Aqua Cloud Security Platform vs Orca Security comparison

Aqua Security and Orca Security are both solutions in the Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) category. Aqua Security is ranked #18 with an average rating of 7.0, while Orca Security is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.4. Aqua Security holds a 3.0% mindshare in CNAP, compared to Orca Security’s 5.8% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Aqua Security users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Orca Security users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

Aqua Cloud Security Platform and Orca Security compete in the cloud security market. Users are happier with Orca Security's performance and ROI, while Aqua Cloud Security Platform is preferred for its comprehensive features and customer support.

Features: Aqua Cloud Security Platform is valued for its extensive coverage, integration capabilities, and robust customer support. Orca Security stands out with its automatic asset discovery, risk prioritization, and ease of use.

Room for Improvement: Aqua Cloud Security Platform users highlight the need for improved automation, better visualization tools, and faster updates. Orca Security users suggest enhancements in scalability, customization options, and additional reporting features.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Aqua Cloud Security Platform is praised for its seamless deployment and responsive customer support. Orca Security is also easy to deploy but slightly lags in customer support availability.

Pricing and ROI: Aqua Cloud Security Platform offers competitive pricing with a strong focus on ROI. Orca Security, though higher in cost, is justified by users due to its superior features and returns on investment.

To learn more, read our detailed Aqua Cloud Security Platform vs. Orca Security Report (Updated: May 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Aqua Cloud Security Platform vs. Orca Security

May 2026

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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 TotalCloud

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) category, the mindshare of Qualys TotalCloud is 2.0%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Aqua Cloud Security Platform is 3.0%, down from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Orca Security is 5.8%, down from 7.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Orca Security	5.8%
Qualys TotalCloud	2.0%
Aqua Cloud Security Platform	3.0%
Other	89.2%

Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP)

Featured Reviews

Robert Orłowski

IT Security Expert at Alior Bank S.A.

Unified risk scoring has improved our cloud visibility and simplifies remediation priorities

Qualys TotalCloud provides unified vulnerability and threat assessment across both IAS and SaaS. This solution provides a single prioritized view of risk, which helps reduce the work I would have to do. We are no longer based on CVSS; we are based on Qualys risk scoring, which is based on CVSS plus internal findings made by Qualys, and then assigns its own score. The TruRisk insight feature has found a small number of assets with high vulnerability scores, though I am cautious since some information is classified. Qualys TotalCloud has positively impacted our bank's performance, and we have definitely seen benefits after implementing this solution.

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Samir-Paul

Security Paractiner at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Secures cloud workloads from build to runtime and has needed simpler setup and alert tuning

Regarding how Aqua Cloud Security Platform can be improved, the first area is the complex initial setup. Deployment and configuration can be complex, especially in large environments that require skilled resources. For Kubernetes environments, initial onboarding and policy setup takes time. Compared to Wiz onboarding, it is not very straightforward, as I have also worked with Wiz. The UI is powerful but not very simple for new users, as navigation and dashboard can be overwhelming. Alert noise and tuning are required because Aqua generates a large number of initial alerts that need tuning to reduce false positives. Additionally, pricing can be high depending on workload scale, especially for large Kubernetes and multi-cloud environments. For improvements to Aqua Cloud Security Platform, I think better integration with SOAR and XDR platforms, more AI-driven prioritization, and providing simpler out-of-the-box policies would be beneficial.

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reviewer2799597

Soc Analyst at a tech consulting company with 11-50 employees

Agentless cloud security has improved attack path visibility but still needs stronger real-time blocking

Yes, as per my experience, it has been very helpful. In our organization, we did not find any major or priority one kind of alerts or risks because we had a very good infrastructure structure and cybersecurity architecture built in our organization. Orca Security helped us find what vulnerabilities or gaps existed which we could improve within our architecture. It helped us in such a way that we used to close the open ports and only allowed internal IPs for necessity. For staging environments and for prod we had DOS protection. If network traffic showed that anybody was trying to flood our systems, we would only accept all and our client-related IPs or an approved list of vendor lists we would have. We would get to know where the gaps are and where the improvements we could make. Being an analyst class engineer, I could use my brain in those areas and it was very helpful to have Orca Security in my arsenal.

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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 is the consolidated information that it provides from various platforms."

"TotalCloud offers a comprehensive suite of features, including EDR, XDR, and TrueRisk, providing a centralized platform for managing vulnerabilities and security risks."

"Its dashboards are brilliant. It provides in-depth insights."

"The dashboards are particularly valuable as they offer a comprehensive view of the environment, highlighting any misconfigurations."

"I highly recommend Qualys TotalCloud to other users."

"CSPM is currently the most used feature, and we are enjoying the new feature, FlexScan, which is valuable for Internet-facing VMs."

"I found the initial setup user-friendly."

"TotalCloud's best feature is the integration of cloud accounts. It helps with the risk and security posture management of our cloud infrastructure."

More Qualys TotalCloud pros

"The container security element of this product has been very valuable to our organization."

"Aqua Security allowed us to gain visibility into the vulnerabilities that were present in the container images, that were being rolled out, the amount of risk that we were introducing to the platform, and provided us a look into the container environment by introducing access control mechanisms. In addition, when it came to runtime-level policies, we could restrict container access to resources in our environment, such as network-level or other application-level access."

"The main reasons we chose Aqua Security were the visibility it provided into the container platform and the great customer service."

"We use Aqua Security for the container security features."

"The most helpful feature of Aqua Security is Drift Prevention, which is a feature that allows images to be immutable, and one of the main reasons we went with Aqua Security is because it provides strong protection when it comes to runtime security."

"The most valuable feature is the on-demand patching, as there are times when vulnerabilities don't have available fixes, and Aqua Security allows it to pass the vulnerability in real-time while the fix is being developed."

"From what I understand, the initial setup is simple."

"The most helpful feature of Aqua Security is Drift Prevention, which is a feature that allows images to be immutable. In addition, one of the main reasons we went with Aqua Security is because it provides strong protection when it comes to runtime security."

More Aqua Cloud Security Platform pros

"The initial setup is very easy."

"I recommend Orca Security to others looking for a cloud security solution due to its seamless integration and side-scanning technology that does not hamper cloud asset performance."

"Once our organization is configured, any cloud account under that organization is automatically detected in Orca Security, along with all the assets associated with it."

"Orca Security typically delivers three major positive changes, in my opinion: a faster understanding of risks in cloud environments, better prioritization, and less noise."

"The vulnerability management does not require network scanning or agent technology, so I don't need to modify any of my products in order to do vulnerability assessments."

"With the way it works, having visibility across the org is hands down the biggest benefit for us."

"If I consider the analogy of the house, I expected to be able to see under the floor, what I did not expect was to be able to see behind all of the walls and through the ceiling and through the roof and into the basement, and everywhere."

"Orca Security is the best one for me because it delivers all the things that I need and more."

More Orca Security pros

Cons

"The system is not 100% secure yet, so proactive threat hunting could be enhanced to be more proactive than the current system."

"The vulnerability part is good, but the policy compliance module needs improvement because it involves a lot of manual work. Specifically, the remediation part of the controls requires enhancements."

"We would like to see Windows-based sensors available in Qualys, as this would make the platform more versatile and support a broader range of environments."

"The patching process with Qualys Patch Management, which is part of TotalCloud, does not cover installing certain prerequisites on the servers or workstations. This shortcoming means we must rely on SCCM when any service stack updates or additional prerequisites are needed."

"The downside is only in container security, but it has not been a long time since they introduced these models."

"An area for improvement would be to focus on risks related to AI, such as large language models and potential data leakage."

"Areas that need improvement in every solution include the remediation part. The remediation steps should be simple enough for everyone to understand."

"Their customer support needs improvement."

More Qualys TotalCloud cons

"Aqua Security could provide more open documentation so that their learning resources can be more easily accessed and searched through online. Right now, a lot of the documentation is closed and not available to the public."

"It's a bit hard to use the user roles. That was a bit confusing."

"I would like Aqua Security to look into the development of a web security portal."

"I would like Aqua Security to look into is the development of a web security portal."

"Aqua Security lacks a lot in reporting. It provides all the open issues, but no actionable solution is provided."

"In the next release, Aqua Security should add the ability to automatically send reports to customers."

"It's a bit hard to use the user roles. That was a bit confusing."

"The user interface could be improved, especially in terms of organization and clarity."

More Aqua Cloud Security Platform cons

"There were a couple of times when Orca was down when I was trying to access it. I work strange hours because all of my team is in the UK right now. It was 2 a.m. on a Saturday and I was trying to log in but it wasn't working. But relative to my other security tools, Orca is definitely the most stable that I've seen."

"In the future, I'd like to see Orca work better with third-party vendors. Specifically, being able to provide sanitized results from third parties."

"There were a couple of times when Orca was down when I was trying to access it."

"They can expand a little bit in anti-malware detection. While we have pretty good confidence that it's going to detect some of the static malware, some of the detections are heuristics. There could be a growth in the library from where they're pulling their information, but we don't get a lot of those alerts based on the design of our products. In general, that might be an area that needs to be filled since they offer it as a service within it."

"I think Orca could give me more alerts. It could give me a dashboard with all the specific types of alerts I want to see for the day. It should just be one click."

"The interface can be a bit cranky and sometimes takes a lot of time to load."

"The main drawback in an agentless approach is that if the solution detects a virus or malware in the environment, we need to manually remove it."

"I think Orca could give me more alerts. It could give me a dashboard with all the specific types of alerts I want to see for the day."

More Orca Security cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Qualys TotalCloud is cost-efficient and was selected for its value compared to other products."

"While Qualys TotalCloud's pricing is currently acceptable, it is becoming increasingly expensive and may soon be considered overpriced."

"Qualys TotalCloud offers competitive pricing given its comprehensive suite of features, including integration, assessment, remediation, and detection capabilities, all within a single platform."

"TotalCloud's price is about right where I would expect it to be."

"The pricing is comparable. It is built into our other product, so I cannot piecemeal it. It is a part of our subscription."

"It isn't cheap, but it's reasonable. It helps us to manage things with very few resources."

"As a middle management member, I do not have direct pricing knowledge, but based on the knowledge from our meetings, its pricing is competitive."

"The cost is high, but it meets our organizational needs."

More Qualys TotalCloud pricing and cost advice

"Dealing with licensing costs isn't my responsibility, but I know that the licenses don't depend on the number of users, but instead are priced according to your workload."

"They were reasonable with their pricing. They were pretty down-to-earth about the way they pitched their product and the way they tried to close the deal. They were one of the rare companies that approached the whole valuation in a way that made sense for our company, for our needs, and for their own requirements as well... They will accommodate your needs if they are able to understand them and they're stated clearly."

"The pricing of this solution could be improved."

"Aqua Security is not cheap, and it's not very expensive, such as Splunk, they are in the middle."

"It comes at a reasonable cost."

"Orca Security is cheaper compared to other solutions in the same space."

"It is the cost of the visibility that you get. When you really sit down and think about what do you need to do to secure an environment with a low impact on the business, and you take a look out into the world, I think this tool is well justified around cost."

"The pricing depends on how many assets you have running in your cloud and how many environments you have. If you have a dev environment, test environment, and a production environment then it's really important that you have coverage for all of them."

"Orca is very competitive when compared to the alternatives and is not the most expensive in the market, that's for sure."

"The price is a bit expensive for smaller organizations."

"Orca Security charges are based on cloud workloads. So, it's based on workloads. If we look at one feature, it might be expensive."

"The most expensive solution is Palo Alto. They claim to be very robust. The next most expensive is Wiz, followed by Orca and all the rest."

"I think their pricing model is aligned with market demand. Of course, Orca could probably better align their pricing model with the needs of smaller businesses as well as some larger-scale enterprises with millions of assets. But in all fairness, I think the Orca sales team has been accommodating and ensured that we're happy with the pricing."

More Orca Security pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

10%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Financial Services Firm

21%

Government

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	28

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	11

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	8
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys TotalCloud?

The price is very expensive, actually.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Qualys TotalCloud?

Areas that need improvement in every solution include the remediation part. The remediation steps should be simple en...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Qualys TotalCloud?

Our use case involves the assets that we have under cloud, the assets exposed to the internet, and the internal appli...

See all answers

What do you think of Aqua Security vs Prisma Cloud?

Aqua Security is easy to use and very manageable. Its main focus is on Kubernetes and Docker. Security is a very valu...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Orca Security?

In two implementation projects that I participated in, the customers reported difficulty with the options for generat...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Orca Security?

When discussing the main use case for Orca Security, I am referring to implementations for my clients. I participate ...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Orca Security?

Orca Security typically delivers three major positive changes, in my opinion: a faster understanding of risks in clou...

See all answers

Comparisons

Wiz vs Qualys TotalCloud

Compared 12% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Qualys TotalCloud

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Qualys TotalCloud

Compared 6% of the time

Nucleus Security vs Qualys TotalCloud

Compared 5% of the time

Uptycs vs Qualys TotalCloud

Compared 2% of the time

More Qualys TotalCloud Competitors

Sysdig Secure vs Aqua Cloud Security Platform

Compared 9% of the time

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Aqua Cloud Security Platform

Compared 7% of the time

Wiz vs Aqua Cloud Security Platform

Compared 4% of the time

TrendAI Deep Security vs Aqua Cloud Security Platform

Compared 4% of the time

Snyk vs Aqua Cloud Security Platform

Compared 4% of the time

More Aqua Cloud Security Platform Competitors

Wiz vs Orca Security

Compared 10% of the time

Upwind vs Orca Security

Compared 5% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Orca Security

Compared 4% of the time

Prisma Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Orca Security

Compared 4% of the time

Darktrace vs Orca Security

Compared 3% of the time

More Orca Security Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Qualys TotalCloud

May 2026

Download Qualys TotalCloud product report

Buyer's Guide

Aqua Cloud Security Platform

May 2026

Download Aqua Cloud Security Platform product report

Buyer's Guide

Orca Security

May 2026

Download Orca Security product report

Also Known As

Qualys TotalCloud with FlexScan

Aqua Security Platform, CloudSploit, Argon

No data available

Overview

Qualys TotalCloud enhances security posture across cloud environments with continuous monitoring, vulnerability management, and risk visualization, ensuring efficient threat assessment and automated remediation for improved cyber risk reduction.

Qualys TotalCloud offers a robust suite of security tools essential for organizations managing multi-cloud infrastructures. By integrating cloud accounts and automating workflows, it supports AWS, Azure, and GCP, offering comprehensive vulnerability management and zero-day detection. The platform's user-friendly design, combined with its extensive risk management and unified threat assessment capabilities, enables organizations to prioritize and remediate vulnerabilities effectively. TruRisk Insights provides clear insights on cyber risks, while the automation options streamline patch management and scanning processes. API integration across IaaS and SaaS environments further enhances resource allocation efficiency and saves time, addressing misconfigurations across cloud environments.

What are the most important features of Qualys TotalCloud?

Accurate Vulnerability Reports: Delivers precise and actionable insights for risk mitigation.
Zero-Day Detection: Identifies and addresses zero-day vulnerabilities proactively.
Unified Threat Assessment: Offers comprehensive evaluation of threats across the environment.
Extensive Risk Management: Manages risks effectively with advanced insights and prioritization.
Continuous Monitoring: Provides non-stop surveillance for vulnerabilities and threats.
Cloud-Native Automation: Streamlines processes and reduces manual efforts using automation.
FlexScan for Internet-Facing VMs: Scans external VMs efficiently to detect vulnerabilities.
Dashboard Risk Visualization: Clear visualization helps prioritize vulnerabilities.

What benefits and ROI should users look for?

Improved Security Posture: Enhances threat detection and response across clouds.
Time Savings: Automation reduces time spent on manual vulnerability management.
Resource Efficiency: Better allocation of resources through streamlined workflows.
Enhanced Risk Prioritization: Focus on critical vulnerabilities for effective mitigation.
Integrated Cloud Accounts: Facilitates seamless cloud management and security.

Qualys TotalCloud is deployed in sectors needing rigorous vulnerability management, such as finance and healthcare. Companies utilize it to secure multi-cloud environments like AWS, Azure, and GCP, focus on compliance, and integrate security into CI/CD pipelines to detect and remedy threats pre-deployment.

Qualys

Aqua Cloud Security Platform supports container environments with strong features such as Docker and Kubernetes integration, efficient vulnerability management, and seamless runtime protection, making it a key choice for cloud and container security.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform focuses on comprehensive container and cloud security enhancements. It offers robust tools for Docker and Kubernetes, efficient vulnerability management, and on-demand patching. The platform is praised for its Runtime Protection, Drift Prevention, and robust documentation, promoting seamless integration with existing platforms. Image scanning, Digital Threat Analysis, and sandboxing services accentuate security measures while integration with Docker Hub ensures ease of use. Scalable runtime policies, image assurance, and dynamic threat analysis simplify security tasks. Challenges remain in developing web security portals and greater standard server integration. Enhancing reporting, simplifying training, and improving log forwarding are key goals. Resource consumption, clearer roles, automation, and code analysis are vital future considerations.

What are the most important features of Aqua Cloud Security Platform?

Docker and Kubernetes Support: Ensures container security and streamlined operations.
Vulnerability Management: Efficient scanning and on-demand patching.
Strong Runtime Protection: Implements Drift Prevention and scalable policies.
Seamless Integration: Works with existing platforms for optimal performance.
Image Assurance and Threat Analysis: Provides thorough security checks and dynamic analysis.

What benefits or ROI can users expect?

Simplified Container Security: Streamlines container and cloud tasks for enhanced protection.
Enhanced Image Assessment: Detects configurations and risks efficiently.
Greater Data Protection: Ensures application visibility and security in deployments.
Flexible Licensing Models: Offers potential for reconsideration and optimization.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform is leveraged in industries focusing on container security, vulnerability scanning, and securing Kubernetes configurations within CI/CD pipelines. It is employed for image assessments and network security, demonstrating its efficacy in cloud applications and workload protection. Efficiently identifying misconfigurations and risks in cloud environments, it provides scanning for public clouds and docker environments, emphasizing data protection and application visibility tailored to customer-specific deployments.

Aqua Security

Orca Security provides comprehensive security management with agentless visibility and SideScanning technology, ensuring efficient threat detection without performance impact.

Orca Security offers agentless visibility across multi-cloud environments, streamlining security management with features like SideScanning technology and centralized security tools. It focuses on automation, vulnerability management, and compliance checks, enhancing a company's security posture with real-time alerts and integrated threat detection. Its intuitive interface prioritizes critical issues, making it suitable for managing DevSecOps processes efficiently.

What are the key features of Orca Security?

Agentless Visibility: Gain comprehensive insights into cloud environments without deploying agents.
SideScanning Technology: Detect threats and vulnerabilities efficiently across platforms.
Comprehensive Security Management: Centralizes security across AWS, GCP, and Azure with minimal setup effort.
CIEM Feature: Enhances security posture with integrated identity and access management.
Real-Time Alerts: Provide immediate awareness of security threats and vulnerabilities.
Automation and Compliance: Streamline processes with automated vulnerability management and compliance checks.

What benefits and ROI should companies look for in Orca Security?

Centralized Management: Simplifies security operations by consolidating tools across cloud environments.
Improved Security Posture: Reduces alerts and manages threats effectively with detailed insights.
Efficient Threat Detection: Enhances response capabilities with integrated threat detection and real-time alerts.
Easy Deployment and Setup: Facilitates quick implementation without complex configurations.
Enhanced Integration: Supports seamless integration with existing security frameworks and processes.

Companies in industries such as finance, healthcare, and technology leverage Orca Security for cloud security posture management, ensuring compliance with standards and securing applications and databases. Its agentless approach provides comprehensive visibility across AWS, GCP, and Azure, enhancing risk assessment and vulnerability management without impacting asset performance.

Orca Security

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

HPE Salesforce Telstra Ellie Mae Cathay Pacific HomeAway

BeyondTrust, Postman, Digital Turbine, Solarisbank, Lemonade, C6 Bank, Docebo, Vercel, and Vivino

Buyer's Guide

Aqua Cloud Security Platform vs. Orca Security

May 2026

Free Report: Aqua Cloud Security Platform vs. Orca Security

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