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Evervault Alternatives and Why Teams Choose Basis Theory

Evervault and Basis Theory take fundamentally different approaches to storing and utilizing payment data. Compare the vault providers and what the different approaches mean for you.

Comparing Evervault to Basis Theory

Basis Theory is an Evervault competitor. Both keep raw card numbers out of your environment.
The architectural difference is where the data lives, and what that means for compliance, routing, and control

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Evervault Model


Evervault encrypts the card number and sends it back to you to store in your own systems. The decryption key is kept on the Evervault side, so the actual card data never sits with them, it sits with you but in an encrypted form you can't read without their key.

The security argument is compelling because if Evervault is breached, there are no card numbers to steal, only keys. With encrypted cards on one side, and the keys on another, neither is useful without the other.

Basis Theory is one of those infrastructure decisions where you set it up right, and it fades into the background, which is exactly what you want from something this critical.

Ryan Olson
Founder, Anton Payments

Basis Theory Model


Basis Theory takes the raw card number, locks it in a PCI Level 1 vault, and returns a token. The card lives in Basis Theory’s fully secured and audited environment. When you need to use it, Basis Theory will decrypt it and send it via a token to where it needs to go.

You never touch, store, or manage card data with Basis Theory. 

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How is Basis Theory different from Evervault?

Where card data lives determines your compliance posture, your operational burden, and what it costs to use your own data. These are two fundamentally different compliance postures and operational burdens for your team. The model you choose determines how much of that burden you carry.

  Basis Theory Evervault
datas  Data Model Raw card data stored in Basis Theory’s vault and returned as a token to use. Encrypted card data returned to you for storage in your own systems.
key mgmt  Key Management We own all custody, encryption mechanisms, and key rotation on behalf of our customers. You hold the encrypted data and are responsible for securing the decryption key yourself.
flex  Flexibility Designed for multi-PSP architecture with controlled routing, token, and rollout strategies. No partner or connection limitations. Flexibility varies by integration approach and support model.
compliance  Compliance
  • PCI Level 1
  • SOC 2 Type II
  • HIPAA
  • NACHA
  • ISO 27001
  • ISO 27701
  • PCI Level 1
  • SOC 2 Type II
  • HIPAA
pay  Pricing Forecast costs based on architecture usage, rather than per-request. Plans start at $995/month. Charged per-decryption. Each time you use payment data, you pay.
01 copy 13  Card Management                       & Add-Ons All are native to the vault:
 Account Updater and Network Tokens are available, but must be decrypted and passed between systems to use.
finger  Fingerprinting Correlate multiple tokens containing the same card data without ever accessing the underlying PAN (primary account number) No native fingerprinting, identifying unique cards across tokens requires decrypting the data.
docs  Documentation and Testing Developer-focused documentation with helpful getting-started guides. Getting started guides plus compliance and other developer tools.
migrating. Migrating Free migrations and migration guides to bring data in or out of the Basis Theory vault.

Migration requires active participation from Evervault and depends on the integration structure.

 

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Learn more about Basis Theory