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Black Duck SCA vs Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 21, 2025

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
7.4
Number of Reviews
22
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Checkmarx Software Composit...
Ranking in Software Composition Analysis (SCA)
10th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2026, in the Software Composition Analysis (SCA) category, the mindshare of Black Duck SCA is 11.9%, down from 20.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis is 3.4%, up from 2.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Software Composition Analysis (SCA) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Black Duck SCA11.9%
Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis3.4%
Other84.7%
Software Composition Analysis (SCA)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2587080 - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Tharindu Malwenna - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Application Security Engineer at a newspaper with 5,001-10,000 employees
Efficient library identification and upgrade suggestions improve application security
We have many third-party libraries in our organization. I used Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis to identify all the libraries we use and determine whether they are used or unused within the application Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis provides identification of libraries and…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The automated code scanning feature and Black Duck's integration with our development tools have enhanced our software compliance process and overall audit readiness."
"The most valuable feature of Black Duck is the composition analysis feature, which is effective for security risk management."
"The stability is okay."
"Black Duck's ability to identify dependencies very accurately has been most valuable in identifying and mitigating risks."
"It highlights what the developers have done, and it shows the impact from an intellectual property point of view."
"The knowledge base and the management system are the most valuable features of Black Duck Hub. It has a very helpful management environment. They offer an editor where we can check the discovered license, which is retrieved from their knowledge base. They have a huge knowledge base build over the years. It gives you some possibilities, such as this license with possibility A could cause a vulnerability issue or a potential breach."
"The most valuable feature for me in Black Duck is its ability to scan binary files effectively."
"The software composition analysis is most effective for security risk management."
"What's most valuable in Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis is that it provides security from the start. In the traditional approach, an enterprise or company validates the solution before launching to a production environment, but in the modern approach, security must be checked and provided from the beginning and from the design, and this is where Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis comes in. The solution helps you make sure that every open-source application that you use is secure, and that there's no vulnerability inside that open-source application."
"The integration part is easy...It's a stable solution right now."
"One of the strong points of this solution is that it allows you to incorporate it into a CICB pipeline. It has the ability to do incremental scans. If you scan a very large application, it might take two hours to do the initial scan. The subsequent scans, as people are making changes to the app, scan the Delta and are very fast. That's a really nice implementation. The way they have incorporated the functionality of the incremental scans is something to be aware of. It is quite good. It has been very solid. We haven't really had any issues, and it does what it advertises to do very nicely."
"The customer service and support were good."
"We were able to reduce the number of vulnerable libraries by 50%, leading to significant operational improvement."
"It is a stable solution...It is a scalable solution."
"I appreciate the user-friendly interface. The GUI is excellent, providing detailed information on outdated versions, including version numbers and the flow of library calls. This allows me to plan and prioritize library changes based on potential vulnerabilities, even if the affected library is indirectly used in my project. The tool offers specific guidance on addressing these issues."
"The most valuable feature of Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis is the comprehensive security scan."
 

Cons

"There are areas for improvement such as false positives and the scanning of containers."
"I would like to see improvements in Black Duck's reporting capabilities."
"It is a cloud-only solution. In many cases, companies like to evaluate the software, but they're very reluctant to give you the software. It would be great if they could offer an on-prem component that could be used to scan the code and then upload the discovery results to the cloud and get all the information from there, but there is no such possibility. You have to upload the code to the Black Duck cloud system. Of course, they have a strong legal department, and they offer some configuration, but it is never enough. You have to give the code, which is a drawback. In modern designs like Snyk or FOSSA, you don't need to give the code. It requires more native integration with Coverity because they go together technically. You need both Coverity and Black Duck Hub. It would be really helpful for companies working in this space to get a combined offer from the same company. They should provide an option to buy Coverity for an additional fee. Coverity combined with Black Duck Hub will provide a one-step analysis to get everything you need and a unified report. It would be really great to be able to connect Black Duck Hub with Coverity unified reports."
"They are giving a lot of APIs and Python scripts for certain functionalities, but instead of using APIs and Python scripts, they should provide these functionalities through the UI. Users should be able to customize and add more fields through the UI. Users should be able to add more fields and generate reports. Currently, they are not giving flexibility in the UI. They're providing a script that simply generates an Excel file or CSV file. There is no flexibility."
"The tool's documentation and support are areas of concern where improvements are required."
"We have been having some issues with the latest releases where we are not able to scan our applications with the help of Black Duck."
"The product's pricing is higher compared to other competitor products."
"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. For that reason, we find the cost is too high. We might only actually use it five to ten times a year, which makes it expensive."
"Personally, I currently use it as a standalone tool without integrating it with other systems, and it meets my needs adequately. As a suggestion, I request on considering to add a "what if" feature to the application. Currently, when the tool identifies issues and suggests updates, if I want to explore different scenarios, I need to prepare another file, turn it into a ZIP, and run the analysis again. It would be more convenient if there was a "what if" option in the GUI. This feature could simulate a run, allowing me to quickly check the impact of changing one or more files or versions without the need for a full rerun."
"Its pricing can be improved. It is a little bit high priced. It would be better if it was a little less expensive. It is a good tool, and we're still figuring out how to fully leverage it. There are some questions regarding whether it can scan the MuleSoft code. We don't know if this is a gap in the tool or something else. This is one thing that we're just working through right now, and I am not ready to conclude that there is a weakness there. MuleSoft is kind of its own beast, and we're trying to see how we get it to work with Checkmarx."
"The quality of technical support has decreased over time, and it is not as good as it used to be."
"Parts of the implementation process could improve by making it more user-friendly."
"The solution could improve by determining the success factor of an upgrade, which is currently lacking."
"Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis should improve dynamic analysis."
"Some of the recommendations provided by the product are generic. Even if the recommendations provided by the product are of low level, the appropriate ones can help users deal with vulnerabilities."
"It can have better licensing models."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is quite high because the behavior of the software during the scan is similar to competing products."
"Depending on the use case, the cost could range from $10,000 USD to $70,000 USD."
"The price charged by Black Duck is exorbitant."
"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 price is low. It's not an expensive solution."
"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 pricing is a little high."
"It is expensive."
"It is a little bit high priced. It would be better if it was a little less expensive."
"Pricing for Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis needs to be competitive."
"The license model is somewhat perplexing as it comprises multiple aspects that can be confusing for customers. The model is determined by the number of registered users and the number of projects being scanned, along with a third component that adds to the complexity."
"We don't have a license. The usage is limited to one, two, three, five, or ten people. It is currently used for all projects, and there are plans to increase its usage."
"My customers need to pay for the licensing part, and they need to opt for an annual subscription."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
12%
Healthcare Company
4%
Financial Services Firm
25%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Insurance Company
5%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Large Enterprise16
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Large Enterprise8
 

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...
What do you like most about Black Duck?
The cloud option of the product is always available and a positive aspect of the solution.
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...
What do you like most about Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis?
The tool's visual scan analysis shows me all the libraries' vulnerabilities and license types. It helps identify the most complex issues with licenses. It provides good visibility. SCA shows me all...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis?
Pricing is complex and high for small organizations but offers great benefits for larger organizations. It is notably different compared to competitors like GitHub Advanced Security.
What needs improvement with Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis?
The solution could improve by determining the success factor of an upgrade, which is currently lacking.
 

Also Known As

Blackduck Hub, Black Duck Protex, Black Duck Security Checker
CxSCA
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Samsung, Siemens, ScienceLogic, BryterCX, Dynatrace
AXA, Liveperson, Aaron's, Playtech, Morningstar
Find out what your peers are saying about Black Duck SCA vs. Checkmarx Software Composition Analysis and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
881,707 professionals have used our research since 2012.