Acunetix vs OWASP Zap comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Invicti and OWASP are both solutions in the Static Application Security Testing (SAST) category. Invicti is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.0, while OWASP is ranked #15 with an average rating of 8.0. Invicti holds a 2.5% mindshare in SAST, compared to OWASP’s 2.6% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of Invicti users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of OWASP users who would recommend it.

Acunetix

Read 36 Acunetix reviews

11,992 Views
6,236 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

OWASP Zap

Read 41 OWASP Zap reviews

9,677 Views
9,000 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

Acunetix

OWASP Zap

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 8, 2026

Acunetix and OWASP Zap are contenders in web application security testing. Acunetix generally leads due to its extensive feature set, though OWASP Zap’s cost-effectiveness as a free tool makes it more accessible for smaller organizations.

Features: Acunetix offers scheduling of tests, an Interactive Application Security Testing module, and comprehensive reporting. It also integrates with other applications, providing flexibility and scalability. OWASP Zap provides automated scanning, API support, and a user-friendly interface beneficial for beginners and supports various platforms like Mac, Linux, and Windows.

Room for Improvement: Acunetix users mention the need for better report customization and have noted issues with false positives. More integration capabilities with newer tools like GitHub and flexible licensing options are also desired. For OWASP Zap, improvements in reporting with more graphical illustrations, enhanced tackling of false positives, and advanced features for mobile app testing are suggested. Users also seek more frequent updates and increased coverage complexity.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Acunetix supports versatile deployment options, including on-premises and hybrid cloud, and offers satisfactory technical support, although improvement in response times is noted. OWASP Zap, primarily deployed on-premises, benefits from community-driven support, providing timely assistance despite the lack of traditional 24-hour customer service.

Pricing and ROI: Acunetix is perceived as expensive, with rising costs impacting its value compared to alternatives but offers a return on investment through enhanced security. Conversely, OWASP Zap, being free and open-source, eliminates licensing costs, significantly boosting ROI, particularly for organizations with limited budgets.

To learn more, read our detailed Acunetix vs. OWASP Zap Report (Updated: September 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Acunetix vs. OWASP Zap

September 2026

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Helped 913,924 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Acunetix

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

11th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Security Tools (16th), Vulnerability Management (30th), DevSecOps (8th)

OWASP Zap

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

15th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Static Application Security Testing (SAST) category, the mindshare of Acunetix is 2.5%, down from 3.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OWASP Zap is 2.6%, down from 4.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Static Application Security Testing (SAST) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Acunetix	2.5%
OWASP Zap	2.6%
Other	94.9%

Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

Featured Reviews

Rahul Kumar

Senior Engineer - Penetration Tester at a government with 10,001+ employees

Identifies vulnerabilities across bulk web applications but needs better support and cleaner reports

The best feature Acunetix offers is the centralized dashboard and the quality of reports it generates, which includes various options for selecting reports and developer options for directly sharing the reports with developers. The centralized dashboard of Acunetix gives visibility into the security aspects of mass applications; for instance, with more than 200 applications, it provides a valuable overview of findings and necessary fixes, along with a high-level summary that helps us achieve compliance through monthly and sometimes weekly scanning. In terms of reporting, Acunetix is excellent because it can generate different types of reports, such as an executive summary report, detailed reports, and developer reports that can be shared directly with developers. Acunetix positively impacts my organization by helping identify outdated libraries and applications, including legacy applications vulnerable to old attacks based on OWASP Top 10, thus aiding in compliance checks for PCI DSS and OWASP. Acunetix provides a centralized report with compliance-related aspects and a vulnerability timeline, effectively helping reduce vulnerabilities and save time.

Read full review

Amit Beniwal

Project Manager at Al Hassan LLC

Simplifies vulnerability discovery and has high quality support

There are areas for improvement with OWASP Zap, particularly in the alignment of vulnerabilities concerning CVSS scores. Sometimes, a vulnerability initially categorized as high severity may be reduced to medium or low over time after security patches are applied. This alignment with the present severity score and CVSS score could be improved.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The automated approach to these repetitive discovery attempts would take days to do manually and therefore it helps reduce the time needed to do an assessment."

"Overall, it's a very good tool and a very good engine."

"The most important feature is that it's a web-based graphical user interface. That is a great addition. Also, the ability to schedule scans is great."

"The solution is highly stable."

"Segregation of reports is really, really good with Acunetix; it provides us with a lot of in-depth details."

"Acunetix has an awesome crawler. It gives a referral site map of near targets and also goes really deep to find all the inputs without issues. This was valuable because it helped me find some files or directories, like web admin panels without authentication, which were hidden."

"Login Sequence Recorder, scan throttling, and fantastic reporting output are the most valuable features."

"It comes equipped with an internal applicator, which automatically identifies and addresses vulnerabilities within the program."

More Acunetix pros

"We use the solution for security testing."

"This is a very mature tool; it is capable of facilitating the work of many security experts, and I highly recommend it for beginners and advanced users when some other tools fail to catch traffic."

"It has improved my organization with faster security tests."

"The pull request analysis is also very good."

"The automatic scanning is a valuable feature and very easy, and the major advantage to this solution is the privacy it offers."

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten. I think it's stable enough. I don't see any crashes within the application, so its stability is high."

"The product helps users to scan and fix vulnerabilities in the pipeline."

"One valuable feature of OWASP Zap is that it is simple to use."

More OWASP Zap pros

Cons

"In terms of additional features, we are currently missing some tools that would allow us to work more efficiently with the mobile environment, with Android and iOS."

"Acunetix provides the benefit of saving time for an end user. I would not say it saves money because the cost and license of Acunetix is far more than what others offer."

"It would be nice to have a feature to "retest" only a single vulnerability that the customer reports as patched, and delete it from the next scans since it has already been patched."

"I believe Acunetix can improve customer support, as the dedicated support staff are often unfamiliar with problems and troubleshooting, leading to communication gaps that delay issue resolution."

"The solution should work on dealing with the number of false positives it delivers."

"I rate its stability six out of ten."

"There are some versions of the solution that are not as stable as others."

"The cost can be reduced as management has noted it to be on the higher side."

More Acunetix cons

"I'd also like to see an improvement in test reports because we get too many false positives."

"Too many false positives; test reports could be improved."

"Online documentation can be improved to utilize all features of ZAP and API methods to make use in automation."

"The ability to search the internet for other use cases and to use the solution to make applications more secure should be addressed."

"While the solution can scale to a certain extent, it cannot scale a lot."

"The reporting feature could be more descriptive."

"Without any support, we are in a black hole sometimes."

"The technical support team must be proactive."

More OWASP Zap cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would say that Acunetix is expensive because there are products on the market with similar features that are equally or better-priced."

"Acunetix was around the same price as all the other vendors we looked at, nothing special."

"The price is exceptionally high."

"The solution is expensive."

"The pricing is a little high, and moreover, it's kind of domain-based."

"The cost is based on two types of licenses, ConsultLite, and ConsultPlus, as well as the number of domains that are scanned."

"The costs aren't very expensive. It costs around $3000 or $4000."

"The pricing and licensing are reasonable to a point. In order to run multiple scans at a time, we are going to have to purchase a 100 count license, which is an overkill. Though, compared to what we were paying for, the cost seems reasonable."

More Acunetix pricing and cost advice

"OWASP ZAP is a free tool provided by OWASP’s engineers and experts. There is an option to donate."

"It is open source, and we can scan freely."

"It is highly recommended as it is an open source tool."

"This is an open-source solution and can be used free of charge."

"It's free. It's good for us because we don't know what the extent of our use will be yet. It's good to start with something free and easy to use."

"The tool is open source."

"As Zap is free and open-source, with tons of features similar to those of commercial solutions, I would definitely recommend trying it out."

"The solution’s pricing is high."

More OWASP Zap pricing and cost advice

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Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Static Application Security Testing (SAST) solutions are best for your needs.

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

10%

University

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	18
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	19

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	11
Large Enterprise	22

Questions from the Community

What is your primary use case for Acunetix Vulnerability Scanner?

In a typical enterprise environment, Acunetix is mainly used for visibility, detection, and investigation across network traffic. The main use cases usually fall into a few core areas, with primary...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Acunetix Vulnerability Scanner?

I advise that Acunetix is the best option. Invest time in proper initial configuration and scope definitions. The tool is powerful, but its effectiveness depends heavily on how the authenticated ar...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Acunetix?

Everything is perfect and good, including the pricing and all related aspects.

See all answers

Is OWASP Zap better than PortSwigger Burp Suite Pro?

OWASP Zap and PortSwigger Burp Suite Pro have many similar features. OWASP Zap has web application scanning available with basic security vulnerabilities while Burp Suite Pro has it available with ...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for OWASP Zap?

OWASP might be cost-effective, however, people prefer to use the free edition available as open source.

See all answers

What needs improvement with OWASP Zap?

The improvement that has to be done for APIs focuses on manual activities where the feature exists, but it is not at the same level as what Burp Suite does with intercepting and tools such as Postm...

See all answers

Comparisons

PortSwigger Burp Suite Professional vs Acunetix

Compared 7% of the time

OpenText Dynamic Application Security Testing vs Acunetix

Compared 5% of the time

Checkmarx One vs Acunetix

Compared 4% of the time

HCL AppScan vs Acunetix

Compared 4% of the time

Invicti vs Acunetix

Compared 4% of the time

More Acunetix Competitors

PortSwigger Burp Suite Professional vs OWASP Zap

Compared 11% of the time

Veracode vs OWASP Zap

Compared 7% of the time

Qualys Web Application Scanning vs OWASP Zap

Compared 6% of the time

SonarQube vs OWASP Zap

Compared 5% of the time

Checkmarx One vs OWASP Zap

Compared 5% of the time

More OWASP Zap Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Acunetix

September 2026

Download Acunetix product report

Buyer's Guide

OWASP Zap

September 2026

Download OWASP Zap product report

Also Known As

AcuSensor

No data available

Overview

Acunetix is a dynamic application security tool used globally for web application vulnerability scanning, focusing on SQL injection and cross-site scripting.

Acunetix provides a comprehensive web vulnerability assessment platform designed for identifying and remediating security threats. Users benefit from its ability to schedule scans, boasting a fast detection rate for common vulnerabilities. The tool's centralized dashboard helps organizations with compliance monitoring and features such as crawling and login sequence enhancements, contributing depth to its security assessments. Despite high praise for its integration capabilities and automated scanning that saves time, pricing and false positives present challenges. Organizations often use Acunetix to maintain internal security and evaluate pre-release environments.

What are Acunetix's main features?

Comprehensive Reporting: Detailed reports assist in security analysis and compliance audits.
User-Friendly Interface: Simple navigation enhances user experience.
Scheduled Scans: Automation of scans allows for continuous monitoring.
Fast Detection: Quickly identifies vulnerabilities like SQL injection and cross-site scripting.
Integration Capabilities: Scalable solutions with compatibility across applications.
Crawling & Login Sequence: Improves depth in security analysis.

What benefits should businesses look for in reviews?

Low False Positive Rate: Accurate vulnerability detection saves time in analysis.
Time Efficiency: Automated scans reduce manual workload, improving team productivity.
Scalability: Integration features help accommodate growth and complexity.
Compliance Support: Centralized dashboard supports regulatory compliance checks.

In industries like finance, healthcare, and technology, Acunetix assists in protecting sensitive data through robust scanning and reporting capabilities. Its ability to perform dynamic assessments makes it a chosen tool in regulatory environments and development settings, offering both internal security inspections and pre-release evaluations.

Invicti

OWASP Zap is a free and open-source web application security scanner.

The solution helps developers identify vulnerabilities in their web applications by actively scanning for common security issues.

With its user-friendly interface and powerful features, Zap is a popular choice among developers for ensuring the security of their web applications.

OWASP

Sample Customers

Joomla!, Digicure, Team Random, Credit Suisse, Samsung, Air New Zealand

1. Google 2. Microsoft 3. IBM 4. Amazon 5. Facebook 6. Twitter 7. LinkedIn 8. Netflix 9. Adobe 10. PayPal 11. Salesforce 12. Cisco 13. Oracle 14. Intel 15. HP 16. Dell 17. VMware 18. Symantec 19. McAfee 20. Citrix 21. Red Hat 22. Juniper Networks 23. SAP 24. Accenture 25. Deloitte 26. Ernst & Young 27. PwC 28. KPMG 29. Capgemini 30. Infosys 31. Wipro 32. TCS

Buyer's Guide

Acunetix vs. OWASP Zap

September 2026

Free Report: Acunetix vs. OWASP Zap

Find out what your peers are saying about Acunetix vs. OWASP Zap and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.

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We monitor all Static Application Security Testing (SAST) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.