EDR vs MDR: What's the Difference and Which Does Your Business Need?
EDR (Endpoint Detection & Response) is software that monitors your computers for threats. MDR (Managed Detection & Response) is EDR plus a team of security experts monitoring 24/7 and responding to threats. For most small businesses without dedicated security staff, MDR provides better protection because the tool alone isn't enough—you need people watching and responding.
Written by Alex Dayan, Founder of King of IT | Toronto Managed IT Services
1What is EDR (Endpoint Detection & Response)?
Beyond Traditional Antivirus
EDR is next-generation endpoint security that goes far beyond traditional antivirus:
What EDR Does:
Continuously monitors all endpoint activity (file changes, processes, network connections)
Uses behavioral analysis to detect suspicious activity
Records everything for forensic investigation
Can isolate infected machines from the network
Provides threat intelligence and indicators of compromise
Popular EDR Solutions:
Microsoft Defender for Business (included in M365 Business Premium)
CrowdStrike Falcon
SentinelOne
Carbon Black
Sophos Intercept X
EDR Capabilities:
Detect fileless malware and living-off-the-land attacks
Stop ransomware before encryption completes
Identify lateral movement across your network
Roll back malicious changes
Provide detailed attack timelines
The Catch: EDR generates alerts. Lots of alerts. Someone needs to investigate them, separate false positives from real threats, and respond appropriately. Most small businesses don't have that expertise.
2What is MDR (Managed Detection & Response)?
EDR + Human Expertise
MDR combines EDR technology with a 24/7 security operations center (SOC) staffed by security analysts:
What MDR Includes:
EDR software deployed on all endpoints
24/7/365 monitoring by security analysts
Threat hunting (proactively looking for hidden threats)
Alert triage and investigation
Incident response and containment
Regular reporting and recommendations
How MDR Works:
1. EDR detects suspicious activity
2. Alert sent to SOC (Security Operations Center)
3. Analyst investigates within minutes
4. If threat confirmed: immediate containment action
5. If false positive: alert dismissed, detection tuned
6. Detailed report provided to customer
Popular MDR Providers:
Arctic Wolf
Huntress
Expel
Red Canary
Sophos MDR
CrowdStrike Falcon Complete
Response Times:
Alert to analyst review: 5-15 minutes
Threat confirmation to containment: 15-60 minutes
Compare to: internal IT checking alerts Monday morning
3EDR vs MDR: Key Differences
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Aspect | EDR | MDR | |--------|-----|-----| | What you get | Software | Software + Expert Team | | Monitoring | Automated alerts | 24/7 human monitoring | | Response | You investigate & respond | Experts investigate & respond | | Threat hunting | Basic automated | Proactive human hunting | | Expertise needed | Security analyst on staff | Minimal (MSP handles) | | Cost | $10-$30/endpoint/month | $30-$100/endpoint/month | | Setup complexity | Moderate | Low (done for you) |
The Alert Problem
A 50-person company with EDR might generate:
500-2,000 alerts per month
95%+ are false positives or low-priority
5-50 require investigation
1-5 are actual threats requiring response
Without dedicated security staff, who's reviewing those alerts? If the answer is "our IT person when they have time," threats will be missed.
4Which Do You Need?
Choose EDR Only If:
You have dedicated security staff (not just IT)
Your team can monitor alerts 24/7
You have incident response expertise
You're a larger organization (500+ employees)
Budget is extremely constrained
Choose MDR If:
You don't have dedicated security staff
Your IT team can't monitor alerts around the clock
You want experts responding to threats
You need to meet compliance requirements
You want predictable security costs
You're a small/mid-sized business (under 500 employees)
The Reality for Most SMBs
Most small and mid-sized businesses:
Don't have security expertise on staff
Can't afford a 24/7 security team
Have IT people wearing multiple hats
Need help responding to threats, not just detecting them
For these organizations, MDR provides dramatically better protection than EDR alone.
King of IT Recommendation: For Toronto businesses under 200 employees, we almost always recommend MDR. The difference in cost ($20-$70 more per endpoint per month) is insignificant compared to the difference in protection.
5MDR Cost-Benefit Analysis
Is MDR Worth the Extra Cost?
EDR-Only Costs (50-person company):
EDR software: $1,000-$1,500/month
Internal time reviewing alerts: 10-20 hours/month
Value of missed threats: Unknown (until incident)
After-hours coverage: None
MDR Costs (50-person company):
MDR service: $1,500-$5,000/month
Internal time: 1-2 hours/month (reviewing reports)
After-hours coverage: Included
Incident response: Included
The Math:
MDR premium: ~$500-$3,500/month extra
One ransomware incident avoided: $400,000-$2,000,000+
One breach investigation avoided: $40,000-$200,000
Peace of mind: Priceless
What MDR Catches That EDR-Only Misses:
After-hours attacks (67% of ransomware deploys outside business hours)
Sophisticated attacks requiring human analysis
Threats hiding in alert noise
Slow-and-low attacks over weeks/months
Real-World Example:
A 40-person Toronto law firm had EDR. An attacker compromised an email account on Friday night. EDR generated an alert. No one looked at it until Monday. By then, the attacker had accessed client files and set up persistence. With MDR, this would have been caught and contained within an hour.