HCL AppScan vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec comparison

HCLSoftware and Rapid7 are both solutions in the Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) category. HCLSoftware is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.3, while Rapid7 is ranked #6 with an average rating of 7.8. HCLSoftware holds a 10.5% mindshare in DAST, compared to Rapid7’s 6.0% mindshare. Additionally, 84% of HCLSoftware users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Rapid7 users who would recommend it.

HCL AppScan

Read 44 HCL AppScan reviews

4,387 Views
1,053 Comparison Views

84% willing to recommend

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Read 19 Rapid7 InsightAppSec reviews

1,639 Views
557 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

HCL AppScan

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 13, 2024

HCL AppScan and Rapid7 InsightAppSec are two leading cybersecurity solutions. Rapid7 InsightAppSec seems to have the upper hand due to its superior features despite higher costs.

Features: HCL AppScan: Comprehensive scanning capabilities, integration options, and cost-effectiveness. Rapid7 InsightAppSec: Intuitive reporting features, ease of use, user-friendly interface.

Room for Improvement: HCL AppScan: Better reporting, more frequent updates, improved deployment process. Rapid7 InsightAppSec: Better API, improved technical support responsiveness, less areas for enhancement.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: HCL AppScan: Complicated deployment process, mixed customer service reviews. Rapid7 InsightAppSec: Smoother deployment, superior customer service.

Pricing and ROI: HCL AppScan: Cost-effective, good ROI. Rapid7 InsightAppSec: Higher upfront costs justified by richer feature set, higher perceived value.

To learn more, read our detailed HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

December 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 881,082 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

HCL AppScan

Ranking in Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

4th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Security Tools (20th), Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (17th)

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Ranking in Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

6th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

AI Observability (9th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 10.5%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rapid7 InsightAppSec is 6.0%, up from 3.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
HCL AppScan	10.5%
Rapid7 InsightAppSec	6.0%
Other	83.5%

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

Featured Reviews

Ravi Khanchandani

Founder Director at Techsa Services

Has improved identification of encryption and authentication issues across cloud and on-prem applications

During the learning curve of onboarding HCL AppScan, we learned that HCL has altered the portfolio and now offers HCL AppScan 360, which has a much better look and feel with an improved user interface. However, there is one feature called SCA, which stands for Software Composition Analysis, that could be improved. When I'm doing an application scan, HCL AppScan has the ability to generate information about what components are in use. For example, if I'm scanning a web application, it shows me the various components being used. It tells me whether I have Java libraries, .NET frameworks, or other log management libraries such as Log4j, and what versions of those specific components are present. I would like to see more detailed reports from the tool. Currently, you can find out the components belonging to a specific software, but if detailed reporting became available, you would be in a better position to identify vulnerabilities. For instance, I could identify that I had the Log4j vulnerability and know that I need to fix my application accordingly. If they add the features I'm describing, I would consider giving them a higher rating. However, I've only been experienced with the product for three months.

Read full review

Shritam Bhowmick

Vulnerability Management Lead at garrett

Provides reliable applications security but needs better integration options

There are areas for improvements regarding false positives. Integration capabilities are lacking, as options for integrations with other tools such as SNOW, Jira, or other integration tools are not sufficient in Rapid7 InsightAppSec. The user interface sometimes has glitches, which may prevent appropriate results during navigation, and even when we get appropriate results, it can be impossible to export them to CSV records or download files. Regarding scalability, Rapid7 InsightAppSec is not a scalable solution for our industry due to limited integration capabilities. Rapid7 relies on another tool called InsightConnect, which requires additional investment, detracting from scalability. Another area that needs improvement is the integration of AI capabilities into the platform. Both Rapid7 InsightAppSec and InsightVM need to advance in that area. In terms of behavioral and pattern recognition, identifying complex attacks such as SQL, blind SQL, JSON, and LDAP injections often results in 94% false positives. This necessitates improvement in their behavioral-based analytics feature.

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

"We use it as a security testing application."

"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."

"The UI was very intuitive."

"The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is scanning QR codes."

"For me, as a manager, it was the ease of use. Inserting security into the development process is not normally an easy project to do. The ability for the developer to actually use it and get results and focuses, that's what counted."

"It identifies all the URLs and domains on its own and then performs tests and provides the results."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the scanning or security part."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is Postman."

More HCL AppScan pros

"The initial setup for us was easy enough. We didn't face too many issues. Deployment took maybe 30 minutes. It's quite quick and doesn't cause too much trouble at the outset."

"Relatively speaking, InsightAppSec is good compared to Insight VM."

"It's very easy to use and user-friendly. It does the job."

"The product’s most valuable feature is UI. It is easy to manage and find vulnerabilities in the application."

"You have various attack modules, and you also have the Attack Replay feature for the attack sequence. You can reproduce an attack and see it. That is a very good feature I noticed in this solution. It helps developers as well."

"The automatic automation of the automated authorization to the SCANNET environment is valuable."

"The reporting functionality is excellent."

"The templates feature is very easy. You just choose the kind of attack you want on your web application, and you run it against that template and receive a report. It's great."

More Rapid7 InsightAppSec pros

Cons

"It's a little bit basic when you talk about the Web Services. If AppScan improved its maturity on Web Services testing, that would be good."

"IBM Security AppScan Source is rather hard to use."

"They could add a software component analysis tool."

"The solution needs to improve in some areas. The tool needs to add more languages. It also needs to improve its speed."

"The dashboard, for AppScan or the Fortified fast tool, which we use needs to be improved."

"AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives."

"AppScan is too complicated and should be made more user-friendly."

"It has crashed at times."

More HCL AppScan cons

"We'd like to see integrations with WAF solutions."

"The reporting feature of Rapid7 InsightAppSec needs improvement as it currently provides basic reports."

"The reporting is definitely an aspect of the solution that's in need of some work. We found that we'd try to use widgets, but often getting them to work for us wasn't very clear. They need to be more user friendly or offer better instructions."

"We get a lot of false positives during the tests."

"The reporting feature of Rapid7 InsightAppSec needs improvement as it currently provides basic reports."

"When you add new projects for the same product, it either duplicates or replaces the scan configuration. If I run a scan for the same product with a different scan configuration, it should keep the previous scan configuration and not replace it with the new scan configuration. It should just add the new scan configuration. That would be helpful. They do keep the results as it is, but the scan configuration keeps changing. For example, I have set a scan configuration to a full scan, and next week, I want to run a new scan for the same product with some changes or new functionalities. I want to run a partial scan. Currently, if I change the scan configuration to partial, it changes the old one also to partial. That should be improved."

"Rapid7 InsightAppSec needs improvement in detecting phishing pages."

"The dynamic scanning feature has simplified and improved the security testing process. I suggest adding a SaaS feature to the solution to support scanning SaaS applications, making it more comprehensive. It would be beneficial if the solution could also scan mobile applications. It only scans web applications and should also cover mobile applications, including firmware recommendations."

More Rapid7 InsightAppSec cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I would rate the product's pricing a nine out of ten. The product's pricing is expensive compared to the features that they offer."

"The solution is moderately priced."

"The product has premium pricing and could be more competitive."

"The price is very expensive."

"With the features, that they offer, and the support, they offer, AppScan pricing is on a higher level."

"The solution is cheap."

"The price of HCL AppScan is okay, in my opinion. You just buy HCL AppScan and don't pay anything anymore, meaning it is just a one-time purchase."

"AppScan is a little bit expensive. IBM needs to work a little bit on the pricing model, decreasing the license cost."

More HCL AppScan pricing and cost advice

"They offer a good price, but I don't remember its cost. It is fair as compared to the competition. We have opted for project-based licensing, not user-based. We can add any number of users. That doesn't matter. It is worth the money."

"Its price is competitive. It is not expensive."

"Rapid7 InsightAppSec is cheap."

"The price of this product is very cheap."

"I rate Rapid7 InsightAppSec’s pricing an eight out of ten."

"I'm not sure how much it costs exactly, but I know it's expensive."

See which vendors are best for you

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

See recommendations

881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Government

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

14%

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

13%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	31

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	5

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.

See all answers

What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?

I'm currently working with BigFix and HCL AppScan. At least three people in my company are using HCL AppScan. Since we are a reseller, we run it in both lab environments and live production applica...

See all answers

What do you like most about Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

In Rapid7 InsightAppSec, a distinctive feature is the provision of a CDM for integrating web servers and web applications. To establish the connection between these applications, you only need to p...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

Our main use case for Rapid7 InsightAppSec is to perform internal assessment of applications and external facing applications. We have a cloud engine plus on-premises engine, and we have been lever...

See all answers

Comparisons

Veracode vs HCL AppScan

Compared 10% of the time

SonarQube vs HCL AppScan

Compared 10% of the time

Acunetix vs HCL AppScan

Compared 8% of the time

PortSwigger Burp Suite Professional vs HCL AppScan

Compared 7% of the time

Checkmarx One vs HCL AppScan

Compared 7% of the time

More HCL AppScan Competitors

Rapid7 AppSpider vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 18% of the time

Invicti vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 12% of the time

PortSwigger Burp Suite Professional vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 11% of the time

OWASP Zap vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 9% of the time

Veracode vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 4% of the time

More Rapid7 InsightAppSec Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

HCL AppScan

January 2026

Download HCL AppScan product report

Buyer's Guide

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

January 2026

Download Rapid7 InsightAppSec product report

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan

InsightAppSec

Overview

IBM Security AppScan enhances web application security and mobile application security, improves application security program management and strengthens regulatory compliance. By scanning your web and mobile applications prior to deployment, AppScan enables you to identify security vulnerabilities and generate reports and fix recommendations.

HCLSoftware

Your web applications may be complex, but your application security testing tool doesn’t need to be. InsightAppSec brings Rapid7’s proven Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) technology to the Insight platform, combining powerful application crawling and attack capabilities, flexibility in scan scope and scheduling, and accuracy in results with a modern UI, intuitive workflows, and sensible data organization. This enables you to identify XSS, SQL injection, CSRF, and other vulnerabilities with unparalleled ease. The best part? All of these capabilities are delivered via the cloud so that you’re up and running in minutes to identify the critical security risks that exist in your applications.

Rapid7

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT

CenterPoint Energy, CPA Australia, Hypertherm, First American Financial Corporation, Rackspace

Buyer's Guide

HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

December 2025

Free Report: HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Find out what your peers are saying about HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec report.

See our list of best Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) vendors.

We monitor all Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) 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.