Softwr

Cybersecurity · head to head

Saviynt vs VMware Carbon Black

Saviynt logo

Saviynt

Cybersecurity

Cloud identity governance with privileged access in the same platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
V

VMware Carbon Black

Cybersecurity

Cloud-delivered endpoint protection and EDR, now owned by Broadcom and positioned alongside Symantec.

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Saviynt implementation typically runs a year or more with a partner, and the cost of that work regularly exceeds the first year subscription, which is rarely in the initial business case.; VMware Carbon Black broadcom's enterprise model concentrates direct sales and support on its largest accounts and moves everyone else to resellers, so a mid-size customer can lose named support contacts and face a substantially repriced renewal with limited notice.
  • They diverge on capability: Saviynt covers Identity governance, VMware Carbon Black covers Endpoint Standard.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Saviynt and VMware Carbon Black actually diverge.

Attributes where Saviynt and VMware Carbon Black differ
AttributeSaviyntVMware Carbon Black
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWebDesktop, Api
FoundedUnknown2002

Identical on both: starting price (On request), 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 Saviynt

  • Identity governance
  • Access certification
  • Segregation of duties
  • Privileged access
  • Cloud entitlements
  • Third party access
  • Access request

Only in VMware Carbon Black

  • Endpoint Standard
  • Enterprise EDR
  • Audit and Remediation
  • Single sensor
  • Live Response
  • Workload protection
  • Container security
  • Watchlists and feeds

What people use each for

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

Saviynt

  • An enterprise with an audit finding that privileged administrative accounts are excluded from access reviewsnot VMware Carbon Black
  • A healthcare system governing clinician access to Epic alongside corporate applications in one certification campaignnot VMware Carbon Black
  • A company that has to prove segregation of duties in SAP to an external auditor every yearnot VMware Carbon Black
  • A federal contractor needing an identity governance service with FedRAMP authorisationnot VMware Carbon Black

VMware Carbon Black

  • A SOC that wants unfiltered endpoint telemetry to hunt over rather than only vendor-generated alertsnot Saviynt
  • A vSphere estate that wants workload protection deployed through the hypervisor instead of installing an agent in every guestnot Saviynt
  • Replacing signature antivirus after an incident where the incumbent product had no record of what the attacker didnot Saviynt
  • An organisation already inside a Broadcom or Symantec enterprise agreement that can consolidate endpoint onto an existing contractnot Saviynt

Where each one falls short

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

Saviynt

  • Implementation typically runs a year or more with a partner, and the cost of that work regularly exceeds the first year subscription, which is rarely in the initial business case.
  • Governance quality is limited by HR and application data quality, so organisations with inconsistent joiner records spend the early phases correcting source data rather than certifying access.
  • Pricing is per governed identity, so counting contractors, service accounts and non-employee identities materially changes the bill and the definition is worth negotiating explicitly.
  • The privileged access module is younger than the governance core and is not a full substitute for a dedicated PAM product in estates with heavy session recording or credential rotation requirements.
  • Connectors to less common applications require custom development, and each one adds a maintenance burden that reappears every time the target application changes its API.

VMware Carbon Black

  • Broadcom's enterprise model concentrates direct sales and support on its largest accounts and moves everyone else to resellers, so a mid-size customer can lose named support contacts and face a substantially repriced renewal with limited notice.
  • Continuous EDR recording is retained for a defined window and longer retention is a paid tier, so the investigation you most need is often the one whose telemetry has already aged out, and that is discovered during the incident rather than before it.
  • The product assumes an operator: watchlists, policy tuning and alert triage are ongoing work, and organisations without a dedicated analyst or an MDR contract typically leave policies in monitor mode and pay for telemetry that is never reviewed.
  • The sensor operates in the same kernel and file-filter territory as other endpoint agents, so running it alongside an incumbent antivirus, DLP or backup agent commonly produces performance complaints and requires maintained exclusion lists on both sides.
  • Linux sensor support is tied to specific distribution and kernel versions, so a routine operating system upgrade can leave hosts without a supported sensor until a matching build ships, and anything outside the supported list gets no coverage at all.

Pricing, plan by plan

Saviynt

On request
  • Saviynt Identity Cloud$undefined/year
    • Priced per governed identity per year
    • Modules for governance, privileged access and cloud entitlements
    • SaaS delivery with FedRAMP authorised offering available

VMware Carbon Black

On request
  • CB Endpoint StandardFree
    • NGAV
    • Behavioral EDR
    • Device control
  • CB Endpoint AdvancedFree
    • All Standard features
    • Threat hunting
    • Audit and remediation
  • CB Endpoint EnterpriseFree
    • All Advanced features
    • Advanced threat hunting
    • Live response

Which should you pick?

Choose Saviynt if

  • You need identity governance.
  • You also want access certification.
Saviynt review

Choose VMware Carbon Black if

  • You need endpoint standard.
  • You work on Desktop, Api.
  • You also want enterprise edr.
VMware Carbon Black review

Questions people ask

Is Saviynt or VMware Carbon Black better?
Neither clearly leads. Saviynt starts at On request and VMware Carbon Black at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Saviynt or VMware Carbon Black?
Saviynt starts at On request and VMware Carbon Black at On request.
Does Saviynt or VMware Carbon Black run on more platforms?
Saviynt runs on Web. VMware Carbon Black runs on Desktop, Api.
What is Saviynt best used for?
Saviynt is most often used for an enterprise with an audit finding that privileged administrative accounts are excluded from access reviews, a healthcare system governing clinician access to epic alongside corporate applications in one certification campaign, a company that has to prove segregation of duties in sap to an external auditor every year, a federal contractor needing an identity governance service with fedramp authorisation. Of those, an enterprise with an audit finding that privileged administrative accounts are excluded from access reviews and a healthcare system governing clinician access to epic alongside corporate applications in one certification campaign are not what VMware Carbon Black is typically brought in for.
What can Saviynt do that VMware Carbon Black cannot?
Saviynt covers Identity governance, Access certification, Segregation of duties, Privileged access. VMware Carbon Black covers Endpoint Standard, Enterprise EDR, Audit and Remediation, Single sensor.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Saviynt: Does Saviynt replace a PAM vendor?

It can for time-bound privileged access, but organisations with heavy session recording, credential rotation or legacy server access requirements often keep a dedicated PAM product alongside it.

VMware Carbon Black: Who owns Carbon Black now?

Broadcom. It acquired VMware in November 2023, and Carbon Black now sits in Broadcom's enterprise security business alongside Symantec. VMware branding is being phased out.

Saviynt: Is there a FedRAMP authorised version?

Yes, Saviynt offers a FedRAMP authorised government cloud offering, which matters where that is an eligibility requirement rather than a preference.

VMware Carbon Black: Why do the docs use names I do not recognise?

The product has been renamed repeatedly. CB Defense is now Endpoint Standard, CB ThreatHunter is Enterprise EDR and CB LiveOps is Audit and Remediation. Older community answers and runbooks still use the previous names.

Saviynt: How is it priced?

Per governed identity per year, quoted. Define carefully whether service accounts and contractors count toward the identity total.

VMware Carbon Black: Does it replace my existing antivirus?

Yes on supported Windows, macOS and Linux versions, and running it alongside another antivirus is not recommended because the two agents contend for the same hooks. Check your compliance requirements, as some auditors still ask for a named antivirus product.

VMware Carbon Black: Do I need a full-time analyst to run it?

To get value from Enterprise EDR, effectively yes. The prevention tier can run with part-time attention, but the hunting and recording capability is only worth its cost if somebody is querying it, which is why many customers buy it through an MDR provider.

VMware Carbon Black: How is it licensed?

Per endpoint, per year, with the capability tier determining the rate and workload and container protection priced separately. Extended EDR data retention is an additional line item.

Share

Related pages

More on Saviynt

More on VMware Carbon Black

Keep looking

Other head to heads