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Chainguard Containers vs Qualys Exposure Management comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 13, 2026

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

Qualys TotalCloud
Sponsored
Ranking in Container Security
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
44
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (11th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (8th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (8th), SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) (2nd), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (7th)
Chainguard Containers
Ranking in Container Security
29th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
3.7
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
Container Image Security (1st)
Qualys Exposure Management
Ranking in Container Security
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
101
Ranking in other categories
IT Asset Management (2nd), Vulnerability Management (1st), Configuration Management Databases (3rd), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Container Security category, the mindshare of Qualys TotalCloud is 1.7%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Chainguard Containers is 1.0%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys Exposure Management is 2.3%, down from 2.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Container Security Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Qualys Exposure Management2.3%
Qualys TotalCloud1.7%
Chainguard Containers1.0%
Other95.0%
Container Security
 

Featured Reviews

RO
IT Security Expert at Alior Bank S.A.
Unified risk scoring has improved our cloud visibility and simplifies remediation priorities
Qualys TotalCloud provides unified vulnerability and threat assessment across both IAS and SaaS. This solution provides a single prioritized view of risk, which helps reduce the work I would have to do. We are no longer based on CVSS; we are based on Qualys risk scoring, which is based on CVSS plus internal findings made by Qualys, and then assigns its own score. The TruRisk insight feature has found a small number of assets with high vulnerability scores, though I am cautious since some information is classified. Qualys TotalCloud has positively impacted our bank's performance, and we have definitely seen benefits after implementing this solution.
ParthasarathyT - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Infrastructure Engineer at Publicis Sapient
Secures container builds, has simplified compliance audits and reduced vulnerabilities dramatically
The benefit of Chainguard Containers is that it makes development simpler. It makes the development team confident there will not be any bugs or vulnerabilities in the image they are using. It is mainly needed for vulnerabilities, SLAs, security audits, and SOC 2, ISO, and PCI compliance. The image includes SBOM, signature, and provenance metadata, which makes audits much easier. The best features Chainguard Containers offers include a reduced image size. It removes the shell and the package manager, resulting in a significantly smaller image size compared with a normal image. We can deploy production workloads directly without worrying about security concerns. If we want a strong supply chain for security, we will be using it. Many users are already tired of scanning alerts, so this will be a great thing. Removing the shell and package manager has positively impacted my team's workflow and deployment speed by making it quite user-friendly, where the developer can touch it without any hesitation. Chainguard Containers are built and pushed from non-patched binaries, with the packages compiled directly from the source. No dependencies or pre-built distro packages like Debian or Alpine are required, so there are no hidden vulnerabilities. The developer gains full control over what goes inside, and the image size is smaller with fewer vulnerabilities, in fact, zero. It has built-in processes like SBOM, which is Software Bill of Material generated. The image is cryptographically signed, and provenance is tracked, leading to faster patching, minimal footprint, and best supply chain control. Chainguard Containers has positively impacted my organization by reducing constant CVE fixing, resolving security versus DevOps conflicts, and minimizing compliance headaches. After implementing secured-by-default containers, there is less effort on fixing vulnerabilities, faster delivery, and better compliance. The impact on security teams includes a lower risk of attack, less panic during audits, and significantly fewer security noises. A specific outcome we have noted since implementing Chainguard Containers is that for a client who uses more than 200 containers, they previously received vulnerability warnings for every deployment. Once we implemented Chainguard Containers, the vulnerability ratio drastically decreased, from 100 to 30. Nearly 70% of the vulnerability checks have passed. Chainguard Containers are CVE-resistant, which is significant as CVEs represent Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures.
Ajay Paul - PeerSpot reviewer
System Engineer at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees
Vulnerability management has prioritized high‑risk patching and simplified bulk system reporting
The primary issue is with the reporting functionality. Even though we fix vulnerabilities, the reports do not reflect the changes immediately. Sometimes we need to manually run a script to scan the systems before Qualys Enterprise TruRisk Management will update the scan results. The main issue is the reporting delay, and sometimes the Qualys Enterprise TruRisk Management agent will not scan the system, which means we do not receive accurate reports in a timely manner. Additionally, there are many metrics for calculating vulnerabilities, such as the Qualys ID, severity scores, CVSS scores, and other metrics. The abundance of information can be confusing. These two aspects are the most significant negatives I have experienced with this tool.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a cloud-native app that integrates with both IaaS and SaaS. It seamlessly integrates with other platforms."
"Qualys TotalCloud is an excellent platform, and the beauty of the platform is that we can get all the vulnerabilities, see all the reports in a single dashboard, view them segregated, and easily learn about critical, high, and medium findings with appropriately provided remediation steps."
"One of the most valuable features of Qualys TotalCloud is FlexScan, which is specifically for internet-facing VMs. We found this feature to be very useful. It was a key differentiator for us."
"Qualys TotalCloud has positively impacted our bank's performance, and we have definitely seen benefits after implementing this solution."
"Qualys TotalCloud has significantly reduced our workload in terms of managing risks, helping us to be more efficient and save substantial resources."
"If someone were to ask me to review Qualys TotalCloud, I would summarize it as an end-to-end solution for cloud security with visibility and governance-grade controls without needing to manage multiple disconnected tools."
"Qualys TotalCloud's most valuable feature is its ability to link clusters of assets, providing a clear model of deployments, vulnerabilities, and statuses."
"I appreciate TotalCloud's real-time protection and remediation features. The remediation options include automated one-click remedies and custom changes that help manage vulnerabilities efficiently."
"Chainguard Containers has positively impacted my organization by reducing constant CVE fixing, resolving security versus DevOps conflicts, and minimizing compliance headaches."
"Chainguard Containers has positively impacted my organization even during the proof of concept phase by improving our security posture."
"The best feature of Chainguard Containers is being distroless, and the main thing I liked about it is that they follow the SBOM process and the continuous rebuilds they were doing, and they were helping me to rapidly remediate the failures which were happening."
"Specific outcomes and metrics show that before this, every month there would be 15 to 20 vulnerabilities, but after switching to Chainguard Containers, there are now only one or maybe two vulnerabilities."
"The biggest benefit is from a security operations perspective, where we are able to drive our security posture upwards by remediating any discovered vulnerabilities."
"I value the scheduling of scans and reports as per the desired timeframes."
"Qualys is a very good tool for companies, and the different tools this brand offers bring all the necessary tools for good development for these companies."
"This solution has provided information about existing vulnerabilities, and helped with quick remediation in case of global malware attacks."
"Using this product, we now have a vulnerability management cycle wherein VMDR plays a major role."
"Before we were taking eight hours, now we're taking around 30 minutes to respond to any incident, security and such."
"This is one of the best products I have worked with so far. I like the power of Qualys, and it's a better solution because you can scan a compact file, a BIT file, or batch files. The product already knows what's happening inside, and you don't need to expand the package. Tenable will do the same thing, but you need to have a package issuance claim. With Qualys, we can immediately understand the file, even a compact file. If there's some kind of discovery or incident, you will know what happened in the environment."
"The solution is easy to use."
 

Cons

"The support process is inefficient due to the excessive number of replies required when submitting tickets."
"Qualys TotalCloud's increasing complexity, due to the development and deployment of multiple solutions, is making the GUI difficult to navigate."
"Regarding technical support from Qualys, they respond, but the response time can be too long. Sometimes we need to wait weeks for solutions to simple questions."
"I think Qualys TotalCloud needs to improve its handling of zero-day vulnerabilities and supply chain management because modern ransomware attacks not only target prime critical infrastructures but also the supply chain system."
"In a future release, I suggest that zero-day vulnerabilities should be predicted in advance using AI technologies. The system is not 100% secure yet, so proactive threat hunting could be enhanced to be more proactive than the current system."
"Qualys' customer service provides quality answers, but the response time is long, even though it is within the SLA."
"One thing that could be improved is the user experience and navigation."
"The vulnerability part is good, but the policy compliance module needs improvement because it involves a lot of manual work. Specifically, the remediation part of the controls requires enhancements."
"Sometimes there are backend errors which we come across again and again, and there is a resolution, but there are pending tickets for it. That sucks sometimes."
"The biggest challenge in Chainguard Containers is that they provide minimal images, which can make troubleshooting difficult because common debugging tools are also not included."
"The only limitation or challenge that stood out during my evaluation of Chainguard Containers was the fact that it is primarily based on Alpine, which can be tricky to use in native Kubernetes environments, as we use Tecton primarily, which is a CI/CD pipeline that runs on native Kubernetes."
"The accuracy and reliability of the output from Chainguard Containers are below average, but I still give it an average rating of 6.5 to 7 because of its capabilities and its functionality for a developer-friendly approach."
"It's not very user-friendly at times and requires in-depth understanding. So, a layman or someone new to Qualys won't be able to easily understand it. You need education to use the solution."
"While Qualys VMDR is comprehensive, improvements in asset management functionality would be beneficial."
"I do not like that all of the data is stored on the cloud."
"Improve the user interface."
"We are moving away from Qualys to Defender ATP because I find that Defender ATP is much better at prioritizing the vulnerabilities that I should be looking at."
"Representation of the total number of vulnerabilities (with name) vs. the number of patches (with name)."
"The reporting needs improvement. It should generate much more stuff like field reports."
"Regarding improvement, compliance features haven't been utilized much."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Qualys TotalCloud offers cost-effective licensing flexibility."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers competitive pricing given its comprehensive suite of features, including integration, assessment, remediation, and detection capabilities, all within a single platform."
"Qualys TotalCloud is expensive, but it offers a premier solution with no headaches."
"The pricing for TotalCloud is attractive and competitive in the market. Given the features, especially the dashboard, I have no concerns regarding pricing."
"The pricing is comparable. It is built into our other product, so I cannot piecemeal it. It is a part of our subscription."
"Qualys TotalCloud is expensive."
"As a middle management member, I do not have direct pricing knowledge, but based on the knowledge from our meetings, its pricing is competitive."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers good pricing that is affordable and competitive with the market. Our partnership also provides us with additional benefits."
Information not available
"It is different for every company, but for us, it's every three years."
"Qualys VM is better suited for medium to large companies because the price can be too much for smaller customers."
"They have recently changed the pricing model, which is now better than it was before."
"It is more expensive than other products on the market."
"Qualys is cheaper and more affordable than other solutions."
"When you want to cover yourself for scalability, you will be charged for the number you place on the scan itself."
"The solution is costly."
"The solution is expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
16%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
16%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise32
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise74
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Qualys TotalCloud?
In terms of improvement, remediation still belongs to the cloud team, which is one of the issues we faced with Qualys...
What is your primary use case for Qualys TotalCloud?
My main use case for Qualys TotalCloud is regarding the cloud visibility that we were not having previously. Previous...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Chainguard Containers?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that while I work on implementation and do not manage billin...
What needs improvement with Chainguard Containers?
The only limitation or challenge that stood out during my evaluation of Chainguard Containers was the fact that it is...
What is your primary use case for Chainguard Containers?
Chainguard Containers was a tool brought into my enterprise as a proof of concept that we evaluated, but we have not ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys VMDR?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing shows that we can consider both time and money saved.
What needs improvement with Qualys VMDR?
I haven't explored Qualys VMDR's vulnerability lifecycle automation yet. One of my analysts mentioned that queries la...
What advice do you have for others considering Qualys VMDR?
I have some understanding about PeerSpot, and I have visited the website. PeerSpot is similar to TrustRadius. It take...
 

Also Known As

Qualys TotalCloud with FlexScan
No data available
Qualys VM, QualysGuard VM, Qualys Asset Inventory, Qualys Container Security
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Information Not Available
Agrokor Group, American Specialty Health, American State Bank, Arval, Life:), Axway, Bank of the West, Blueport Commerce, BSkyB, Brinks, CaixaBank, Cartagena, Catholic Health System, CEC Bank, Cegedim, CIGNA, Clickability, Colby-Sawyer College, Commercial Bank of Dubai, University of Utah, eBay Inc., ING Singapore, National Theatre, OTP Bank, Sodexo, WebEx
Find out what your peers are saying about Chainguard Containers vs. Qualys Exposure Management and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
912,930 professionals have used our research since 2012.