Thoropass vs Vanta (2026): Which Audit Path Fits?

Thoropass and Vanta both automate SOC 2 evidence work, and the audit is where they split. Thoropass pairs its software with its affiliated CPA firm. Vanta pairs its software with an independent CPA firm, chosen by you or bundled through Seamless Audit. If your policy allows an affiliated examiner, Thoropass is the simpler path; if it requires a separately chosen one, Vanta is.

Thoropass (formerly Laika, so older “Laika vs Vanta” results describe it) and Vanta are both software companies, and neither signs the SOC 2 report. A CPA firm does, so the buying question is which firm and who owns it. For single-product fit, see the Thoropass review and Vanta review, or the Thoropass and Vanta profiles.

How do Thoropass and Vanta handle the audit?

Thoropass performs its audit through Laika Compliance, LLC dba Thoropass Assurance, an affiliated CPA firm, and also offers that audit without its software. Vanta says customers can buy the software alone and select an auditor, or buy Seamless Audit. Seamless Audit, it says, lets you pick an independent, Vanta-vetted auditor with the audit cost built into the platform price in one transaction. For platforms outside this pair, see how to choose SOC 2 compliance software.

What can you price from public listings?

The two published floors buy different things. The figures come from each vendor’s AWS Marketplace listing for a 12-month term (Vanta’s checked October 20, 2026; Thoropass’s on October 20, 2026).

The Vanta listing starts Essentials at $14,000 for 1 to 20 employees and one framework. It does not price a SOC 2 examination, a larger team, or extra frameworks, and Vanta’s direct pricing page asks for a personalized quote. Vendr’s observed Vanta contracts have a $20,000 median across scopes; the Vanta pricing guide carries the range and sample. The Thoropass listing pairs a platform line from $8,700 with a separate audit line from $5,800; the Thoropass review explains both and why the sum is a floor, not a quote.

So the Vanta figure is software only unless a Seamless Audit proposal puts the independent firm’s fee in the platform price, and Thoropass’s floor already includes an audit line. To compare totals, ask Vanta for two proposals, software alone and Seamless Audit with the examination fee on its own line, and add a CPA quote to the first. Ask Thoropass which employee band its floors assume. The SOC 2 audit cost guide covers audit fees across the market.

How should you check the CPA firm’s independence?

Thoropass Assurance is legally separate from Thoropass, Inc. but shares its ownership. The AICPA public peer-review file records a Pass accepted on December 12, 2025, which speaks to the firm’s quality control and does not replace an independence assessment for your engagement. If procurement requires the examiner to be owned separately from the software vendor, settle that before pricing Thoropass. The Thoropass review covers who sees which evidence and what the public materials leave open.

With Vanta, the question attaches to whichever firm you or a Seamless Audit package select. Ask which CPA entity would sign your report and read its engagement letter.

Which audit path fits your program?

For a first SOC 2 with no in-house compliance staff, Thoropass’s connected model may reduce coordination between software support and the CPA team. Ask Thoropass which project-management work its proposal covers, who owns each handoff, and which subscriptions renew separately. Vanta with a separate CPA means two contracts but your choice of firm.

For SOC 2 plus ISO 27001 and HIPAA across several environments, both vendors name all three, so the difference is evidence handling. Ask each to map one control across every framework you need and show the same source evidence reaching the auditor’s review. Integration counts (Vanta’s 400+, Thoropass’s 200+) do not show whether your own systems expose the fields your CPA needs. If you run air-gapped, on-premises, or uncommon systems, use one of them as the control in step 3 of the test below, which walks one control through to the CPA’s view.

With Vanta software alone, you select a CPA firm and negotiate the examination scope. Vanta’s help center says software-only buyers can request introductions to its audit partners through the Starter Guide or their customer success manager, and that introductions usually take a few days. With Seamless Audit, inspect the named independent firm’s engagement and fee rather than assuming the package removes the choice. Our Vanta auditor listing shows 40 attestation-capable CPA firms that say they work with Vanta; filter them by observation period, delivery timeline, relevant industry work, and price. For a wider view of the market, see our best SOC 2 auditors guide.

What should you test before choosing Thoropass or Vanta?

Match scope first: the same report type (Type 1 or Type 2), observation period, Trust Services Criteria, and renewal term.

1. Ask each vendor which CPA firm would sign your report and for its draft engagement letter. For Vanta, ask whether that firm is the one in a Seamless Audit package or one you would choose alone. If Vanta cannot name the firm before signature, buy the software alone and pick your own. If the Thoropass letter cannot meet a separate-ownership rule, drop Thoropass.
2. Request Vanta’s proposal both ways, software alone and Seamless Audit, with the examination fee visible. Set each beside Thoropass’s two marketplace lines at your headcount. If Seamless Audit costs more than software plus your own CPA quote, you are paying for the convenience; if it costs about the same, check that the named firm fits your scope and timeline.
3. Take one control from your hardest system through to what the CPA sees, using the connector or the manual-evidence fallback. In Vanta, ask the proposed firm what it would accept. In Thoropass, have Thoropass Assurance’s auditors review it in the workspace. Price any manual evidence work each path leaves you.
4. Ask in writing what happens if you leave at renewal: export format, access window, and whether you can change CPA firms without changing platform. Vanta’s software-alone path already separates platform and firm. Thoropass has to confirm in writing that a different firm could use its workspace.

Which should you pick, Thoropass or Vanta?

To see Thoropass against a platform that leaves the CPA to you, read Thoropass vs Drata, or look at Vanta alternatives.