
My plain advice on SOAR tools
Automate one boring, high-volume alert first, such as phishing reports, and measure the analyst time saved. A single playbook that works beats fifty half-finished ones nobody trusts, and it's far easier to win support for the next one when you've got numbers.
Keep humans in charge of anything destructive, like blocking accounts or wiping devices, until the playbook has proved itself. My guide to staying safe from cybersecurity threats is a useful refresher for the wider team.
Frequently asked questions
What is a SOAR tool?
SOAR stands for security orchestration, automation and response. It connects security tools and runs playbooks that triage and respond to alerts automatically.
Is SOAR the same as SIEM?
No. A SIEM collects and correlates security data to raise alerts. SOAR acts on those alerts with automated playbooks.
Is there free SOAR software?
Yes. There are open source SOAR platforms you can run yourself, and some vendors offer free trials.
What should I automate first?
Start with frequent, low-risk tasks such as phishing triage and enrichment, then move to containment once playbooks are trusted.
What changed in NIST SP 800-61?
NIST published Revision 3 in 2025, superseding Revision 2, and aligned incident response guidance with CSF 2.0.
Do AI agents replace SOAR playbooks?
Not entirely. AI agents can investigate and suggest actions, but many teams still use playbooks for actions that need audit trails.
