Arkime vs BlackDice Halo: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)
Features, pricing, ratings, and pros & cons — compared head-to-head.
Arkime is a free network detection and response tool. BlackDice Halo is a commercial network detection and response tool by BlackDice. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best network detection and response fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, company size fit, deployment model, here is our conclusion:
Security teams operating on-premises or hybrid networks with packet capture requirements should adopt Arkime for PCAP indexing and retrospective threat hunting; the open-source model means zero licensing friction at scale, and the tool's ability to ingest and search months of network traffic at line rate beats commercial alternatives on cost-per-terabyte. Arkime excels in the Detect function of NIST CSF 2.0, particularly for forensic investigation after an incident surfaces. This is not suitable for organizations needing real-time alerting, automated response, or managed service support; you're running it yourself.
Telecom operators and ISPs protecting subscriber networks need BlackDice Halo because it's the only NDR platform built specifically for the carrier use case, detecting and blocking compromised devices in real time across both on-network and off-network locations. The BlackDice Retina console delivers network-wide threat visibility without requiring hardware replacement, and the AI-powered threat analysis maps directly to NIST DE.CM and DE.AE functions for continuous monitoring and incident characterization. Skip this if you're a mid-market enterprise looking for endpoint-centric protection; Halo assumes you have network-scale visibility requirements and the infrastructure to operationalize its threat intelligence across thousands of subscriber devices.
