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HCL AppScan vs Klocwork comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 8, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
2.1
HCL AppScan enhances architecture with fewer errors and improved security, achieving 50% return and 20% cost savings.
Sentiment score
6.2
Klocwork enhances code quality and compliance, improving efficiency in defect resolution, especially in automotive sectors, despite ROI measurement challenges.
The main ROI factors include efficiency and how we meet compliance standards for various automotive requirements.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.4
HCL AppScan's support is responsive with mixed reviews, facing regional challenges and lagging behind competitors like Veracode.
Sentiment score
6.8
Klocwork's support is praised for responsiveness, effective problem-solving, and reducing user contact via comprehensive documentation, despite prioritization issues.
Veracode provides excellent assistance and regularly scheduled calls to address customer concerns and updates.
The issue is not about the knowledge of the support but about the prioritization of the tickets they handle.
The customer support team is very responsive, proactive, and engages in conversations to ensure our needs are met.
During the initial phase when I did interact with the vendor, the support was satisfactory.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
4.9
HCL AppScan is scalable yet varies by license, integration issues, infrastructure compatibility, and CI/CD pipeline design effectiveness.
Sentiment score
6.7
Klocwork is scalable, efficient, and integrates well with SAST tools, suitable for teams of all sizes without scalability issues.
Klocwork supports our scalability needs without issues, even as project volumes increase.
The program-to-program enablement is scalable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.8
HCL AppScan is stable and reliable, with minor hardware issues, improved by recent upgrades enhancing performance and stability.
Sentiment score
6.8
Klocwork is reliable and stable, effectively handling large codebases but requires significant computing power and faster updates.
Installation is easy, and the solution is stable.
 

Room For Improvement

HCL AppScan requires improvements in vulnerability detection, usability, integration, performance, support, pricing, and language/codebase compatibility to stay competitive.
Klocwork needs improved language support, flexible reporting, better integration with Agile DevOps, and enhanced static and dynamic analysis.
We would like Klocwork to connect to Git and notify developers of issues tied to specific commits.
Klocwork should be able to analyze large codebases efficiently, supporting a desktop version for periodic small delta changes before pushing to the server.
Klocwork sometimes provides too many additional warnings which require expertise to manage.
 

Setup Cost

HCL AppScan is considered expensive but cost-effective, with varied pricing opinions influenced by its premium features and discounts.
Klocwork's flexible pricing models are valued, though opinions vary on cost-effectiveness, catering to diverse organizational needs.
Companies often choose based on budget constraints, with Veracode being on the higher end cost-wise.
It is less expensive than Coverity.
The solution is not very cheap, however, it is less expensive than Coverity.
Klocwork's pricing seems attractive, as it uses a per-user license model that does not have a lot of overhead.
 

Valuable Features

HCL AppScan detects vulnerabilities, integrates with agile processes, offers scalability, user-friendly features, and AI-enhanced rapid scanning for security.
Klocwork provides efficient static code analysis with strong IDE integration, supporting multiple languages and enhancing code quality and collaboration.
AppScan's most valuable features include its ability to identify vulnerabilities accurately, provide detailed remediation steps, and the newly introduced AI-powered features that enhance its functionality further.
Its integration with the CI/CD pipeline has helped streamline the software development process.
The most valuable feature of Klocwork is the static analysis tools, which help identify potential security threats and errors.
It takes just half a day to set up.
 

Categories and Ranking

HCL AppScan
Ranking in Application Security Tools
15th
Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
14th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
43
Ranking in other categories
Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (1st)
Klocwork
Ranking in Application Security Tools
19th
Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)
17th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Static Code Analysis (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 2.5%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Klocwork is 1.4%, down from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Security Tools Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
HCL AppScan2.5%
Klocwork1.4%
Other96.1%
Application Security Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Gladwin Christian - PeerSpot reviewer
A useful tool to scan applications that can be easily installed
Given that we have been using HCL AppScan for many years, I think the setup process is not difficult at all. Sometimes, some issues stop or prevent my company from moving forward with the product's setup phase. We have to call HCL's support team and engage in long discussions to smoothly carry out the setup phase. In general, the product's setup phase is not difficult in our company. The solution is deployed on an on-premises model. The licenses for the solution are available only on cloud deployments nowadays. The solution is already installed in our environment. Every time a new release or software comes out from HCL, our company does a scan, which takes maybe a day or two.
AnirbanSarkar - PeerSpot reviewer
Lets you find defects during the development phase, so you don't have to wait till the development is over to find and address flaws
What needs improvement in Klocwork, compared to other products in the market, is the dashboard or reporting mechanisms that need to be a bit more flexible. The Klocwork dashboard could be improved. Though it's good, it's not as good as some of the other products in the market, which is a problem. The reporting could be more detailed and easier to sort out because sorting in Klocwork could be a bit more time-consuming, mainly when sorting defects based on filters, compared to how it's done on other tools such as Coverity. What I'd like added in the next release of Klocwork is the peer code review Cahoots which used to be a part of Klocwork, and the architecture analysis and both have been taken out of Klocwork. I found the two critical for specific deployments, so if those can be brought back to Klocwork, that would be very good.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
26%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Transportation Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise31
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business12
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise12
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL AppScan?
The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is its integration with the SDLC, particularly during the coding phase.
What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?
AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives. It also requires enhancements in customer support, similar to what Veracode provides. Regularly scheduling calls with clients to discuss fe...
What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?
The primary use case for AppScan is for security purposes. I compare AppScan with other tools such as Veracode. We use AppScan for vulnerability detection and auto-remediation of vulnerabilities wi...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Klocwork?
Klocwork's pricing seems attractive, as it uses a per-user license model that does not have a lot of overhead.
What needs improvement with Klocwork?
One area for improvement is that when customers use different static analysis tools, they report more issues compared to Klocwork. The static analysis engine of Klocwork has areas that need improve...
What is your primary use case for Klocwork?
I work on tools such as Klocwork, LDRA, as well as Jira and Confluence, focusing more on the software quality assurance aspect. We use Klocwork for coding and aggregate checks. We use it for static...
 

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT
ACCESS Co Ltd, Risk-AI, Winbond Electronics, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute, University of Southern California, Alebra Technologies, SIMULIA, Risk Management Solutions, Brigham Young University, SRD, HRL
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL AppScan vs. Klocwork and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
868,787 professionals have used our research since 2012.