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Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs Google Cloud Security Command Center comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 11, 2026

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
Sponsored
Ranking in Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
8th
Ranking in Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP)
6th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (11th), Container Security (11th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (7th), SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) (1st)
Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto N...
Ranking in Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
16th
Ranking in Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP)
12th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (30th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (13th), Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) (11th), Software Supply Chain Security (8th), Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM) (7th), Application Security Posture Management (ASPM) (7th), Cloud Detection and Response (CDR) (5th)
Google Cloud Security Comma...
Ranking in Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM)
26th
Ranking in Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP)
20th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.0
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) category, the mindshare of Qualys TotalCloud is 2.1%, up from 1.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks is 2.7%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Google Cloud Security Command Center is 1.7%, down from 2.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Qualys TotalCloud2.1%
Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks2.7%
Google Cloud Security Command Center1.7%
Other93.5%
Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP)
 

Featured Reviews

RO
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.
SJ
Technical Solutions Architect at IBM
Cloud security has improved as AI-driven runtime protection detects threats and reduces incidents
In my opinion, Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks could be improved or enhanced in various ways. I don't have an idea about that yet because for that you actually need to use two or three different other tools to make a basic comparison. If you ask me how good the tool is, I would fairly rate it quite high. The tool is very popular, and customers can already see that it is one of the cloud leaders in the security space. The platform had a very good feature which provides documentation links about how to use a specific feature on the UI. It takes you to the proper documentation page where it suggests what to do and tells you about the steps that need to be done for a resource deployment. My thoughts about improving the product which I believe could greatly aid vendors is that it used to be a very user-friendly tool, but now they have incorporated everything under one umbrella. It has XDR, XSOAR, and Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks. Before, we used to have separate modules and separate environments for each of these capabilities or features. Right now, it is a little complex and users would take their own time to know the tool better. This is something that would have been way better, but I would say there would be different opinions on this. Talking about user-friendliness, it has decreased now.
RaviUpadhyay - PeerSpot reviewer
Security Consultant at HCLSoftware
Security posture has improved with automated insights but reporting and integrations still need work
The best feature of Google Cloud Security Command Center is that it is flexible to integrate with several third-party tools or services, and it is more customized. For example, it is already giving a misconfiguration and the vulnerability, and if somebody wants to do some in-depth analysis for patterns such as metrics, they can export the continuous log on the spot with that tool. From an integration point of view, I would say it is more customized with different tools. The asset discovery feature of Google Cloud Security Command Center enhances my security strategy because, nowadays, data sensitivity and data privacy are very important, and using some DLP utility, I can classify and set up rules to generate reports based on the classification in their asset discovery. This can also include data classification on Google storage buckets, and overall, Google Cloud Security Command Center has that information, which can be used for various analyses or alerts. It is very important for compliance assessment because every business is global and connects with different geographical locations, meaning each country has its own regulatory systems and internal compliance policies. Google Cloud Security Command Center has the feature to set up security postures based on which resources or assets inside Google Cloud can be marked as compliant or non-compliant, giving a risk score for immediate reporting to higher management or CISO, making it very helpful in terms of security, risk, and compliance.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"TotalCloud has been excellent in providing us with immediate access to all the products and features we need, such as CSPM, TruRisk Insights, and compliance reports, including CIS and HIPAA."
"TotalCloud offers a comprehensive suite of features, including EDR, XDR, and TrueRisk, providing a centralized platform for managing vulnerabilities and security risks."
"Qualys TotalCloud is an excellent platform, and the beauty of the platform is that we can get all the vulnerabilities, see all the reports in a single dashboard, view them segregated, and easily learn about critical, high, and medium findings with appropriately provided remediation steps."
"TotalCloud's best feature is the integration of cloud accounts. It helps with the risk and security posture management of our cloud infrastructure."
"Qualys TotalCloud has helped us view our risk structure, vulnerabilities, and security posture."
"One of the most valuable features of Qualys TotalCloud is FlexScan, which is specifically for internet-facing VMs. We found this feature to be very useful. It was a key differentiator for us."
"The best feature would be the ability to create policies. It is easy to control and update policies as required."
"The dashboards are particularly valuable as they offer a comprehensive view of the environment, highlighting any misconfigurations."
"Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks' cloud runtime security in terms of stopping attacks in real time is impressive."
"Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks has impacted our organization positively by keeping our machines secure and our team using the dashboard to find issues quickly."
"From a technical standpoint or pricing, Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks is a stronger solution in the market at the moment compared to other products from ConnectWise or Symantec."
"The most beneficial aspect of Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks and Palo Alto in general is that there is a single platform for all cloud providers for securitization."
"Overall, Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks is a technically strong product, and I rate it ten out of ten."
"The AI and automation features in detecting and responding to high-risk threats are impressive; it's one of the best tools regarding AI technology and unifies security in one platform in real-time, improving vulnerability analysis, incident response, and compliance reporting."
"I have seen several benefits from using Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks: It was easy to use and easy to migrate from the IBM platform."
"I have absolutely seen improvements in our incident close rates, with mean time to detect and respond reduced significantly, sometimes by at least forty to fifty percent."
"Most people use the threat detection dashboard."
"I would definitely recommend Google Cloud Security Command Center to others."
"It simplifies compliance efforts."
"The compliance reporting feature helped us maintain a baseline of compliance within the information security policies."
 

Cons

"I would appreciate additional integration options to connect Qualys TotalCloud with our other vulnerability management tools."
"The support process is inefficient due to the excessive number of replies required when submitting tickets."
"There is room for improvement in vulnerability scanning, particularly for PaaS environments. Currently, Qualys does not have full access to these instances, which limits its effectiveness."
"Qualys TotalCloud needs to enhance its scanning capabilities in the IP domain, as it currently lacks the functionality to resolve IPs to their corresponding domain names."
"I think Qualys TotalCloud needs to improve its handling of zero-day vulnerabilities and supply chain management because modern ransomware attacks not only target prime critical infrastructures but also the supply chain system."
"There is a lack of data segregation according to criticality or inventory."
"The downside is only in container security, but it has not been a long time since they introduced these models."
"In my opinion, what can be improved in Qualys TotalCloud includes pricing and container scanning."
"The pricing is high, making ROI challenging to justify, especially during transitions between solutions."
"Overall, I rate Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks as an eight out of ten. I think that it could improve on price, as I know that the Google solution has the best price, and this is one of the conditions."
"My thoughts about improving the product which I believe could greatly aid vendors is that it used to be a very user-friendly tool, but now they have incorporated everything under one umbrella."
"Some aspects of the GUI can be confusing and make it difficult for me to find certain options or navigate where needed."
"From the commercial perspective, we have some limitations because Palo Alto has a minimum number of users of endpoints set at 200, which is quite high for the Italian market."
"As per my experience with Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks, the UI could be simpler."
"Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks is not the cheapest solution in the market, but I know that is the best solution for SOC and Cloud once have all tools to connect cloud issues with SOC procedures, because we are partners with T-Systems."
"In my opinion, Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks can be improved by addressing forensic information collection and storage, although I cannot suggest specific things right now, based on what customers might need."
"There is definitely room for improvement in Google Cloud Security Command Center. While the functionality is very native, compared to third-party tools that offer a variety of features for easy integrations and custom KPIs, Google Cloud Security Command Center lacks some of these functionalities, requiring complex workarounds for custom reporting, and given that customers often use hybrid environments, having a broader perspective is necessary for integration."
"The AI capabilities have been heavily promoted, but I haven't seen a significant impact."
"Visibility can be improved along with automation."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Qualys TotalCloud offers competitive pricing given its comprehensive suite of features, including integration, assessment, remediation, and detection capabilities, all within a single platform."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers cost-effective licensing flexibility."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers good pricing that is affordable and competitive with the market. Our partnership also provides us with additional benefits."
"Its price seems higher compared to other tools, but it is worth it. If they could adjust the pricing and make it comparable with other tools, that would be great."
"The pricing for TotalCloud is attractive and competitive in the market. Given the features, especially the dashboard, I have no concerns regarding pricing."
"Qualys TotalCloud is expensive."
"TotalCloud's price is about right where I would expect it to be."
"The cost is high, but it meets our organizational needs."
Information not available
"Initially, it used to be relatively expensive, starting at around four or five hundred dollars."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
17%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Construction Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
Manufacturing Company
17%
Construction Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Computer Software Company
13%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Hospitality Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise29
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise4
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Qualys TotalCloud?
Areas that need improvement in every solution include the remediation part. The remediation steps should be simple en...
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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks?
I am not fully aware of the pricing and licensing of Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks. The pricing is also based on...
What needs improvement with Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks?
In my opinion, Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks could be improved or enhanced in various ways. I don't have an idea...
What is your primary use case for Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks?
The usual use cases for Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks that I have been working with mostly are as simple as dete...
What is your primary use case for Google Cloud Security Command Center?
I am primarily working with Google Cloud Security Command Center, which is their CSPM, and also with the next-generat...
What advice do you have for others considering Google Cloud Security Command Center?
I rate Google Cloud Security Command Center a seven and a half out of ten. While it is a ten from a security perspect...
 

Also Known As

Qualys TotalCloud with FlexScan
No data available
No data available
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Cortex Cloud by Palo Alto Networks vs. Google Cloud Security Command Center and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,894 professionals have used our research since 2012.