Introduction
SurfaceGuard, branded as Surface Guard on its official site, vs Detectify is not a simple feature-count comparison.
Surface Guard positions itself as an external attack surface monitoring tool with continuous monitoring, AI-assisted prioritization, reports, alerts, dashboarding, and integrations. Detectify positions itself as an application security and attack surface platform that combines Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, and API Scanning.
That difference matters when you are buying the tool. Surface Guard looks more focused on EASM monitoring and operational alerting. Detectify goes deeper into DAST-style web application and API testing, with stronger public documentation around scan behavior, authenticated testing, port discovery, API scanning, and asset classification.
This comparison uses publicly available vendor information only. Where a feature is not clearly documented, the safer answer is “not publicly confirmed,” not an assumption.
TL;DR — SurfaceGuard vs Detectify quick comparison
Choose based on the job you need done. If you need lightweight EASM monitoring with direct pricing and Slack, Teams, Discord, Splunk, and Wazuh positioning, Surface Guard is easier to understand from a budget perspective.
If you need EASM plus deeper application and API security testing, Detectify has stronger public evidence.
| Category | SurfaceGuard | Detectify |
|---|---|---|
| Best fit | Teams that want EASM monitoring, alerts, reports, integrations, and a simpler pricing model | AppSec, Product Security, and security teams that need attack surface monitoring plus DAST and API scanning |
| Core positioning | External attack surface management with continuous monitoring, AI-assisted risk classification, dashboards, alerts, and integrations | Application security testing platform with Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, and API Scanning |
| Asset discovery | Public site says it automatically discovers new assets and monitors subdomains | Surface Monitoring maps assets and subdomains, with discovery for DNS records, IP addresses, exposed ports, and SSL/TLS context |
| Port discovery | Not publicly detailed at scanner level | Detectify documents scanning of the top 8,500 ports for Surface Monitoring customers |
| Subdomain takeover | Explicitly highlighted as a monitored vulnerability type | Documented as part of Surface Monitoring knowledge base and product coverage |
| Web application DAST | Not publicly detailed as a separate application-scanning product | Application Scanning provides deeper DAST-style crawling, fuzzing, scheduled scans, and authenticated scan support |
| API scanning | Not publicly confirmed as a separate API scanner | API Scanning uses OpenAPI specification files and supports authentication configuration |
| Integrations | Slack, Teams, Discord, Splunk, Wazuh, and API are publicly listed | Public Detectify materials reference integrations and API workflows; exact integration fit should be verified during trial |
| Pricing transparency | Public monthly plan prices are listed for StartUp, Business, and Custom | Public starting prices are visible for Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, and API Scanning, with custom quote options |
| Main buying risk | Scanner-level coverage is less publicly documented, so buyers should verify exact test categories and evidence quality | Costs can expand when Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, API Scanning, and enterprise requirements are combined |
What each tool actually does
Surface Guard and Detectify both sit in the external exposure category, but they solve different parts of the security workflow.
Surface Guard is easier to read as a monitoring-first EASM product. Detectify is broader: it combines attack surface discovery with application and API security testing.
- SurfaceGuard — Surface Guard presents itself as an external attack surface management product that continuously scans a company’s external attack surface, discovers new assets, identifies vulnerabilities, classifies risks, suggests mitigation actions, and sends alerts through channels such as email, Slack, Teams, and Discord. Its public page also lists Splunk and Wazuh SIEM integration, compliance reports on the Business plan, and custom reports or integrations on the Custom plan. The strongest public signals are simple pricing, monitored-domain limits, alerting, dashboards, subdomain takeover monitoring, AI-assisted prioritization, and operational integrations. The weaker area is scanner-level transparency. The public site does not provide the same depth of documentation around port coverage, crawling behavior, authenticated scanning, API scanning, or exact vulnerability test categories.
- Detectify — Detectify is a broader application security testing platform. Its Surface Monitoring product monitors and maps assets and subdomains, identifies changes over time, and detects misconfigurations and vulnerabilities across the attack surface. Detectify’s documentation says Surface Monitoring discovery starts with subdomain discovery and adds DNS records, IP addresses, exposed ports, and SSL/TLS configuration data. Detectify also has Application Scanning for deeper web app testing and API Scanning for REST APIs using OpenAPI specification files. Its public documentation explains scan profiles, authenticated scanning options, recorded login, WAF scan interference, port discovery, asset verification, and API authentication setup. That makes Detectify stronger when the buyer needs both external discovery and deeper application-level validation.
Head-to-head: feature breakdown
The right comparison is not “which one has more features?” It is “which one exposes the evidence your team needs to fix risk?”
For each row below, “not publicly confirmed” means the vendor may support it, but the public source did not confirm it clearly enough to treat it as a claim.
| Feature | SurfaceGuard | Detectify | Practical takeaway |
|---|---|---|---|
| External attack surface monitoring | Yes. Public site describes 24/7 scanning and automatic asset discovery. | Yes. Surface Monitoring maps assets and subdomains and tracks changes over time. | Both cover EASM, but Detectify documents more of the discovery workflow publicly. |
| Subdomain discovery | Yes. Public site says it monitors subdomains and highlights subdomain takeover detection. | Yes. Detectify documents autodiscovery for identifying subdomains belonging to a domain. | Both are relevant for unknown subdomain discovery and stale asset review. |
| DNS records | Not publicly detailed at record-type level. | Yes. Detectify Surface Monitoring documentation includes DNS records in discovery. | Detectify is clearer for DNS-level evidence. |
| IP address discovery | Not publicly detailed. | Yes. Detectify documentation includes IP addresses in Surface Monitoring discovery. | Detectify gives more public detail for infrastructure mapping. |
| Port discovery | Not publicly detailed. | Yes. Detectify documents top 8,500 port scanning for Surface Monitoring. | Detectify has stronger public evidence for exposed-service discovery. |
| SSL/TLS monitoring | Not publicly detailed beyond general vulnerability monitoring. | Yes. Detectify Surface Monitoring documentation references SSL/TLS configuration. | Detectify is clearer for certificate and TLS posture review. |
| Subdomain takeover detection | Yes. Public site uses subdomain takeover as its main example vulnerability. | Yes. Detectify documents subdomain takeover under Surface Monitoring resources. | Both should be evaluated with real owned-domain test cases. |
| Application scanning | Not publicly confirmed as a separate DAST product. | Yes. Detectify Application Scanning supports deeper web application testing with scan profiles. | Detectify is the stronger fit for AppSec teams that need DAST. |
| Authenticated web scanning | Not publicly confirmed. | Yes. Detectify documents Recorded Login, basic auth credentials, and session-cookie based scanning options. | Detectify is stronger when protected web apps need assessment. |
| API scanning | Not publicly confirmed as a separate product. | Yes. Detectify API Scanning uses OpenAPI specification files and supports authentication options. Buyers should verify OpenAPI version support, file-size limits, verified-asset requirements, authentication method, endpoint exclusions, and whether scan-created data is acceptable in their environment. | Detectify is stronger when REST API testing is part of the buying requirement. |
| AI-assisted prioritization | Yes. Public site says AI identifies patterns, ranks risks, and suggests priority actions. | Detectify emphasizes asset classification, scan recommendations, and payload-based testing rather than generic AI positioning. | Surface Guard markets AI more directly; buyers should verify evidence quality and explainability. |
| Dashboards | Yes. Basic and advanced dashboards are plan-differentiated. | Yes. Detectify has Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, Vulnerabilities, asset, and finding views. | Both provide UI workflows; evaluate how quickly a finding becomes an owner-assigned task. |
| Reports | Yes. Weekly reports on StartUp, daily reports and compliance reports on Business, custom reports on Custom. | Yes. Detectify supports reporting workflows; exact report formats and exports should be verified for the plan. | Surface Guard publishes clearer report cadence in its pricing table. |
| Compliance positioning | Business plan lists ISO 27001, LGPD, PCI DSS and others. | Detectify public materials discuss AppSec and API security in contexts such as PCI and SOC 2, but plan-specific compliance reporting should be verified. | Surface Guard is more explicit on compliance report labels in public pricing. |
| Chat and support | Chat support on StartUp; priority support on Business; dedicated support on Custom. | Support depends on Detectify plan and commercial arrangement. | Surface Guard’s public plan table is easier to parse. |
| Slack and Teams | Yes. Business plan lists Slack and Teams integrations; public integration section also lists them. | Detectify integrations should be verified against current plan and workspace needs. | Both may fit chat-driven workflows; verify exact routing and payload format. |
| Discord | Yes. Public integration section lists Discord webhooks. | Not publicly emphasized in the reviewed Detectify materials. | Surface Guard may fit teams that use Discord for operational alerting. |
| SIEM integration | Custom plan lists SIEM integration; public page specifically references Splunk and Wazuh. | Detectify integration options should be verified during buying or trial. | Surface Guard is more explicit about Splunk and Wazuh on its public site. |
| Ownership verification | Not publicly detailed. | Yes. Detectify documentation references verified root assets and asset verification before scanning. | Detectify is clearer about verification requirements. |
| Documentation depth | Light public documentation from the main product page. | Deeper public knowledge base and product documentation. | Detectify is easier to validate before a sales call. |
Coverage comparison
Coverage should not be judged by marketing labels alone.
For EASM, coverage means asset discovery, scanner breadth, evidence quality, recency, authentication support, API support, exposed-service checks, and whether the result can be routed to an owner.
| Coverage area | SurfaceGuard | Detectify |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown subdomains | Supported at a high level through automatic asset discovery and subdomain monitoring claims | Supported through Surface Monitoring and Autodiscovery documentation |
| Known domains | Plan-based monitored-domain limits are public | Root assets and verified asset workflows are documented |
| DNS context | Not publicly detailed at scanner level | DNS record discovery is publicly documented |
| Ports and exposed services | Not publicly detailed at scanner level | Top 8,500 port scanning is publicly documented for Surface Monitoring |
| Web application vulnerabilities | Not publicly detailed as a separate application-scanning workflow | Application Scanning provides deeper DAST-style testing |
| Authenticated areas | Not publicly confirmed | Recorded Login, basic auth, and session-cookie options are documented |
| REST APIs | Not publicly confirmed | API Scanning uses OpenAPI files and supports authentication configuration |
| Subdomain takeover | Explicitly highlighted | Documented under Surface Monitoring resources |
| Compliance reports | Business plan lists ISO 27001, LGPD, PCI DSS and others | Compliance and reporting fit should be verified by plan and audit need |
| Monitoring cadence | StartUp lists weekly reports; Business lists daily reports; public page also says 24/7 scanning | Surface Monitoring is continuous; port discovery documentation says 2–3 times per day for port discovery |
Pricing comparison
Pricing is one of the clearest differences.
Surface Guard publishes public monthly plan prices, but buyers should verify currency, taxes, billing terms, and contract scope before treating them as final procurement pricing.
Surface Guard’s public plan table lists prices in U.S. dollars, while other page copy includes Brazil-focused cost examples, so buyers should verify currency, taxes, invoicing, and contract details directly with the vendor.
Detectify publishes starting prices in euros for its product modules and also offers custom quotes.
Always verify final pricing on the vendor site before procurement because asset limits, billing terms, currencies, taxes, trial terms, and enterprise add-ons can change.
| Vendor | Public plan or module | Listed price | Included or stated scope | What to verify |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurfaceGuard | StartUp | $199/month | Up to 3 monitored domains, weekly reports, email alerts, chat support, basic dashboard | Currency, taxes, billing terms, exact scanner list, test categories, report format, alert payloads, and domain definition |
| SurfaceGuard | Business | $459/month | Up to 20 monitored domains, daily reports, compliance reports, real-time alerts, Slack/Teams integrations, advanced dashboard, integration API, priority support | Currency, taxes, which compliance report templates are included, API limits, Slack/Teams configuration, and remediation evidence |
| SurfaceGuard | Custom | On request | Unlimited domains, custom reports, custom integrations, SIEM integration, dedicated support, custom SLA, team training | Commercial terms, SLA definition, SIEM data format, onboarding effort, support scope, billing currency, and contract details |
| Detectify | Surface Monitoring | Starting from €302/month | Attack surface monitoring for internet-facing assets, including subdomain, DNS, IP, port, and SSL/TLS discovery based on public docs | Included asset count, overage pricing, trial terms, export needs, and enterprise requirements |
| Detectify | Application Scanning | Starting from €90/month | Deeper web application scanning with scan profiles, crawling, fuzzing, scheduling, and authenticated scan options | How scan profiles are counted, authentication complexity, WAF handling, endpoint exclusions, and add-on costs |
| Detectify | API Scanning | Starting from €90/month | REST API scanning using OpenAPI specification files and authentication configuration | API count, OpenAPI version support, file-size limits, verified-asset requirements, authentication method, scan safety, endpoint exclusions, and enterprise fit |
| Detectify | Custom quote | Contact sales | Larger attack surfaces, enterprise workflows, and advanced requirements | SSO, team management, API access, support, contracts, integrations, data handling, and final module combination |
Who should use which tool
The best choice depends on whether your team needs EASM monitoring only, EASM plus application testing, or a stronger procurement-ready documentation trail.
Run a proof of value against domains you own before committing. The best comparison is evidence from your own attack surface.
| Buyer need | Better fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Small team wants simple EASM monitoring with visible monthly pricing | SurfaceGuard | Its StartUp and Business plans are easy to understand and include monitored-domain limits, reports, alerts, and dashboard tiers. |
| AppSec team needs web application DAST | Detectify | Application Scanning is a separate documented product with scan profiles, crawling, fuzzing, scheduling, and authenticated scan support. |
| Team needs REST API scanning | Detectify | API Scanning is publicly documented around OpenAPI specification files, authentication options, and selected operations. |
| Security team wants Slack, Teams, Discord, Splunk, or Wazuh positioning from the public site | SurfaceGuard | Surface Guard publicly lists those integrations or SIEM paths. |
| Buyer needs stronger public technical documentation before a demo | Detectify | Detectify has a deeper public knowledge base covering Surface Monitoring, port scanning, verification, Application Scanning, and API Scanning. |
| Team wants compliance report language around ISO 27001, LGPD, and PCI DSS on the public plan page | SurfaceGuard | Surface Guard’s Business plan explicitly lists compliance reports for ISO 27001, LGPD, PCI DSS, and others. |
| Product Security team wants attack surface discovery plus payload-based validation | Detectify | Detectify’s public materials emphasize DAST methods, payload-based testing, Application Scanning, and API Scanning. |
| Buyer wants SIEM integration in a custom EASM package | SurfaceGuard | Surface Guard’s Custom plan lists SIEM integration and its public integration section references Splunk and Wazuh. |
| Enterprise buyer needs mature AppSec workflow validation | Detectify | Detectify has more public documentation for scan behavior, authenticated scanning, API scanning, scan profiles, verification, and vulnerability workflows. |
Where ExternalSight fits if you are comparing both
Surface Guard and Detectify are not the only valid options if the buying goal is external attack surface monitoring.
ExternalSight is built for internet-facing domains and combines on-demand asynchronous scans, continuous monitoring for verified domains, issue classification, remediation planning, historical comparison, alerting, PDF export and JSON export on supported plans, and plan-gated notifications and webhooks.
Its scanner workflow includes DNS, certificate transparency, subdomains, SSL/TLS, headers, TLS configuration, subdomain takeover, API discovery, JavaScript endpoints, cookie security, CORS, mixed content, redirects, credentials, secrets, phishing, ports, cloud exposure, email spoofing, zone transfer, admin panels, HTTP configuration, infrastructure, login surface, sensitive files, open redirects, host header issues, GraphQL, exposed services, Firebase, Wayback, supply chain, asset discovery, IP intelligence, WAF, robots.txt, security.txt, sitemap, reputation, WHOIS, CSP, Shodan, passive DNS, OTX, and attack-chain evaluation.
Some external-source checks may report unavailable when API keys or upstream services are not configured. Review scan coverage before treating a clean scan as a clean surface.
ExternalSight should not be treated as a replacement for Detectify’s deeper AppSec testing, a SIEM, a SOC, a WAF, a penetration test, or a cloud security platform. Its fit is external visibility, classification, remediation planning, history, alerting, exports, and verified-domain monitoring.
Questions to ask during a trial or demo
A comparison table is useful, but a trial should answer operational questions.
Ask both vendors to show the same owned domain, the same subdomain takeover candidate, the same exposed service, and the same remediation workflow. Then compare evidence quality, not dashboard polish.
- What exactly counts as a monitored domain or asset? — Clarify whether apex domains, subdomains, IPs, APIs, scan profiles, and cloud assets are counted separately.
- Which scanners run continuously and which run on demand? — Monitoring cadence matters when DNS, ports, certificates, and staging environments change frequently.
- What evidence appears in each finding? — A useful finding should include the affected asset, proof, timestamp, severity logic, remediation steps, and validation guidance.
- How are false positives handled? — Ask whether findings can be marked fixed, accepted risk, false positive, or routed to a specific owner.
- How are authenticated applications and APIs tested? — For AppSec use cases, confirm login support, API authentication, destructive-action controls, WAF handling, and endpoint exclusions.
- How does API scanning handle state-changing methods? — For API scanning, ask how POST, PUT, PATCH, and DELETE operations are handled, whether test data can be created, and which sensitive operations can be excluded.
- What integrations are included in the plan? — Do not assume Slack, Teams, SIEM, API, webhook, export, SSO, or ticketing support is included in the tier you plan to buy.
- What does a clean result mean? — Ask whether unavailable checks, missing API keys, scan timeouts, and excluded assets are visible in coverage reporting.
- How does the tool prove remediation? — The best workflow confirms whether the exposed service, stale CNAME, weak DNS policy, or public sensitive file is actually fixed.
Final verdict
Choose Surface Guard if you want a simpler EASM-focused monitoring product with public plan pricing, monitored-domain limits, reports, alerts, dashboard tiers, Slack and Teams positioning, Discord webhooks, and Splunk or Wazuh SIEM messaging.
Choose Detectify if you need a broader AppSec platform that combines attack surface monitoring with deeper web application scanning and API scanning. Detectify has stronger public documentation around asset discovery, DNS/IP/port discovery, SSL/TLS context, scan profiles, authenticated scanning, OpenAPI-based API scanning, and verification workflows.
The main caution for Surface Guard is documentation depth. Before buying, verify scanner coverage, evidence quality, false-positive handling, exact report formats, API limits, and how “AI” decisions are explained.
The main caution for Detectify is cost structure and scope planning. Surface Monitoring, Application Scanning, API Scanning, scan profiles, asset limits, and enterprise features can change the final cost, so validate the buying model before standardizing.
Frequently asked questions
- SurfaceGuard vs Detectify: which is better?
- Surface Guard is better for teams that want a simpler EASM monitoring product with clear public plan pricing, reports, alerts, dashboards, and integrations. Detectify is better for teams that need EASM plus deeper web application and API scanning.
- Is SurfaceGuard cheaper than Detectify?
- Surface Guard lists StartUp at $199/month and Business at $459/month. Detectify lists starting prices of €302/month for Surface Monitoring and €90/month for Application Scanning or API Scanning. The cheaper option depends on how many domains, subdomains, apps, APIs, integrations, and enterprise features you need, and buyers should verify currency, taxes, billing terms, and contract scope with each vendor.
- Does SurfaceGuard support DAST like Detectify?
- Surface Guard’s public site does not clearly document a separate DAST product comparable to Detectify Application Scanning. Detectify publicly documents Application Scanning with scan profiles, crawling, fuzzing, scheduling, and authenticated scanning options.
- Does Detectify include EASM?
- Yes. Detectify Surface Monitoring monitors and maps internet-facing assets and subdomains, tracks changes over time, and identifies vulnerabilities and misconfigurations. Detectify also offers Application Scanning and API Scanning for deeper validation.
- Should I evaluate ExternalSight alongside SurfaceGuard and Detectify?
- Yes, if your main need is external attack surface monitoring for internet-facing domains with issue classification, remediation planning, historical comparison, alerts, exports, scan coverage reporting, and verified-domain monitoring. Detectify remains stronger when deeper application and API scanning is the primary requirement.
References and further reading
- Surface Guard official website and pricing — https://surfaceguard.net/
- Detectify pricing — https://detectify.com/pricing
- Detectify Surface Monitoring — https://detectify.com/product/surface-monitoring
- Detectify Application Scanning — https://detectify.com/product/application-scanning
- Detectify support — getting started with Surface Monitoring — https://support.detectify.com/support/solutions/articles/48001049198-getting-started-with-surface-monitoring
- Detectify support — port discovery and scanning — https://support.detectify.com/support/solutions/articles/48001209182-port-discovery-and-scanning
- Detectify support — what can I scan using Detectify? — https://support.detectify.com/support/solutions/articles/48001061283-what-can-i-scan-using-detectify-
- Detectify support — Application Scanning page — https://support.detectify.com/support/solutions/articles/48001222579-application-scanning-page
- Detectify support — getting started with API Scanning — https://support.detectify.com/support/solutions/articles/48001276431-getting-started-with-api-scanning
- Detectify product update — Dynamic API Scanning — https://blog.detectify.com/product-updates/introducing-dynamic-api-scanning/
Compare external exposure with evidence, not guesswork
ExternalSight helps teams scan internet-facing domains, classify findings, generate remediation plans, compare scan history, receive alerts, export reports, and monitor verified domains on supported plans. Use it when your comparison criteria include external visibility, scan coverage, remediation workflow, and drift detection.