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Qualys Web Application Scanning vs Tenable.io Web Application Scanning 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:
 

Categories and Ranking

Qualys Web Application Scan...
Ranking in Application Security Tools
13th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (9th)
Tenable.io Web Application ...
Ranking in Application Security Tools
19th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of Qualys Web Application Scanning is 2.2%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is 1.3%, down from 1.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Security Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Kelvin Oladipo - PeerSpot reviewer
User-friendly scanning provides valuable vulnerability insights, but pricing improvements are needed
Qualys Web Application Scanning is user-friendly, easy to understand, easy to use, and easy to deploy. Credential scanning is very effective because it goes in-depth into the system, crawling the pages, and reporting on vulnerabilities. The product helps by providing options for remediating vulnerabilities it finds, making it really useful.
Harshal Deshmukh - PeerSpot reviewer
Simple tool to use, good dashboard capabilities and offers asset criticality ratings
It has good dashboard capabilities and gives good results with priority ratings, asset criticality ratings, and exposure scores for vulnerabilities. It also provides automated web application scanning, which customers appreciate because it doesn't disturb the web application or hamper the business. While testing the web application, sometimes it happens that the website or application goes down. But with Tenable.io Web Application Scanning, it doesn't affect the business. It has good unified web application scanning and exposure management.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Qualys Web Application Scanning is the effective scanning that can be done."
"It is easy to use."
"With our vulnerabilities under control, it's putting our services in compliance and minimizing our risk for exposure."
"It is a cloud-based solution, so it is easy to scale."
"It combines both web application vulnerability management and internal vulnerability management on one platform and dashboard. Usually, you have to purchase separate tools."
"The Qualys Web Application Scanning solution offers a single comprehensive console and consolidated reporting, covering all aspects from on-prem to cloud and compliance, etcetera."
"It is a good product for website penetration testing to detect vulnerabilities."
"​This product is designed for easy scalability and can easily scale up ​without major challenges."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"The most valuable features of Tenable.io Web Application Scanning are the integration into specific use cases and scanning. All of the features of the solution are useful."
"Our customers adopt this solution because of the replication testing and the vulnerability assessment it can do. It is a multi-faceted product."
"I would recommend Tenable.io Web Application Scanning to others."
"We use the tool for our websites. We have a vulnerable subdomain. The tool helps to scan it for vulnerabilities."
"All the features are valuable to us as they offer cutting-edge scanning methods and address the latest issues with a contemporary approach. Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is highly stable. I rate it a nine out ten. Since the solution works on the Cloud, it's highly scalable. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. The setup of the solution is straightforward. The Return on Investment is substantial. I recommend the solution to all."
"The solution's instant reports feature is the most effective for detecting threats."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning provides a detailed report, identifying functions that are complex and need to be more maintainable and readable."
 

Cons

"We procured around 110 licenses for Web Application Scanning, but we have issues running concurrent scans. I don't currently have the option to trigger scans for all 100-plus websites. The default limit is around 10 conference scans. It's not very scalable, to be honest, because of the limitation that they put on concurrent scans."
"I would like it to be cheaper because it is a bit expensive compared to competitors like Tenable Nessus."
"We receive false positives sometimes when using a solution that could be improved. However, the technical team provides us with the exact explanation why it was giving us that kind of error."
"They should try to include business logic vulnerabilities in the scanner testing."
"There's a distinction between internal and external scanning processes that could be streamlined. Currently, for internal scanning, specific configurations and scanner appliances need to be deployed within the network, which differs from the simpler setup for external scans. This dual process complicates the setup for comprehensive scanning coverage."
"The pricing does not seem to be competitive."
"The scanner reports a lot of false positives, which is something that needs to be improved."
"The authenticated scanning feature could be improved by adding support for real-time scanning tokens and authorization tokens."
"They have a general dashboard for web application scanning, but the dashboards and reporting can be improved. They probably have some features in their roadmap."
"The cloud and the on-premises versions have their own controllers, and there is no way to centrally manage controllers."
"The report customization needs to be better."
"Sometimes it lags with different cloud environments."
"The reporting has a very limited customization capability."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is not very user-friendly and you need a lot of information to get proper reports. The tool's support is not very responsive."
"The solution's dashboards could be improved and made more user-friendly."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning could improve by offering faster fuzzing."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We normally purchase an annual license."
"There are different options available with respect to licensing."
"Licensing was based on the number of assets that you want to scan on your network. You can also do licensing on subscription. On subscription, it is easier and more flexible. You tell Qualys that you want to move from the 1000 to 2000 band or the 3000 or 5000 band, then they will give you the quotation for it. Once you pay for it, applying the licensing is quite easy and effective."
"Try the free trial of the product to understand the basic working mechanisms.​"
"The product is expensive, at least initially, in comparison to other products in this category."
"Qualys Web Application Scanning's pricing is a bit expensive compared to other solutions available in the market."
"Qualys WAS' pricing is competitive."
"The product pricing is fair and reasonably priced."
"The pricing is okay."
"For Tenable.io Web Application Scanning, it comes to around 6,50,000 Indian rupees, plus taxes."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is expensive for small businesses."
"The application is extremely affordable. There are no additional costs involved with licensing. We switched to Tenable.io Web Application Scanning from other solutions due to pricing."
"The price of the solution is reasonable compared to the competitors. The license cost is based on the number of users and the annual usage."
"It follows the same licensing scheme as Tenable.io and Tenable. sc."
"I rate the product's pricing a four out of ten."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
10%
Retailer
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Qualys Web Application Scanning?
The vulnerability management feature is a strong one. And also the patch management feature.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys Web Application Scanning?
The price of Qualys Web Application Scanning is reasonable compared to other vendors. Qualys Web Application Scanning is priced per application rather than per user.
What needs improvement with Qualys Web Application Scanning?
I have experience with adaptive scanning for single-page applications, which was not very effective. Generally, comparing with other tools, Qualys Web Application Scanning still needs to improve on...
What do you like most about Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
The most effective feature of the product is the ability to scan the entire environment.
What needs improvement with Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
Improvements could include providing coverage reports in the free version and features related to security reports. Also, enhancing technical support would be beneficial as there is room for improv...
What advice do you have for others considering Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
I would recommend Tenable.io Web Application Scanning as it provides us with good reports, which help improve our code base, despite the lack of financial benefits. Overall, I would rate it seven o...
 

Also Known As

Qualys WAS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

BskyB, Cartagena, ClearPoint Learning Systems, Connect Group, du, Fortrex Technologies, HBOR, HDI, Highlights for Children, The Lithuanian State Enterprise Centre of Registers, City of Miami Beach, Microsoft, MidlandHR, MSCI Inc., Northern Arizona University, Ofgem, Olympus Europa, PhoneFactor, RTL Nederland, ThousandEyes, VGZ Organisatie B.V.
IMDEX
Find out what your peers are saying about Qualys Web Application Scanning vs. Tenable.io Web Application Scanning and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.