---
title: "In-house SOC vs. MDR: Total Cost Comparison | EFROS"
description: "What it really costs to build a 24/7 in-house SOC: salaries, tools, training, turnover. Side by side with EFROS MDR — transparent TCO and capability comparison."
canonical: https://efros.com/compare/in-house-soc/
metadata_source: searchatlas-otto
---

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Compare / In-house SOC

# EFROS MDR vs. in-house SOC.

A real 24/7 in-house SOC is expensive to build and harder to keep staffed than most CFOs expect. We see the actual numbers because clients come to us after running the math themselves. Here's what those engagements actually look like, compared with EFROS MDR. The numbers below are what shows up in real budgets.

By [Stefan Efros](https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanefros-cyberdefense/), CEO & Founder, EFROS

Updated · May 17, 2026

## The cost side of the ledger

| Cost category | In-house 24/7 SOC | EFROS MDR |
| --- | --- | --- |
| People (loaded cost, 24/7 coverage) | 8-10 analysts × $140K-$180K loaded = $1.2M-$1.8M/yr. Plus SOC manager + IR lead: $300K+ | Included in monthly fee |
| SIEM / XDR platform licensing | $200K-$800K/yr depending on data volume and vendor | Included, or we co-manage your existing licenses |
| EDR / endpoint platform | $40-$80 per endpoint/yr × 1,000-10,000 endpoints | Included (or bring your own) |
| Threat intelligence feeds | $100K-$300K/yr for commercial feeds | Included |
| Ongoing training & certifications | $15K-$25K per analyst/yr | Our problem |
| Turnover cost (avg SOC analyst tenure: 18-24 months) | $80K-$120K per replacement (recruiting, ramp, lost productivity) | Our problem |
| 24/7 coverage reality | Realistically requires 10+ FTEs to cover shifts, leave, training, and attrition without gaps | Senior analysts on rotation, named after-hours coverage, no gaps |

### Typical all-in comparison

For a mid-market organization (1,000-5,000 endpoints, 500-2,500 employees) running a mature 24/7 in-house SOC:
- In-house 24/7 SOC, all-in TCO$2.2M - $3.8M / yr
- EFROS MDR equivalent~15-25% of in-house
- Time to full coverage12-18 mo vs. 6-8 wk

## The capability side of the ledger

| Capability | In-house | EFROS MDR |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Time to first detection coverage | 6-18 months to build out | 2-4 weeks |
| MTTD | Depends entirely on your staff's ability and tooling maturity | Contracted MTTD target in the service agreement |
| MTTC | Requires pre-authorized playbooks + tooling integration | Contracted MTTC target with pre-authorized containment |
| Detection content / threat intel | Build yourself or buy separately | Custom content tuned weekly, aligned to MITRE ATT&CK |
| Threat hunting | Only if you can staff Tier 3 | Weekly, hypothesis-driven, mapped to MITRE |
| Regulator / auditor readiness | You build the evidence pipeline | Continuous evidence collection built in |
| AI governance overlay | Build a separate AI governance function, or accept shadow-IT AI in the gaps | AI Governance is a specialized program — NIST AI RMF, Colorado SB 26-189 (amended AI law), ISO/IEC 42001 mapped, audit-trail integrated |

### When in-house makes sense
- ✓You have > 25,000 employees and a mature security org
- ✓Your business model depends on proprietary threat intel (defense, intel community)
- ✓You operate in a regulatory regime that prohibits third-party access
- ✓You already have a functioning SOC and are asking about marginal expansion

### When managed makes sense
- ✓You need 24/7 coverage but your team is under 10,000 employees
- ✓You can't sustainably hire and retain Tier 2/3 SOC talent
- ✓You need detection coverage in weeks, not years
- ✓You want operating expense instead of capital + headcount commitment
- ✓You want a predictable SLA rather than best-effort internal response

[Model your TCO with us](https://efros.com/contact/)

Related

## If you're evaluating SOC options

[### MSSP TCO Calculator Side-by-side cost model — in-house vs managed SOC, fully loaded with hidden costs.Open→](https://efros.com/tools/mssp-tco-calculator/) [### SOC as a Service The 24/7 SOC operating model — Tier 1 to Tier 3, threat hunting, IR.Open→](https://efros.com/security/soc-as-a-service/) [### MDR — Managed Detection & Response Detection-led SOC layered on top of your existing tools.Open→](https://efros.com/security/mdr/) [### EFROS vs Arctic Wolf Two managed-SOC operators side-by-side — pricing, staffing, escalation.Open→](https://efros.com/compare/efros-vs-arctic-wolf/) [### EFROS vs Typical MSSP What's different about the operating model when the SOC is in-region.Open→](https://efros.com/compare/typical-mssp/) [### Free Security Assessment 30 minutes with a senior engineer — start the build/buy conversation with data.Open→](https://efros.com/free-security-assessment/)

Related EFROS resources

## Decision frameworks

[### EFROS vs typical MSSP MSSP-vs-MSSP comparison after deciding against in-house.Open→](https://efros.com/compare/typical-mssp/) [### MSSP TCO calculator Quantify the in-house vs MSSP cost differential.Open→](https://efros.com/tools/mssp-tco-calculator/) [### EFROS Security catalog Full MSSP service stack.Open→](https://efros.com/security/) [### EFROS MDR service Core service replacing in-house SOC operations.Open→](https://efros.com/security/mdr/) [### MDR provider comparison Six MDR categories with pricing.Open→](https://efros.com/resources/mdr-provider-comparison-2026/) [### Discuss build vs buy Book a 20-minute call to scope your decision.Open→](https://efros.com/contact/)