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Cybersecurity · head to head

Darktrace vs Restate

Darktrace logo

Darktrace

Cybersecurity

Autonomous threat detection and response

From
$20000/year
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite
Restate logo

Restate

Developer Tools

Durable execution engine in Rust with a free tier and low-latency workflows

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Restate has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Darktrace no pricing information published on website; vendors must request pricing through demo request form or contact sales; Restate the runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • They diverge on capability: Darktrace covers Self-learning AI, Restate covers Durable execution.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Darktrace and Restate actually diverge.

Attributes where Darktrace and Restate differ
AttributeDarktraceRestate
Starting price$20000/yearFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer month by durable action count
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsNetwork, Cloud, EmailLinux, macOS, Web
CategoryCybersecurityDeveloper Tools
Founded2013Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Darktrace

  • Self-learning AI
  • Network anomaly detection
  • Autonomous response
  • Behavioral analysis
  • Threat model visualization
  • Email security
  • Application control
  • Incident response automation

Only in Restate

  • Durable execution
  • Virtual objects
  • Single binary runtime
  • Multi-language SDKs
  • Workflows and sagas
  • Restate Cloud

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Darktrace

  • Threat Detectionnot Restate
  • Ndrnot Restate
  • Incident Responsenot Restate

Restate

  • Payment or order flows where a crash between two external API calls must not double-charge or lose the ordernot Darktrace
  • AI agent loops that call tools over minutes or hours and must survive a deployment mid-runnot Darktrace
  • Replacing hand-rolled retry, idempotency key and outbox code across a set of microservicesnot Darktrace
  • A small team that wants durable workflows without operating a Temporal cluster and its databasenot Darktrace

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Darktrace

  • No pricing information published on website; vendors must request pricing through demo request form or contact sales
  • No tiered pricing structure available to compare editions or select appropriate plan level before contacting sales

Restate

  • The runtime is under a Business Source Licence rather than an open source licence, so building a competing managed offering on it is prohibited and some procurement functions will reject it on licence grounds alone.
  • Restate Cloud jumps from a free fifty thousand actions straight to 300 US dollars a month for twenty million, so a workload sitting at a few hundred thousand actions pays enterprise-shaped money for hobby-shaped volume.
  • It is a young project against Temporal’s established base, so hiring engineers who already know it is unrealistic and the answer to most questions is in the docs rather than on Stack Overflow.
  • The programming model requires structuring code around durable handlers and virtual objects, which is a genuine rewrite for existing services rather than a library you add.
  • The single-binary simplicity that makes small deployments cheap also means fewer operational knobs at very large scale than a system designed as separable components.

Pricing, plan by plan

Darktrace

$20000/year
  • Detect$20000/year
    • Network anomaly detection
    • AI-powered threat detection
    • Compliance reporting
  • Detect & Respond$35000/year
    • All Detect features
    • Autonomous response
    • Email security
  • Enterprise$50000/year
    • All features
    • Dedicated support
    • Custom training

Restate

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Fifty thousand durable actions per month
    • No credit card required
    • Community support
  • Starter$300/month
    • Twenty million actions per month
    • Two hundred actions per second, bursting to one thousand
    • Twenty GB storage
  • Pro$1000/month
    • Fifty million actions per month
    • Five hundred actions per second, bursting to two thousand
    • Fifty GB storage
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Negotiated volume
    • Twenty-four seven P0 support
    • 99.99 per cent SLA

Which should you pick?

Choose Darktrace if

  • You need self-learning ai.
  • You work on Network, Cloud, Email.
  • You also want network anomaly detection.
Darktrace review

Choose Restate if

  • You need durable execution.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Web.
  • You also want virtual objects.
Restate review

Questions people ask

Is Darktrace or Restate better?
Neither clearly leads. Darktrace starts at $20000/year and Restate at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Darktrace or Restate?
Restate has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $20000/year for Darktrace and Free for Restate.
Does Darktrace or Restate run on more platforms?
Darktrace runs on Network, Cloud, Email. Restate runs on Linux, macOS, Web.
Can I use Restate for free?
Yes. Restate has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Darktrace starts at $20000/year.
What is Darktrace best used for?
Darktrace is most often used for threat detection, ndr, incident response. Of those, threat detection and ndr are not what Restate is typically brought in for.
What can Darktrace do that Restate cannot?
Darktrace covers Self-learning AI, Network anomaly detection, Autonomous response, Behavioral analysis. Restate covers Durable execution, Virtual objects, Single binary runtime, Multi-language SDKs.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Darktrace: How much does Darktrace cost?

Darktrace does not publish pricing information on its website. To obtain pricing details and learn about available packages, customers must contact Darktrace directly by requesting a demo or reaching out through the company's contact form.

Source
Restate: Is Restate open source?

The SDKs are MIT. The runtime is under a Business Source Licence, which permits self-hosting but not offering it as a competing service.

Darktrace: Does Darktrace offer a free trial?

Darktrace mentions a free trial option, but specific trial length, features included, and how to access it are not published on the website. Users must contact the company directly to inquire about trial availability.

Source
Restate: How does it compare with Temporal?

Same problem, different shape: one Rust binary with embedded storage instead of a server plus database plus workers, and lower per-step latency.

Restate: Is there a free tier?

Yes, fifty thousand durable actions a month on Restate Cloud with no card required.

Restate: Which languages are supported?

TypeScript, Java, Kotlin, Go, Python and Rust.

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