Compare AuditKit and Secureframe for SOC 2 compliance. Secureframe is a Drata/Vanta-tier GRC platform with strong auditor relationships; AuditKit is open source with tamper-proof evidence at $99/mo and free self-hosting.
| Feature | AuditKit | Secureframe |
|---|---|---|
| Open source | — | |
| Self-hosted option | — | |
| Tamper-proof evidence (hash chain) | — | |
| Merkle tree proofs | — | |
| Multi-language audit log SDKs | TS, Python, Go, Java | Limited |
| Policy templates | ||
| Evidence vault | ||
| Auditor partner network | Self-serve | Strong |
| Continuous control monitoring | Roadmap | |
| Vendor risk management | Basic | |
| Auditor portal | Built-in | Included |
| Transparent published pricing | — | |
| Self-serve trial without sales call | — | |
| Monthly billing (no annual lock-in) | — | |
| SOC 2 starting price | $99/mo (free self-host) | ~$7K+/yr |
| Cryptographic evidence integrity | — |
AuditKit cloud starts at $99/mo ($1,188/yr) vs Secureframe's ~$7,000-$15,000/yr typical entry. Self-hosted is free under AGPLv3. For startups whose primary SOC 2 need is the audit log + evidence portion of the platform, AuditKit delivers that core value at 1-15% of Secureframe's cost.
AuditKit hash-chains every audit event so any tampering shows up as a broken chain — and exports Merkle proofs that an auditor can independently verify. Secureframe stores evidence in a database with database-level access controls; it has no cryptographic integrity verification. The integrity story matters more every audit cycle as auditors raise the bar.
Self-host on your own infrastructure for $0 in licensing. Inspect the codebase, audit the hash-chain implementation, extend the SDK for custom needs. Secureframe is a closed-source SaaS — you trust the vendor on evidence integrity claims, with no way to verify them independently.
Sign up, drop in the SDK, start logging audit events the same day. Secureframe requires a sales call and a multi-week onboarding process before the platform is fully configured for your environment.
AuditKit instruments inside your application via SDK — every business event (user invited, role changed, data accessed, billing modified) gets a structured audit event with cryptographic chain integrity. Secureframe's audit log is platform-collected — it pulls infrastructure events from cloud and SaaS connectors but cannot capture application-internal business events. SOC 2 auditors care about both layers; Secureframe covers one, AuditKit covers the other (and the two are complementary).
AuditKit is month-to-month. Cancel anytime, change tiers anytime, no annual commitment. Secureframe is annual contracts only.
Strong auditor partner network — auditor introductions are bundled with the platform
Mature continuous control monitoring across cloud, SaaS, and code repos
Polished vendor risk management workflows
Multi-framework support (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI, GDPR) in one platform
Established trust center for sharing compliance posture with prospects
Annual contracts starting around $7,000-$15,000/year, no monthly billing
Sales-led purchase requires demo before access to pricing
No self-hosting option for organizations with data residency requirements
No cryptographic evidence integrity (hash chains or Merkle proofs)
Closed source — no ability to inspect or extend the audit logging implementation
Audit log functionality is GRC-style (platform-collected) rather than application-instrumented
Pricing scales aggressively for multi-framework or multi-entity organizations
Partial. Secureframe is a full GRC platform with auditor partnerships, vendor risk, continuous control monitoring, and multi-framework support; AuditKit covers the audit log + evidence portal slice with cryptographic integrity Secureframe does not have. For startups whose primary SOC 2 need is "tamper-proof audit logs and auditor-friendly evidence," AuditKit replaces ~80% of Secureframe's value for that slice at 1-15% of the cost. For organizations needing auditor partnerships or full GRC platform breadth, the two products are complementary rather than competitive.
AuditKit cloud starts at $99/month ($1,188/year) with monthly billing. Self-hosted is free under AGPLv3. Secureframe typically starts around $7,000-$15,000/year on annual contracts. For most early-stage SaaS startups, this is a 6-15x cost reduction for the audit log and evidence-collection use case.
Secureframe has stronger auditor partner relationships (auditor intros bundled with the platform), continuous control monitoring across cloud and SaaS via mature integrations, vendor risk workflows, and multi-framework breadth (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI, GDPR) in one platform. AuditKit's focus is the audit log + evidence slice with cryptographic integrity, multi-language SDKs, and open source — narrower scope but deeper capability in that scope.
Yes — and many organizations do. The two products operate at different layers: Secureframe at the GRC platform layer (control monitoring, policy management, vendor risk), AuditKit at the application audit log layer (in-app event instrumentation with cryptographic integrity). AuditKit's evidence exports flow into Secureframe's evidence vault, giving auditors a unified view across both layers.
Yes. AuditKit produces tenant-scoped, time-bounded, cryptographically verifiable evidence exports. The hash-chained event log and Merkle proofs are stronger evidence integrity than what most GRC platforms provide. Auditors increasingly value the cryptographic integrity story, particularly for high-stakes audits.
For the audit log and evidence-collection slice, yes. The transition usually happens at Secureframe contract renewal, with AuditKit deployed in parallel during the final 60-90 days. Self-hosted deployments take 1-2 days; cloud is same-day. For organizations using Secureframe's broader GRC platform features (control monitoring, vendor risk), the right move is often to keep Secureframe and add AuditKit specifically for the application-layer audit log — the two complement rather than compete.
GRC · Starting ~$10,000/yr (annual contracts, custom pricing)
GRC · Starting ~$10,000/yr (annual contracts, custom pricing)
Observability · Usage-based, typically $20K-$500K+/yr depending on data volume
Observability · Log Management from $0.10/GB ingested + retention costs
Get tamper-proof audit logging with transparent pricing from $99/mo. No sales call required.