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Cybersecurity · head to head

KnowBe4 vs ThetaRay

KnowBe4 logo

KnowBe4

Cybersecurity

World's largest security awareness training platform

From
$1/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
ThetaRay logo

ThetaRay

Cybersecurity

Unsupervised AI transaction monitoring for cross-border and correspondent banking

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: KnowBe4 published prices assume a three year term, so the quoted per seat rate depends on a long commitment; ThetaRay unsupervised models are harder to justify to an examiner than explicit rules, and some regulators still expect documented threshold logic, which can force you to run both systems.
  • They diverge on capability: KnowBe4 covers Security awareness training, ThetaRay covers Unsupervised detection.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which KnowBe4 and ThetaRay actually diverge.

Attributes where KnowBe4 and ThetaRay differ
AttributeKnowBe4ThetaRay
Starting price$1/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWeb, Mobile, EmailWeb
Founded2010Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

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 KnowBe4

  • Security awareness training
  • Phishing simulation
  • Risk assessments
  • Compliance training
  • Incident reporting
  • API access
  • Custom policies
  • Behavior analytics

Only in ThetaRay

  • Unsupervised detection
  • Cross-border focus
  • Sanctions screening
  • Alert triage
  • Customer risk scoring
  • Cloud native

What people use each for

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

KnowBe4

  • Security awareness training and simulated phishing for staffnot ThetaRay
  • Tracking employee susceptibility to phishing over timenot ThetaRay

ThetaRay

  • A correspondent bank that cannot see the ultimate originator and needs behavioural signals rather than counterparty listsnot KnowBe4
  • A cross-border payments fintech whose rules engine produces more alerts than its compliance team can clearnot KnowBe4
  • A bank under a regulatory consent order needing demonstrable improvement in detection within a fixed periodnot KnowBe4
  • A payment institution entering a high-risk corridor where existing thresholds were calibrated on domestic trafficnot KnowBe4

Where each one falls short

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

KnowBe4

  • Published prices assume a three year term, so the quoted per seat rate depends on a long commitment
  • Pricing is banded by seat count, and the lowest band of 25 to 50 seats pays the highest rate
  • Accounts above 1,000 seats have no published price and require a custom quote
  • Third party integrations, Compliance Plus and PhishER Plus are all separately priced per seat add ons
  • The Foundation tier carries 200 training modules against more than 1,000 on Advanced, so content volume is the main gate

ThetaRay

  • Unsupervised models are harder to justify to an examiner than explicit rules, and some regulators still expect documented threshold logic, which can force you to run both systems.
  • The alert reduction claim depends heavily on your data, so a parallel run is essential and adds months and cost before you can decommission the incumbent.
  • Coverage is strongest in cross-border and correspondent flows; institutions whose risk is domestic retail fraud will find the fit weaker than a general-purpose monitoring platform.
  • It is a smaller vendor than the incumbents, so integration connectors into legacy core banking systems are often bespoke work rather than a supported adapter.
  • Model retraining and tuning are vendor-led, which means changing detection behaviour is a support conversation rather than something your own analysts can do that afternoon.

Pricing, plan by plan

KnowBe4

$1/month
  • Basic$1/month
    • Per user
    • Training modules
    • Phishing templates
  • Advanced$2/month
    • All Basic features
    • Advanced phishing
    • Risk assessments
  • Pro$3/month
    • All Advanced features
    • API access
    • Custom content

ThetaRay

On request
  • ThetaRay Sonar$undefined/year
    • Priced by monitored transaction volume and number of monitored entities
    • SaaS on Azure with regional data residency options
    • Parallel run and model tuning included in onboarding

Which should you pick?

Choose KnowBe4 if

  • You need security awareness training.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, Email.
  • You also want phishing simulation.
KnowBe4 review

Choose ThetaRay if

  • You need unsupervised detection.
  • You also want cross-border focus.
ThetaRay review

Questions people ask

Is KnowBe4 or ThetaRay better?
Neither clearly leads. KnowBe4 starts at $1/month and ThetaRay at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, KnowBe4 or ThetaRay?
KnowBe4 starts at $1/month and ThetaRay at On request.
Does KnowBe4 or ThetaRay run on more platforms?
KnowBe4 runs on Web, Mobile, Email. ThetaRay runs on Web.
What is KnowBe4 best used for?
KnowBe4 is most often used for security awareness training and simulated phishing for staff, tracking employee susceptibility to phishing over time. Of those, security awareness training and simulated phishing for staff and tracking employee susceptibility to phishing over time are not what ThetaRay is typically brought in for.
What can KnowBe4 do that ThetaRay cannot?
KnowBe4 covers Security awareness training, Phishing simulation, Risk assessments, Compliance training. ThetaRay covers Unsupervised detection, Cross-border focus, Sanctions screening, Alert triage.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

KnowBe4: What does KnowBe4 cost per employee?

KnowBe4 charges per seat per month on a subscription basis. For 51-100 employees, SAT Foundation costs $2.13/month per seat and SAT Advanced costs $3.40/month per seat. Prices decrease with larger employee counts.

Source
ThetaRay: Does it replace a rules engine entirely?

Rarely on day one. Most institutions run it alongside existing rules during a parallel period, and some keep specific regulator-mandated rules permanently.

KnowBe4: Does KnowBe4 offer a free trial?

KnowBe4 does not offer a full free version, but free tools are available separately including assessments and simulators.

Source
ThetaRay: Where is the data processed?

SaaS runs on Microsoft Azure with regional deployment options, which is the mechanism for meeting data residency conditions in regulated markets.

KnowBe4: Are there add-on costs beyond the base plan?

Yes, optional add-ons include Third-Party Integrations ($1.10-$1.20/seat/month), Compliance Plus ($0.82-$0.93/seat/month), PhishER Plus ($1.15-$1.50/seat/month), and Student Edition ($0.17/seat/month).

Source
ThetaRay: Is sanctions screening included?

Screening is available on the same platform but licensed as part of the commercial package rather than bundled by default. Confirm it is in your quote.

KnowBe4: What currencies does KnowBe4 accept?

KnowBe4 accepts pricing in USD, AUD, BRL, CAD, EUR, GBP, SGD, and ZAR.

Source
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