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PeerSpot user
Head of Software Delivery at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Real User
Provides an automated gated procedure to ensure that engineers are able to deliver great, secure code to production
Pros and Cons
  • "Engineers have also learned from the results and have improved themselves as engineers. This will help them with their careers."

    What is our primary use case?

    Our primary use case is to analyze source code for software bugs, technical debt, vulnerabilities, and test coverage. It provides an automated gated procedure to ensure that engineers are able to deliver great, secure code to production. 

    We plug this process into our process right from the start enabling the IDE integrations so that engineers can scan their code before submission. Following on from that we run the scans on every change that has been submitted for review. 

    This way we ensure that no core/fundamental issues are added to our codebases. 

    How has it helped my organization?

    It has helped many of the organizations that I have worked at to improve overall security, quality, and test confidence within the codebases. It also provides this in a speed efficient way. Engineers now feel much more proud of their solution as they gain confidence from these scans and their results. 

    Engineers have also learned from the results and have improved themselves as engineers. This will help them with their careers. 

    We are also able to get reports on our suite and generate a quality rating for ourselves utilizing this data and more. 

    What is most valuable?

    By far the quality gate controls. Without this, there would be no way to really utilize the power of this tool. We are able to automatically ensure that no code is delivered to production when it contains severe bugs or vulnerabilities. 

    The tight integration to source control also helps us to keep the engineers in the loop with any follow-up actions for issues reported. 

    Finally, the historical trend analysis gives us great insight into how we are improving based on our decisions, which are now driven by clear data.

    What needs improvement?

    It should keep up with newer technologies. As this is primarily open-source, it does require updates from the community. As such, there is sometimes a delay for new technologies to be covered by this too. 

    Particularly around the languages that the webpages state they support. The big benefit of Sonar is that it handles so many different languages, problems, and static analysis in one place. 

    When that one place has a low coverage for the most basic rules (OWASP top 10 for example) it starts to lose its value add. 

    Buyer's Guide
    SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)
    June 2025
    Learn what your peers think about SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
    860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonarQube for five years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Good, I have not really had many issues with it. No major ones either. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It all depends on where/how you are hosting it. The tool itself scales well. 

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    I have used Checkmarx and also tried a demo of Veracode. 

    Checkmarx was far too heavy-handed and only handled security concerns for a VERY large price tag. 

    Veracode is very good, however, the price vs a free solution was a deciding factor in many cases. 

    How was the initial setup?

    It's very straightforward for a SaaS setup. 

    For a self-hosted setup, it is documented well and fairly easy. 

    What about the implementation team?

    We implemented in-house.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    SonarQube will incur hosting costs. There are SaaS options available at competitive prices too. 

    Self-hosting SonarQube is subject to its open-source licenses documented on their website. 

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We also evaluated Checkmarx, Veracode and open source solutions specific to each programming language. 

    What other advice do I have?

    Security analysis is a MUST. 

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Cyber Security Architect (USDA) at a government with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    Easily integrates with Jenkins and the information on the dashboard makes it easy for the developers to work on
    Pros and Cons
    • "The most valuable features are the dashboard reports and the ease of integrating it with Jenkins."
    • "Although it has Sonar built into it, it is still lacking. Customization features of identifying a particular attack still need to be worked on. To give you an example: if we want to scan and do a false positive analysis, those types of features are missing. If we want to rescan something from a particular point that is a feature that is also missing. It’s in our queue. That will hopefully save a lot of time."

    What is our primary use case?

    I work for a government agency and we use this tool. It is lightweight and very cost effective as compared to IBM AppScan, but I wouldn't say it's a very good tool for vulnerability assessment. The dashboard is neat and easy to operate and the information on the dashboard makes it easy for the developers to work on. You can have it automated and set up for you to have an automated process every time the code is checked in. 

    How has it helped my organization?

    It definitely helped our organization in hardening the software, the application itself. This is a part of our process now.

    What is most valuable?

    The most valuable features are the dashboard reports and the ease of integrating it with Jenkins. 

    What needs improvement?

    Although it has Sonar built into it, it is still lacking. Customization features of identifying a particular attack still need to be worked on. To give you an example: if we want to scan and do a false positive analysis, those types of features are missing. If we want to rescan something from a particular point that is a feature that is also missing. It’s in our queue. That will hopefully save a lot of time.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Our company has been using it for quite a while now.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    This solution is very stable.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It supports around 25 plus languages.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    The technical support is very good. When a product is good, we don't use them as regularly.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    No, not that I am aware of.

    How was the initial setup?

    Compared to other tools, the initial setup was straightforward. The deployment of the tool didn't take long at all. You need to take intrinsic care but setting up this tool is pretty easy. One can do it in a couple of hours. The dashboard is really neat and easy to operate. It gives a lot of information that makes it very easy for the developers. We haven't ever used more than one resource for operations.

    What about the implementation team?

    We have this implemented in CSAD pipeline as one of the tools for finding bugs in source code. This kind of tool has the capabilities of debugging abnormalities or finding abnormalities. We use it the same as any other static one level detail, and with a few other static tools like AppScan and Checkmarx.

    What other advice do I have?

    SonarQube is a very good tool. It is lightweight and very cost effective as compared to IBM AppScan. The dashboard is really neat and easy to operate. It gives a lot of information that makes it very easy for the developers. You can get it set up as an automated process every time the code is checked in. I would say, however, that it is not a vulnerability assessment tool. The dev and security team use this solution very closely. Fifteen to twenty people in total use it.

    I would rate this solution an eight out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)
    June 2025
    Learn what your peers think about SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube). Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
    860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    it_user958803 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Country Manager Senegal at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    Ensures a high quality of code, but would be improved with better support for security
    Pros and Cons
    • "SonarQube is good for checking and maintaining code quality."
    • "I would like to see more options for security, beyond the basics like SQL injection."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are working on a payment system, and we need it to be secure. We use this solution to analyze our code to ensure that it is clean, easy to understand and maintain, and secure.

    What is most valuable?

    SonarQube is good for checking and maintaining code quality.

    What needs improvement?

    It would be nice is SonarQube analyzed external libraries, in addition to our current code.

    I would like to see more options for security, beyond the basics like SQL injection.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Five years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The stability of this solution is quite good.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I think that scalability is fine. We have a large number of users at my company.

    The majority of the users for this solution are architects, but some technical managers use it too.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We use this solution in parallel with Checkmarx because both of them are good for different things. SonarQube is good for code quality, whereas Checkmarx is more for security.

    How was the initial setup?

    This initial setup of this solution is not basic, but it is not complex. If you have some experience in IT then you should be able to do it.

    We have this tool integrated with Jenkins.

    One or two days is enough for deployment. There is some configuration to do, which takes time, but it is not difficult to deploy.

    Three or four staff are enough for deployment and maintenance.

    What was our ROI?

    We have seen a return of investment, for sure. It is integrated with jobs on Jenkins and helps to provide stability. 

    Which other solutions did I evaluate?

    We did not evaluate other options before choosing this solution.

    What other advice do I have?

    This is a very nice product and I would recommend it. It is one of the best tools on the market to analyze your code.

    If more rules for security were added then we would not have to use Checkmarx or other tools. SonarQube is very nice, but just missing some security rules.

    I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer2393703 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Director of Software Engineering at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
    Real User
    Top 20
    Helps to monitor and manage violations but improvement is needed in integration with third-party platforms and scalability
    Pros and Cons
    • "The tool helps us to monitor and manage violations. It manages the bugs and security violations."
    • "SonarQube needs to improve its ease of use, integration with third-party platforms, and scalability."

    What is most valuable?

    The tool helps us to monitor and manage violations. It manages the bugs and security violations. 

    What needs improvement?

    SonarQube needs to improve its ease of use, integration with third-party platforms, and scalability. 

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using the product for five years. 

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    I rate the tool's stability a six out of ten. 

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    My company has 150 users for SonarQube. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The tool's deployment is complex. 

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    The tool's pricing is reasonable. 

    What other advice do I have?

    I rate the overall product a seven out of ten and would recommend it to others. 

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Hybrid Cloud
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Infosec Consultant at Anzen Technologies
    Consultant
    Top 10
    Has a user-friendly UI and can be used for secure code review
    Pros and Cons
    • "The solution's user interface is very user-friendly."
    • "It would be a great add-on if SonarQube could update its database for vulnerabilities or plugging parts."

    What is our primary use case?

    We used SonarQube for secure code review.

    What is most valuable?

    The solution's user interface is very user-friendly. The solution also provides good efficiency.

    What needs improvement?

    It would be a great add-on if SonarQube could update its database for vulnerabilities or plugging parts.

    For how long have I used the solution?


    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    I rate the solution a seven out of ten for stability.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I rate the solution a nine out of ten for scalability.

    How was the initial setup?

    On a scale from one to ten, where one is difficult and ten is easy, I rate the solution's initial setup an eight out of ten.

    What about the implementation team?

    It takes around one hour to deploy SonarQube.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    SonarQube is a fairly affordable solution for a larger scale if you have a specific role or specific department for secure code. We didn't pay for SonarQube. We used a free version of the solution because we had a small amount of code.

    What other advice do I have?

    We used SonarQube for one project. To improve code quality, we do vulnerability assessment. We have an R&D department, and we collaborate with other teams to do any work related to secure code.

    SonarQube simplified our code review process. Since we are new to secure code review, we mostly use freely available or impactful applications. That's why our R&D team suggested using SonarQube.

    We use SonarQube to find vulnerabilities in the application code. The code is related to the application used by our client. We find vulnerabilities in their application, and we suggest solutions.

    We have experienced challenges related to the client-side code. Sometimes, the server faces downtime, and our R&D team knows how to resolve such errors. It is easy to maintain the solution.

    Overall, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Axel Niering - PeerSpot reviewer
    Software Architect Sales Systems at SV Informatik GmbH
    Real User
    Top 10Leaderboard
    A simple solution that helps with the static quality checks of codes
    Pros and Cons
    • "The product is simple."
    • "The product's pricing could be lower."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use the tool to check our code. It's used for static quality checks. 

    What is most valuable?

    The product is simple. 

    What needs improvement?

    The product's pricing could be lower. 

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using the product for two years. 

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The tool is stable. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The product is easy to deploy and update. 

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    We use the tool's community edition. 

    What other advice do I have?

    I would rate the product an eight out of ten. 

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Team Lead at CNSI
    Real User
    Reliable and secure solution used for qualitative coding, including the SonarLint plugin
    Pros and Cons
    • "We use this solution for qualitative coding. We make use of the SonarLint plugin as well as the dashboard."
    • "We previously experienced issues with security but a segregated security violation has been implemented and the issues we experienced are being fixed."

    What is our primary use case?

    We use this solution for qualitative coding. We make use of the SonarLint plugin as well as the dashboard.

    What needs improvement?

    We previously experienced issues with security but a segregated security violation has been implemented and the issues we experienced are being fixed. We have also experienced duplications of rules within the system as well as code samples that are short of ten numbers. 

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    This is a stable solution.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    This is a scalable solution. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was straightforward. 

    What about the implementation team?

    Most of the deployment was done by me. Once a certain level of complexity was involved, a team was used to validate and deploy those parts of the solution. 

    What other advice do I have?

    I would recommend SonarQube to other users as it is a good solution and the security issues we experienced are being fixed. 
    I would rate this solution an eight out of ten. 

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    On-premises
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    reviewer1158774 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Senior Technical Architect at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
    Real User
    Effective vulnerability scanning, good support, and simple setup
    Pros and Cons
    • "SonarQube has a lot of value, it reviews the basic coding standards and security vulnerabilities of code that help to reduce issues."
    • "SonarQube can improve by scanning the internal library which currently it does not do. We are looking for a solution for this."

    What is our primary use case?

    We are using SonarQube for scanning our services for issues as part of our IT department.

    What is most valuable?

    SonarQube has a lot of value, it reviews the basic coding standards and security vulnerabilities of code that help to reduce issues. 

    What needs improvement?

    SonarQube can improve by scanning the internal library which currently it does not do. We are looking for a solution for this.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    I have been using SonarQube for approximately three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    SonarQube is a stable solution.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    I have found SonarQube to be stable. However, we have not tested it with more than one million lines of code.

    We have a server that SonarQube is running on and we have approximately 50 people using it.

    How are customer service and support?

    We have used technical support in the past but not recently.

    I would rate the support from SonarQube a four out of five.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    I have used Veracode previously.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward for SonarQube.

    What about the implementation team?

    We did the implementation in-house.

    The DevOps team handles the maintenance of SonarQube.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    We are using the Developer Edition and the cost is based on the amount of code that is being processed.

    What other advice do I have?

    If SonarQube meets the needs of your use case then I use it.

    I rate SonarQube an eight out of ten.

    Which deployment model are you using for this solution?

    Public Cloud

    If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?

    Amazon Web Services (AWS)
    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
    Updated: June 2025
    Buyer's Guide
    Download our free SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.