Best KnowBe4 Alternatives in 2026 (With Public Prices)
Seven security awareness and phishing simulation tools that print their prices, costed for a 50-person company against KnowBe4's own list price.
The cheapest full KnowBe4 alternative for a 50-person company is Keepnet Essentials, at $1.80 per user a month, or $1,080 a year by our arithmetic. KnowBe4 SAT Foundation costs $2.40 per seat a month on a three-year term at the same size, or $1,440 a year.
Pick Hook Security for one flat annual fee covering 11 to 60 seats, Wizer if you want a free plan before paying $25 per user a year, and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2 if you already run Microsoft 365. Prices read on each vendor's own page on October 19, 2026.
Key facts7 tools compared: Keepnet, Hook Security, Wizer, PhishingBox, Huntress Managed SAT, Microsoft…
- 7 tools compared: Keepnet, Hook Security, Wizer, PhishingBox, Huntress Managed SAT, Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2, Gophish
- Hook Security (best for: Small companies that want a done-for-you program bought by card in one afternoon): Micro $499/yr (up to 10 seats); Starter $1,199/yr (11 to 60 seats); Growth quoted
- Wizer (best for: Budget-conscious teams that want to start free and add phishing simulation later): Free plan; Boost $25/user/yr at 25+ users, 3-year term billed annually
- PhishingBox (best for: Teams that want monthly billing as an option and a trial before they commit): Standard $16.50/seat/yr; Professional $23.93; Enterprise $31.35 (50 seats, annual); 14-day trial
KnowBe4 is no longer quote-only: it now prints a per-seat list price, on a three-year term, for teams of 25 to 1,000. That changes the question from "what does KnowBe4 cost?" to "how much does switching save, and what do you give up?" At 50 seats the honest answer is a few hundred dollars a year, not thousands, so the reasons to switch are usually the contract length, the training style or a tool you already own.
This page is for IT leads, MSP owners and the security generalist at a 20 to 500 person company who runs phishing tests between other jobs. Every price below comes from the vendor's own pricing page, read on October 19, 2026, and every total is our multiplication of those printed prices for one scenario: 50 employees for one year. Our KnowBe4 review covers the incumbent in depth; here it is the benchmark.
Toolradar data: KnowBe4 is the #4 (joint) most-listed alternative among the 85 Learning and Training tools Toolradar tracks, and it has no free plan while 39% of those tools offer one, as of October 2026. Toolradar is the software directory we run.
Top Picks
Based on features, real-world fit, and value for money.
The cheapest full platform at 50 seats, with the widest set of attack simulators on this list.
Essentials $1.80/user/mo at 25 to 50 users, billed annually; Plus $2.13, 360 $2.50, Enterprise $3.15
Teams that want the lowest per-seat price and simulations beyond email, such as voice, SMS and QR codes.
Flat annual prices for small teams, with managed phishing simulations included on every plan.
Micro $499/yr (up to 10 seats); Starter $1,199/yr (11 to 60 seats); Growth quoted
Small companies that want a done-for-you program bought by card in one afternoon.
A real free plan for basic annual training, and a low per-user price once you need phishing tests.
Free plan; Boost $25/user/yr at 25+ users, 3-year term billed annually
Budget-conscious teams that want to start free and add phishing simulation later.
| Tool | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Keepnet | Essentials $1.80/user/mo at 25 to 50 users, billed annually; Plus $2.13, 360 $2.50, Enterprise $3.15 | Teams that want the lowest per-seat price and simulations beyond email, such as voice, SMS and QR codes. |
| Hook Security | Micro $499/yr (up to 10 seats); Starter $1,199/yr (11 to 60 seats); Growth quoted | Small companies that want a done-for-you program bought by card in one afternoon. |
| Wizer | Free plan; Boost $25/user/yr at 25+ users, 3-year term billed annually | Budget-conscious teams that want to start free and add phishing simulation later. |
| PhishingBox | Standard $16.50/seat/yr; Professional $23.93; Enterprise $31.35 (50 seats, annual); 14-day trial | Teams that want monthly billing as an option and a trial before they commit. |
| Huntress Managed SAT | MSRP $2.08/learner/mo; volume rate on request; 50-seat minimum through resellers | Companies working with an MSP, or already on Huntress for endpoint security. |
| Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2 | $5/user/mo, paid yearly; includes attack simulation training | Microsoft 365 shops that also want stronger email threat protection from the same license. |
| Gophish | Free and open source; you host it yourself | Technical teams that only need to run phishing tests and can host their own tools. |
Pricing read from each vendor's own pricing page, checked Nov 2026. 2 of 7 publish prices for some plans and quote the rest.
Keepnet
The cheapest full platform at 50 seats, with the widest set of attack simulators on this list.
- Pricing
- Essentials $1.80/user/mo at 25 to 50 users, billed annually; Plus $2.13, 360 $2.50, Enterprise $3.15
Best for: Teams that want the lowest per-seat price and simulations beyond email, such as voice, SMS and QR codes.
Pros
- Essentials at 50 seats comes to $1,080 a year, the lowest bill for a full program here.
- Vishing, smishing, quishing and callback simulators sit alongside email phishing.
- Single tools such as the Phishing Simulator can be bought on their own.
Cons
- Four tiers and several add-ons make the right plan harder to pick than KnowBe4's two.
- Above 1,000 users every tier moves to a quote.
Hook Security
Flat annual prices for small teams, with managed phishing simulations included on every plan.
- Pricing
- Micro $499/yr (up to 10 seats); Starter $1,199/yr (11 to 60 seats); Growth quoted
Best for: Small companies that want a done-for-you program bought by card in one afternoon.
Pros
- Micro covers a 10-person company for $499 a year, while KnowBe4's published list starts at 25 seats.
- Autopilot runs phishing simulations for you on every plan.
- Compliance training such as HIPAA is included, with no setup fee.
Cons
- Starter is a flat fee, so a 15-person team pays the same as a 60-person one.
- Growth, for 61 seats or more, has no published price.
Wizer
A real free plan for basic annual training, and a low per-user price once you need phishing tests.
- Pricing
- Free plan; Boost $25/user/yr at 25+ users, 3-year term billed annually
Best for: Budget-conscious teams that want to start free and add phishing simulation later.
Pros
- The free plan covers basic annual security awareness training with no credit card.
- Boost drops to $20 per user a year at 51 users and $17 at 101.
- Boost adds SSO, auto provisioning and departments for reporting.
Cons
- The free plan has no phishing simulation and only limited reporting.
- Boost requires a three-year term and a 25-user minimum to buy online.
PhishingBox
A phishing-first platform where the training library starts on the middle tier.
- Pricing
- Standard $16.50/seat/yr; Professional $23.93; Enterprise $31.35 (50 seats, annual); 14-day trial
Best for: Teams that want monthly billing as an option and a trial before they commit.
Pros
- Professional at 50 seats costs $1,196.25 a year, with LMS and course library included.
- Monthly billing is available; annual billing saves 20%.
- A 14-day free trial needs no credit card.
Cons
- Standard covers phishing tests and just-in-time training, not the full course library.
- Callback phishing sits on Enterprise only.
Huntress Managed SAT
A managed training and phishing program from Huntress, bought through an MSP or reseller.
- Pricing
- MSRP $2.08/learner/mo; volume rate on request; 50-seat minimum through resellers
Best for: Companies working with an MSP, or already on Huntress for endpoint security.
Pros
- Learning programs and phishing simulations are fully managed, not self-run.
- Through an MSP there is no Huntress-required seat minimum.
- One vendor and one dashboard if Huntress already covers your endpoints.
Cons
- Buying through a reseller carries a 50-seat minimum per product.
- Final price depends on your MSP or reseller, not only the published MSRP.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2
Phishing simulation bundled into Microsoft's email security plan, not a standalone training product.
- Pricing
- $5/user/mo, paid yearly; includes attack simulation training
Best for: Microsoft 365 shops that also want stronger email threat protection from the same license.
Pros
- Cyberattack simulation training is included with Plan 2.
- The same license adds threat hunting, automation and XDR across email and collaboration tools.
- A free trial runs before purchase.
Cons
- At 50 users Plan 2 costs $3,000 a year, the highest bill here, because it is mainly an email security product.
- Plan 1 at $2 per user a month does not include attack simulation training.
Gophish
A free phishing simulation framework with a web UI and REST API, but no training content.
- Pricing
- Free and open source; you host it yourself
Best for: Technical teams that only need to run phishing tests and can host their own tools.
Pros
- No license cost at any headcount.
- Full HTML template editor, scheduled campaigns and near real-time results.
- A REST API lets you plug results into your own reporting.
Cons
- No course library, so training must come from somewhere else.
- Hosting, email deliverability and upkeep are your team's job.
What it is
A KnowBe4 alternative is a security awareness training (SAT) platform that does the same two jobs: it sends simulated phishing emails to employees and assigns short training to the people who click. Most add a report-phish button for the inbox and dashboards that show which departments click most.
The tools below split into three groups. Full platforms (Keepnet, Hook Security, Wizer, PhishingBox Professional) replace KnowBe4 outright. Managed or bundled options (Huntress Managed SAT, Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2) put training inside a service or license you may already buy. And Gophish is a free, open-source simulator with no course library at all, for teams that only need to run phishing tests.
Why it matters
Run the 50-seat math before you book a single demo. KnowBe4 SAT Foundation at its 25 to 50 seat rate costs $1,440 a year, and SAT Advanced at $3.75 per seat a month costs $2,250. Keepnet Essentials undercuts Foundation by $360 a year at that size, Hook Security Starter by $241, PhishingBox Professional by $243.75, Huntress Managed SAT at its list price by $192, and Wizer Boost by $190.
The gap grows with headcount. At 200 seats, KnowBe4 Foundation's 101 to 250 rate of $1.97 a month comes to $4,728 a year, against $3,360 for Keepnet Essentials at its 101 to 500 rate and $3,400 for Wizer Boost at $17 per user a year. The contract matters as much as the rate: KnowBe4's list prices assume a three-year term, so a team that wants a one-year exit should ask for that price in writing.
Key features to look for
Pricing
USD prices verified on each vendor's own pricing page on October 19, 2026: KnowBe4 pricing, Keepnet pricing, Hook Security pricing, Wizer pricing, PhishingBox pricing, Huntress pricing and Microsoft Defender for Office 365. KnowBe4 lists its prices as of May 2026, per seat per month on a three-year term, with a quote above 1,000 seats.
At 50 seats for one year, the bills line up like this, using each vendor's 50-seat rate: Keepnet Essentials $1,080, PhishingBox Professional $1,196.25, Hook Security Starter $1,199, Huntress Managed SAT $1,248 at MSRP, Wizer Boost $1,250, KnowBe4 SAT Foundation $1,440 and Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2 $3,000. Gophish costs nothing in license fees. These totals are our arithmetic on the printed prices.
Terms are not equal, so compare them before the totals. KnowBe4 and Wizer quote three-year-term rates billed annually. Keepnet prices monthly with annual payments and discounts three-year terms further. Hook Security, PhishingBox and Microsoft bill one year at a time, and PhishingBox also offers monthly billing. A buyer who wants to leave after one year should treat a three-year rate as a commitment, not a discount.
| Plan | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| KnowBe4 SAT Foundation | $2.40/seat/mo at 25 to 50 seats, 3-year term | 200+ piece training library, unlimited phishing tests, Phish Alert Button, assessments |
| KnowBe4 SAT Advanced | $3.75/seat/mo at 25 to 50 seats, 3-year term | Adds the 1,000+ piece library, simulated vishing, callback phishing and AI Defense Agents |
| Keepnet Essentials | $1.80/user/mo at 25 to 50 users; $1.40 at 101 to 500 | Entry tier of Keepnet's human risk platform for a first security culture program |
| Keepnet Plus | $2.13/user/mo at 25 to 50 users | Essentials plus protection from current email-borne threats |
| Hook Security Micro | $499/yr, up to 10 seats | Full course library, managed phishing simulations (Autopilot), compliance training |
| Hook Security Starter | $1,199/yr, 11 to 60 seats | Same full platform as Micro for a larger team, bought online |
| Wizer Free | $0 | Basic annual security awareness training, limited reporting, no phishing simulation |
| Wizer Boost | $25/user/yr at 25 to 50 users; $17 at 101+ | Full library, phishing simulation, monthly videos, SSO and auto provisioning |
| PhishingBox Professional | $23.93/seat/yr at 50 seats, annual | Phishing simulation plus built-in LMS, course library, API and custom branding |
| Huntress Managed SAT | $2.08/learner/mo MSRP | Fully managed learning programs and phishing simulation with automated reporting |
| Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2 | $5/user/mo, paid yearly | Email and collaboration protection, threat hunting and cyberattack simulation training |
| Gophish | $0 | Open-source phishing simulation framework, self-hosted, no training content |
The bottom line
Keepnet is the KnowBe4 alternative to beat on price: at 50 seats Essentials costs $360 a year less than KnowBe4 SAT Foundation, and it simulates voice, SMS and QR attacks as well as email. Hook Security is the simplest buy for a company under 60 people, Wizer is the low-risk start with a free plan, and PhishingBox suits a team that wants monthly billing and a trial.
Choose Huntress Managed SAT if an MSP runs your security, Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 2 if your Microsoft 365 tenant also needs stronger email protection, and Gophish only if your team can host a tool and bring its own training. Stay with KnowBe4 if its content library is what your people actually complete; at 50 seats the saving from switching is real but modest. Compare the wider field in our best security awareness training ranking, the free security awareness training guide, our guide to preventing phishing attacks, the best email security tools, the Huntress review, the Microsoft Defender for Business review and the best cybersecurity tools for small business. Toolradar profiles: KnowBe4, Huntress.
Methodology: we listed security awareness and phishing simulation tools that print a USD price on their own site, read each pricing page on October 19, 2026, and costed every tool for 50 employees over one year at its 50-seat rate. Tools with quote-only pricing were left out because a buyer cannot compare them without a sales call. Ranking weighs total cost at 50 seats, contract flexibility and how much of the program the tool runs for you. No feature claim comes from hands-on use; every one comes from the vendor's own pages.
Cite this: Cyberpresso, "Best KnowBe4 Alternatives in 2026 (With Public Prices)", November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
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