Black Duck SCA vs CAST Highlight comparison

Black Duck and CAST are both solutions in the Software Composition Analysis (SCA) category. Black Duck is ranked #1 with an average rating of 7.0, while CAST is ranked #18 with an average rating of 7.5. Black Duck holds a 9.9% mindshare in SCA, compared to CAST’s 1.3% mindshare. Additionally, 85% of Black Duck users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of CAST users who would recommend it.

Black Duck SCA

Read 23 Black Duck SCA reviews

9,816 Views
8,736 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

CAST Highlight

Read 7 CAST Highlight reviews

2,130 Views
980 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

Black Duck SCA

CAST Highlight

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 22, 2026

Black Duck SCA and CAST Highlight compete in the software composition analysis space, with Black Duck SCA holding an edge in security features and CAST Highlight recognized for its analytics capabilities.

Features:Black Duck SCA provides a detailed vulnerability database, extensive policy management tools, and license management capabilities. CAST Highlight focuses on software health, cloud readiness, and digital transformation insights.

Room for Improvement:Black Duck SCA needs improvement in vulnerability accuracy, ensuring complete SBOMs, and better security risk identification. CAST Highlight could enhance its analytics precision, expand automation capabilities, and improve integration with more platforms.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service:Black Duck SCA offers flexible on-premise and cloud deployment with robust customer support. CAST Highlight provides quick cloud-based deployment with a focus on customer success but excels in integration with agile workflows.

Pricing and ROI:Black Duck SCA has higher setup costs due to extensive features yet offers substantial ROI through security. CAST Highlight provides cost-effective pricing focusing on improving code quality and facilitating cloud migrations.

To learn more, read our detailed Black Duck SCA vs. CAST Highlight Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Black Duck SCA vs. CAST Highlight

April 2026

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Helped 893,244 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

Black Duck SCA

Ranking in Software Composition Analysis (SCA)

1st

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

CAST Highlight

Ranking in Software Composition Analysis (SCA)

18th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Software Composition Analysis (SCA) category, the mindshare of Black Duck SCA is 9.9%, down from 18.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of CAST Highlight is 1.3%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Software Composition Analysis (SCA) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Black Duck SCA	9.9%
CAST Highlight	1.3%
Other	88.8%

Software Composition Analysis (SCA)

Featured Reviews

reviewer2587080

IP Head at a tech services company with 10,001+ employees

Delivers robust accuracy for identifying and mitigating risks but setup and security can improve

My deployment of Black Duck will take a few hours minimum. In the earlier on-premise scenario, which I've seen in other organizations, it takes a few days because you have to get the server installed, then actually keep installing various patch upgrades as it happens. The cloud version is a lot faster, probably taking only a few hours to complete. Regarding Black Duck leveraging AI to enhance security scanning of open-source components, I would not be able to address that because I have not yet explored that area significantly. Based on my experience, I would recommend Black Duck to other people if they can digest the higher cost. It helps in many aspects. I would rate this solution overall at 7 to 8. Disclaimer: The review is provided in personal capacity as an individual and not the opinion of the organization or corporate to which I belong to.

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Jayanti Rode

Technical Associate Manager at Accenture

Identifies migration blockers and boosters while facing challenges with platform-specific roadblocks

The solution provides agnostic blockers for platforms as well as for containerization. Within that containerization, it offers generic blockers. However, my project might require it to provide Windows-specific blockers or Linux-specific blockers, as I often work with only one platform at a time. If I received categorization in containerization blockers, it would save time. Understanding only the OS-specific blockers means I would avoid resolving irrelevant issues, thus saving time. Initially, I receive a response from support, however, if there is involvement from R&D or other teams, it may take longer than expected. The support team is challenging when sharing source code. As this is a static code analysis tool, it sometimes requires source code for R&D. However, CAST clients may be restricted from sharing due to business logic and nondisclosure agreements. This creates a challenge, and I may have to share pseudo code or seek client approval, risking escalation.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The stability is okay."

"Black Duck is pretty extensive in terms of the scan reserves and the vulnerability exposures. From that perspective, I'm happy with it."

"The most valuable feature of Black Duck is the composition analysis feature, which is effective for security risk management."

"The cloud option of the product is always available and a positive aspect of the solution."

"The solution is very good at scanning and evaluating open source software."

"Black Duck's ability to identify dependencies very accurately has been most valuable in identifying and mitigating risks."

"The technical support has been fine, they help us a lot and we actually find them to be quite helpful."

"The UI is the solution's most valuable feature since it allows for easy pipeline integration."

More Black Duck SCA pros

"The solution provides agnostic blockers for platforms as well as for containerization."

"The way it tells you which codebase is more ready for the cloud and which codebase is less ready is very valuable, and it works seamlessly with most languages."

"We are using CAST Highlight for the location because it's an indicator for us that can differentiate us from the other health insurance company, and we are using the indicator as proof of the quality of service for our application."

"CAST Highlight is easy to use and has a good dashboard."

"CAST Highlight provides a clear overview of the role portfolio and allows users to assess the overall quality of the environment. Users can see where improvements are needed and follow up on trends of the application."

"We've been using it for two years and found that it is really profitable to have the product in our arsenal."

"It offers good performance."

"The most valuable features of the CAST Highlight are the interface and there are three notations that are very simple to understand and communicate with."

More CAST Highlight pros

Cons

"The documentation is quite scattered."

"It can be cumbersome to use or invalidate open source software because there is a hold time to check requirements or common regulations to ensure compliance."

"Due to the fact that, with our software developer life cycle, we don't need to scan our source code every day or every week, we find the cost is too high."

"The SBOMs that are being generated from Black Duck SCA are not sometimes fully complete, and the vulnerabilities that are being verified after generating this SBOM seem to be incorrect or missing."

"The initial setup is complex."

"The initial setup could be simplified. It was somewhat complex."

"It needs to be more user-friendly for developers and in general, to ensure compliance."

"Black Duck can improve the time it takes for a scan. Most of the time it's not ideal when integrated with the live DevSecOps pipeline. We have to create a separate job to scan the library because it takes a couple of hours to scan all those libraries. The scanning could be faster."

More Black Duck SCA cons

"If I received categorization in containerization blockers, it would save time."

"The reports that describe the issues of concern are rather abstract and the issues should be more clearly described to the user."

"Technical support could be better."

"It is a pretty costly tool. A lot of customers are resistant to using it."

"CAST Highlight could improve to allow us to comment and do a deep analysis by ourselves."

"There's a bit of a learning curve at the outset."

"There could be potential improvements or additional features added to CAST Highlight to make it better."

"The ease of configuration and customization could be improved in CAST Highlight."

More CAST Highlight cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive."

"The price is quite high because the behavior of the software during the scan is similar to competing products."

"The price is low. It's not an expensive solution."

"Depending on the use case, the cost could range from $10,000 USD to $70,000 USD."

"I rate the product's price one on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low price."

"The pricing is a little high."

"Black Duck is more suitable if you require a lot of licensing compliance. For smaller organizations, WhiteSource is better because its pricing policies are not really suitable for huge organizations."

"The price charged by Black Duck is exorbitant."

"CAST Highlight is an expensive solution."

"CAST Highlight is an expensive solution. However, CAST Highlight is less expensive than the CAST AIP, but it remains too expensive and the professional services from CAST are also too expensive. The high price is part of the problem with the CAST solutions."

"Basic support is included with the standard licensing feed but it can be upgraded for an additional cost."

"It is a pretty costly tool. A lot of customers are resistant to using it."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

16%

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

12%

Healthcare Company

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

Government

Outsourcing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Large Enterprise	17

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	5

Questions from the Community

How does WhiteSource compare with Black Duck?

We researched Black Duck but ultimately chose WhiteSource when looking for an application security tool. WhiteSource is a software solution that enables agile open source security and license compl...

See all answers

What do you like most about Black Duck?

The cloud option of the product is always available and a positive aspect of the solution.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Black Duck?

The price charged by Black Duck is exorbitant. For the features provided by the product, I would not want to pay a high price. There are many other products in the market that offer better features...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CAST Highlight?

The pricing of CAST Highlight was not considered expensive or cheap, and no specific comment was made about the setup cost.

See all answers

What needs improvement with CAST Highlight?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for CAST Highlight?

For CAST, I use it in cloud migration roadmap and in open source safety issues. These are my two main use cases.

See all answers

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Compared 15% of the time

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Compared 14% of the time

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Compared 11% of the time

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Compared 7% of the time

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Compared 6% of the time

More CAST Highlight Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Black Duck SCA

May 2026

Download Black Duck SCA product report

Buyer's Guide

CAST Highlight

May 2026

Download CAST Highlight product report

Also Known As

Blackduck Hub, Black Duck Protex, Black Duck Security Checker

No data available

Overview

Black Duck is an essential tool for software composition analysis and license compliance. It identifies vulnerabilities effectively and supports security management in DevOps environments, offering integration, performance stability, and community support.

Organizations rely on Black Duck for seamless integration in CI/CD pipelines, thorough scanning of source and binary codes, and management of operational risks associated with open-source and commercial licenses. It plays a crucial role in security risk management and delivers a robust policy management framework. Users value its ease of use and reliable community support while benefiting from its comprehensive dependency visualization capabilities. Despite its strengths, there is room for enhancement in integration with other tools, UI friendliness, and reporting features.

What are Black Duck's key features?

Automated Component Analysis: Offers detailed insights into open-source components.
Vulnerability Scanning: Identifies and addresses potential security issues.
Knowledge Base: Extensive database for informed decision-making.
Policy Management: Comprehensive control over security policies.
Integration: Seamlessly fits into existing DevOps workflows.

What should users look for in ROI?

Security Assurance: Mitigates risks associated with open-source software.
Efficiency: Reduces time spent on manual auditing tasks.
License Compliance: Ensures compliance with open-source licenses.
Risk Management: Enhances operational risk management in software development.

Enterprise environments use Black Duck extensively for security, compliance, and risk management, ensuring software meets regulatory standards and mitigates vulnerabilities. Its implementation in specific industries aids in controlled and secure software development processes, underlining its role in maintaining rigorous security standards while delivering dependable performance.

Black Duck

CAST Highlight is a comprehensive platform that integrates with Azure DevOps, offering remote functionalities without direct codebase access. It quickly identifies cloud migration blockers and supports most programming languages with an easy setup.

CAST Highlight stands out with its user-friendly interface and dashboard, enabling efficient scanning for environment quality. Its automation and speed are particularly valued, making it distinct in the software analysis domain. While users encounter challenges with language-specific insights and expensive licensing, they benefit from its capability to assess code base states during mergers, acquisitions, and cloud migration planning. Technical support poses issues, and some users face hurdles with configuration customization and issue reporting clarity. Despite these challenges, CAST Highlight demonstrates effectiveness in identifying application service quality and ensuring legal, security, and IP compliance.

What features define CAST Highlight?

Seamless Integration: Works with Azure DevOps for enhanced functionality.
Remote Functionality: Operates without direct codebase access, offering flexibility.
Cloud Migration Assistance: Identifies blockers and boosters for cloud strategies.
Programming Language Support: Compatible with a wide range of languages.
Easy Setup: Simplifies the process for quick implementation.

What are the benefits of using CAST Highlight?

Speed and Automation: Delivers quick scans and automated processes for efficiency.
Application Quality Insights: Provides detailed assessments for application portfolios.
Enhanced Communication: Simple notations improve team communication.
Legal and Security Compliance: Ensures compliance insights are accessible.

CAST Highlight is adopted across industries for tasks such as assessing code during mergers, managing application portfolios, and planning cloud migrations. It facilitates open source safety checks and replatforming architectures, serving roles in firewall and storage management. Users rely on it for service quality verification and distinguishing applications from competitors.

CAST

Sample Customers

Samsung, Siemens, ScienceLogic, BryterCX, Dynatrace

Wells Fargo, Bank of NY Mellon, Northern Trust, Microsoft, Amazon, IBM, BMW, AT&T, US Army, US Air Force, US Navy, John Hancock, Marsh & McLennan, Ernst & Young, PwC, Volkswagen, Boston Consulting Group, London Stock Exchange, Telefonica, Saur France, Total Energies France, SNCF

Buyer's Guide

Black Duck SCA vs. CAST Highlight

April 2026

Free Report: Black Duck SCA vs. CAST Highlight

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