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Qualys VMDR vs ServiceNow Discovery comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 13, 2025

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
7.4
Qualys VMDR improves security by reducing vulnerabilities, streamlining patch management, and enhancing compliance, risk mitigation, and cost efficiency.
Sentiment score
6.1
ServiceNow Discovery's ROI is inconsistent, with full benefits seen when combined with other services for operational efficiency.
We saw a return on investment through significant savings in time, money, and resources.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
Qualys VMDR customer service is praised for effectiveness and support, but response time and request handling speed need improvement.
Sentiment score
6.0
ServiceNow Discovery's support varies, with mixed experiences on responsiveness and effectiveness, improving with advanced support tiers and partnerships.
We usually get on calls with tech support, and they are very helpful.
The response time takes a while.
The technical support provided by Qualys is pretty good.
The 'follow the sun' model, where the time of raising the ticket and where it lands, plays a crucial role.
This rating is because there are features on the tool that never worked and despite calling our support, there were no results.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.9
Qualys VMDR is scalable and flexible in handling large networks, supporting numerous assets, with highly rated adaptability.
Sentiment score
7.4
ServiceNow Discovery is highly scalable, suited for large infrastructures, compatible with AWS and Azure, but requires careful cost management.
Scalability depends on the license and the number of assets being monitored.
Qualys VMDR can handle scalability, although increasing the inventory can raise the licensing costs.
Qualys VMDR's scalability is good, and the customer support is good.
I would rate it as a nine on a scale of one to ten, indicating it is highly scalable.
Small companies will not be able to afford ServiceNow Discovery from the pricing perspective.
It receives this rating because it can be difficult to troubleshoot when the discovery is failing.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
8.0
Qualys VMDR offers impressive stability with minimal issues, praised for its reliable performance despite occasional reporting and dataset handling challenges.
Sentiment score
8.0
ServiceNow Discovery is highly stable and reliable, with minor configuration issues not affecting its strong overall performance ratings.
Qualys VMDR is stable.
I would rate the stability of ServiceNow Discovery as nine, as we never had downtime.
That is not a mistake of the product. It is due to excessive security on the network.
 

Room For Improvement

Qualys VMDR needs better cloud integration, cost management, interface simplicity, reporting, support, documentation, and third-party tool compatibility.
ServiceNow Discovery struggles with service mapping and integration, necessitating enhancements for usability, cloud capabilities, and easier licensing.
It does not automate patching unless the patch management module is purchased separately.
If AI features were integrated, it could enhance the capabilities significantly.
One area where Qualys VMDR can be improved is the missing feature for deploying agents for over 1,000 assets, as we need to do it manually.
ServiceNow ITOM is particularly not very strong in terms of monitoring capabilities. They do not have any monitoring tool.
Improvements could include implementing chatbots to simplify ticket creation.
The areas of ServiceNow Discovery that have room for improvement are getting custom reports on the relationship between CIs that are not on the same table.
 

Setup Cost

Qualys VMDR's pricing, high compared to competitors, is justified by comprehensive features and negotiable, suitable for large enterprises.
ServiceNow Discovery is pricey but valued for advanced features, with potential discounts though standalone costs are high.
I would rate the pricing between seven to eight out of ten.
I have a notion that Qualys might be more expensive than Rapid7.
Qualys offers better pricing and is feature-packed compared to other tools.
ServiceNow is considered more expensive compared to other products.
I think the price of ServiceNow Discovery is cheaper than BMC.
 

Valuable Features

Qualys VMDR offers comprehensive, scalable vulnerability management with continuous monitoring, automated scanning, and intuitive reporting for enhanced security.
ServiceNow Discovery integrates seamlessly with ServiceNow suite, enhancing IT operations through automated mapping, security, and cloud discovery.
The prioritization of vulnerabilities has improved our remediation efforts by around thirty to thirty-five percent.
It impacts my workflow overall, with the patch management features as it has the missing patches listed in detail, making it easier to get a comprehensive report and providing some dashboards that offer visual representation.
Qualys VMDR offers a one-stop solution for monitoring and reporting.
The workflows are beneficial as they allow tasks to be assigned to respective teams without the need for coding.
ServiceNow Discovery helps with operations, audits, and allows people to assess how a particular change in infrastructure impacts other components.
ServiceNow Discovery has normal discovery of CIs, as well as horizontal discovery for understanding Service Mapping.
 

Categories and Ranking

Qualys VMDR
Ranking in IT Asset Management
4th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
95
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (2nd), Configuration Management Databases (2nd), Container Security (9th), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (1st)
ServiceNow Discovery
Ranking in IT Asset Management
3rd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
44
Ranking in other categories
Server Monitoring (2nd), Cloud Resource Discovery Services (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the IT Asset Management category, the mindshare of Qualys VMDR is 2.9%, down from 3.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ServiceNow Discovery is 5.4%, up from 4.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
IT Asset Management Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
ServiceNow Discovery5.4%
Qualys VMDR2.9%
Other91.7%
IT Asset Management
 

Featured Reviews

Ankesh Raj - PeerSpot reviewer
Real-time responses and reporting streamline vulnerability management
Qualys VMDR provides a real-time response and reporting feature, which is excellent. It allows us to see real-time graphs and reports for every asset, server, and more, which is very user-friendly. Our clients have given good feedback, and they are satisfied with the tool. We use it daily to fix vulnerabilities by connecting with infrastructure to remediate. The feedback from the client side is very good.
Ayobanji Iluyomade - PeerSpot reviewer
Service helps organizations with network discovery and IT infrastructure management but troubleshooting challenges remain
ServiceNow Discovery was adopted by my organization. We use ServiceNow Discovery for discovery and ITSM The most beneficial features of ServiceNow Discovery for maintaining my IT infrastructure are the CMDB top and discovery of network switches. The areas of ServiceNow Discovery that have room…
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Healthcare Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business20
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise69
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise23
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Qualys VMDR?
I like that we have many scanners and channels that don't overload. It helps us scan and track easily. Also, the tagging system is good for tagging. We can still use QualysAgent task ID tools even ...
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?
One area where Qualys VMDR can be improved is the missing feature for deploying agents for over 1,000 assets, as we need to do it manually. Qualys doesn't have its own tool to deploy the agents all...
What do you like most about ServiceNow Discovery?
The solution can prioritize the discovery of IP ranges. The product automatically places all Discovery CIs into the correct class within the CMDB.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ServiceNow Discovery?
The pricing information for ServiceNow Discovery was requested but not provided.
What needs improvement with ServiceNow Discovery?
A CMDB debugging tool to give indication about the errors that appear would be appreciated.
 

Also Known As

Qualys VM, QualysGuard VM, Qualys Asset Inventory, Qualys Container Security
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

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
York, National Grid, DXC Technology, experian, BEACHBODY
Find out what your peers are saying about Qualys VMDR vs. ServiceNow Discovery and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
868,787 professionals have used our research since 2012.