GuardianGaze vs Jetpack Security
Jetpack Security bundles backups, spam filtering and scanning from the company that builds WordPress. We do security only. The comparison is less about which is better and more about whether you want a bundle.
Which one should you pick?
Neither tool wins on every axis. Here is the honest split, before the detail.
You want backups, spam filtering and scanning in one bill
VaultPress is excellent and we do not compete with it. If a single vendor covering several needs is worth more to you than depth in any one of them, Jetpack is the sensible choice.
You want a firewall without paying for the top tier
Pro includes the firewall and virtual patching at $99/yr, where Jetpack puts the firewall behind Complete. Add a detection layer that reasons about what code is doing rather than matching it.
- Firewall included at the Pro price, not a tier above
- Four detection layers, including reasoning about code intent
- Database rows deserialised and assessed
- One-click removal included on Pro
- Security only, no bundled features you did not ask for
- VaultPress real-time backups, genuinely excellent
- One-click restore from any point in time
- Built by Automattic, who build WordPress itself
- Bundles spam filtering, CDN and performance tools
- Convenient if you already run Jetpack for other reasons
Competitor prices are re-checked against the vendor’s own pricing page and dated. If a figure here has gone stale, tell us and we will correct it.
A security product versus a bundle with security in it
Jetpack is several products sold together. That is the main thing to understand before comparing feature lists.
Jetpack Security bundles backups, anti-spam, malware scanning and a set of performance features. If you want most of those things, buying them together is cheaper and simpler than assembling them, and Automattic building it is not nothing, they build WordPress.
The consequence of a bundle is that the individual parts are sized to fit a package rather than to compete head-on. Scanning is one component of several, and it is priced and scoped accordingly.
GuardianGaze does one thing. There are no backups, no CDN, no spam filtering, and we will not pretend that is a feature. It means every part of the product budget goes into detection and removal, and it means you need something else for backups.
Where the firewall sits in the pricing
This is the detail that catches people out, so it is worth stating plainly.
Jetpack Security starts at $119.40/yr. The web application firewall is not in that tier, it requires Complete at $599.40/yr. If you assumed a product called "Security" included a firewall, that assumption costs the difference.
GuardianGaze Pro is $99/yr with the firewall and virtual patching included at that price. There is no higher tier you have to reach for basic protection.
Compare what you actually need rather than headline prices. If backups matter to you, Jetpack Complete covers ground we do not touch at all and the comparison is not like for like. If you only want scanning and a firewall, the gap is considerable.
VaultPress is better than anything we have
We do not do backups, and the honest position is that this is a real gap.
VaultPress does real-time incremental backups with one-click restore to any point in time. When a site is compromised and you have a clean restore point from twenty minutes ago, that is often the fastest and safest route back, faster than any cleanup, ours included.
Backups and scanning solve overlapping but different problems. A restore gets you back to before the compromise; it does not tell you how they got in, and if the vulnerability is still there you will be restoring again next week. Scanning finds the entry point. Ideally you have both.
If you have to choose only one and you have no backups at all, get backups first. That is not a comfortable thing for a security vendor to write, but it is the right advice.
Feature comparison
Where the two tools genuinely differ. Anything both do equally well is left out.
| Jetpack Security | GuardianGaze | |
|---|---|---|
| Product shape | Bundle: backups, anti-spam, scanning | Security only |
| Firewall included at entry price | No, needs Complete at $599.40/yr | Yes, at $99/yr |
| Real-time backups | Yes, VaultPress | No |
| One-click restore | Yes | No |
| Malware scanning | Yes | Yes, four layers |
| Reasoning about code purpose | No | Yes, on Pro |
| Database inspection | Limited | Yes, deserialised |
| Anti-spam | Yes, Akismet | No |
| CDN and performance tools | Yes | No |
| Entry price | $119.40/yr | $99/yr |
Where Jetpack Security is the better choice
No comparison written by a vendor is neutral, so here is the part we have least incentive to write. These are real, and if one of them matters to you, buy theirs.
- VaultPress backups. Real-time, incremental, one-click restore. We have nothing comparable and a clean restore point is frequently the fastest way out of a compromise.
- Akismet for spam. Decades of data behind it and effectively the default for WordPress comment spam.
- One vendor, one bill, one support queue for several needs at once, a real operational saving for a small team.
- Automattic build WordPress. Deep platform knowledge and no risk of the vendor disappearing.
- If you already pay for Jetpack for backups or performance, the incremental cost of its security features is small and worth using.
Moving from Jetpack Security
Running two security plugins at once means duplicated scans and duplicated alerts. Migrate properly rather than layering.
- Keep Jetpack if you rely on VaultPress, the two products overlap far less than the feature lists suggest
- Turn off Jetpack's malware scanning specifically, rather than removing Jetpack entirely
- Install GuardianGaze and run a full scan before disabling anything
- Check whether the firewall you are paying for on Complete is one you still need once Pro's is active
- Keep Akismet running: it does not conflict with anything we do
What you get either way: the GuardianGaze dashboard, grading every site across four areas
Common questions
Does Jetpack Security include a firewall?
Not at the Security tier. The web application firewall requires Jetpack Complete at $599.40/yr, whereas Security is $119.40/yr. GuardianGaze Pro includes the firewall and virtual patching at $99/yr.
Should I replace Jetpack with GuardianGaze?
Only the scanning part, and only if scanning is what you want improved. If you use VaultPress backups, keep them, we do not offer backups and a good restore point is genuinely valuable. The two products overlap less than the marketing suggests.
Is a backup enough to protect a WordPress site?
No. Restoring gets you back to before the compromise, but it does not tell you how they got in. If the vulnerability is still there you will restore again shortly. Backups and scanning are complementary, not alternatives.
Which is better value?
It depends what you need. For scanning and a firewall only, Pro at $99/yr against Jetpack Complete at $599.40/yr is a wide gap. If you also want backups, spam filtering and a CDN, the comparison stops being like for like.
Decide with your own data
Comparison pages are marketing. A scan of your actual site is evidence.
Free tier, no card. Run both scanners on the same site and keep whichever finds more.