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Cortex Xpanse vs Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

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

Cortex Xpanse
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
5th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset ...
Ranking in Attack Surface Management (ASM)
3rd
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
23
Ranking in other categories
Vulnerability Management (8th), Patch Management (6th), Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management (CAASM) (3rd), Software Supply Chain Security (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Attack Surface Management (ASM) category, the mindshare of Cortex Xpanse is 4.2%, up from 4.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management is 4.3%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Attack Surface Management (ASM) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management4.3%
Cortex Xpanse4.2%
Other91.5%
Attack Surface Management (ASM)
 

Featured Reviews

Ali Mohamed - PeerSpot reviewer
Proactively manages security and identifies vulnerabilities with good alerts
We use Cortex Xpanse as a security control for attack surface management in our organization When there is an alert from Cortex Xpanse regarding a certificate or surface, it prompts us to take immediate action. It checks vulnerabilities periodically, ensuring they are addressed, which helps in…
Nicki Møller - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables automation and quick access to necessary information
One of the significant challenges Qualys is discovery, which I know Microsoft excels at. I can't recall how well Qualys performs this function; it seems I might be missing some details. However, if there's one key aspect to focus on, it's discovery—the ability to identify assets that you are not aware of, even when you can see they are present. Understanding what those assets are is crucial. With Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management, it was very difficult to extract detections from the system. The features within Qualys are limited to what they have developed. Sometimes a complete overview is needed to push to a Power BI dashboard, Splunk, ServiceNow, or other platforms. The export process is incredibly challenging. We needed a developer to write a hundred-line Python script that would loop over certain assets due to export limitations. Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management could improve its integration capabilities. While it generates substantial data, correlating it with other data sources can be challenging. The export process is difficult, and pre-built integrations with other tools could be enhanced for better process implementation.

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 aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"As an attack surface manager, I highly recommend Cortex Xpanse, especially if there are many services exposed publicly on the internet."
"The most valuable features of the solution are its firewall and antivirus."
"Cortex Xpanse has an easy-to-use user interface."
"Cortex Xpanse is a strong solution for attack surface management, including digital brand protection and continuous monitoring."
"The most valuable aspect is its ability to catch trojans and malware."
"When there is an alert from Cortex Xpanse regarding a certificate or surface, it prompts us to take immediate action."
"My favourite feature of Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management is its ability to target missing software."
"I appreciate the feature that simplifies cloud security posture, offering insights into vulnerabilities, and reducing the complexity of managing the security program."
"We have a diverse organization with a robust infrastructure of more than 300,000 assets. By creating unauthorized lists and rules in the Qualys CSAM module, I can block certain software from being used in the organization."
"I would rate the Qualys CSAM a ten out of ten for its overall performance."
"I would rate Qualys CSAM a ten out of ten."
"The scanning results are pretty good, and some insights are quite valuable."
"Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management has helped to improve the organization's security posture significantly."
"It provides most of the information needed regarding the assets, including the operating system and whether the assets are network devices or servers."
 

Cons

"Some improvements are needed in the user interface. It may require more enhancements."
"There is an issue with the old versions of Cortex, and so when we have an older one with Windows or any OS, we have a problem with its connectivity with the cloud."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"Cortex Xpanse should offer better customization and configuration options on its dashboard."
"It's challenging to confirm the absolute coverage and penetration of Cortex Xpanse into the Dark Web. The solution lacks comprehensive intelligence on adversaries and risks, which other competitors might provide."
"Cortex Xpanse needs to add dark-web scanning."
"Some improvements are needed in the user interface."
"The Qualys CAPS service requires further exploration and improvement, particularly in its handling of protocols and reactivity with MAC and IP addresses for CAP agents."
"We have had challenges modifying the agent configuration. Particularly, when we want to change the tenant that the agent is pointing to, we have had difficulties making that reliable and working properly."
"The main aspect that needs improvement is the user interface, which should be more intuitive."
"Further research and development are needed to enhance integration with other cloud agents and products, particularly improving communication with external products and vendors."
"With Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management, it was very difficult to extract detections from the system."
"The deployment is somewhat complicated and could be made more user-friendly for most users."
"Currently, whenever the agent is running, it consumes over ten percent of my CPU, indicating that CPU consumption is another area Qualys needs to address."
"The Qualys CAPS service requires further exploration and improvement, particularly in its handling of protocols and reactivity with MAC and IP addresses for CAP agents."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool's cost is too high."
"Cortex Xpanse is cheaper than other solutions."
"The pricing for Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management is reasonable, with an annual subscription costing around $1,000 per year or a monthly subscription starting at approximately $72 per month, depending on the specific package and features included."
"It is cost-effective because, in a single tool, we are getting everything. All the solutions come in a single license or price."
"The pricing is fair. I would love to see the price come down a little bit, but we do get a lot of value out of it. We are squeezing every ounce of value we can out of the tool."
"Qualys is competitively priced for its features. Its pricing is suitable for large organizations with more than 4,000 assets, but for smaller organizations with few assets, such as banks, the costs might be high. They should come up with packages that are suitable for small organizations."
"The cost for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management is high."
"Qualys offers excellent value for money."
"The pricing is market-competitive."
"The Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management pricing is well-aligned with our usage."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise15
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cortex Xpanse?
Cortex Xpanse has an easy-to-use user interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cortex Xpanse?
Cortex Xpanse is a bit expensive compared to other market solutions like FortyRicoh and RiskIQ, making it more suitable for enterprise companies.
What needs improvement with Cortex Xpanse?
It's challenging to confirm the absolute coverage and penetration of Cortex Xpanse into the Dark Web. The solution lacks comprehensive intelligence on adversaries and risks, which other competitors...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
The pricing is reasonable relative to the features provided, as it collects all module data and operates as a main, centralized inventory, making it a cost-effective solution.
What needs improvement with Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management helps us prioritize assets according to operating system, kernel version, installed software, and current version information. The ASM assists with attack surf...
What is your primary use case for Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management?
We are using Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management for daily activities such as identifying new assets through network scanning and agent-based scanning for newly provisioned assets. When any new a...
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Cortex Xpanse vs. Qualys CyberSecurity Asset Management and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
867,445 professionals have used our research since 2012.