HCL AppScan vs Kiuwan comparison

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HCL AppScan

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 8, 2024

HCL AppScan and Kiuwan compete in the application security category. Users indicate Kiuwan may have the upper hand due to its advanced features despite higher pricing.

Features: HCL AppScan offers extensive security testing capabilities, competitive pricing, and comprehensive support. Kiuwan provides advanced analysis features across coding languages, easy integration with workflows, and a robust feature set.

Room for Improvement: HCL AppScan could improve its integration options, loading speeds, and customization capabilities. Kiuwan needs better customization, enhanced reporting functionalities, and broader integration options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: HCL AppScan is noted for straightforward deployment, valuable support during setup, and reliable customer service. Kiuwan presents a more complex deployment but offers responsive service and thorough technical guidance.

Pricing and ROI: HCL AppScan is praised for cost-effectiveness and strong ROI, balancing cost with functional depth. Kiuwan, despite being more costly, provides strong ROI with its advanced features and long-term value satisfaction.

To learn more, read our detailed HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan Report (Updated: April 2026).

HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan

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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

HCL AppScan

Ranking in Application Security Tools

19th

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

16th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

5.9

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (6th)

Kiuwan

Ranking in Application Security Tools

31st

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

27th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 2.4%, down from 2.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Kiuwan is 1.2%, up from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Application Security Tools Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
HCL AppScan	2.4%
Kiuwan	1.2%
Other	96.4%

Application Security Tools

Featured Reviews

Ravi Khanchandani

Founder Director at Techsa Services

Has improved identification of encryption and authentication issues across cloud and on-prem applications

During the learning curve of onboarding HCL AppScan, we learned that HCL has altered the portfolio and now offers HCL AppScan 360, which has a much better look and feel with an improved user interface. However, there is one feature called SCA, which stands for Software Composition Analysis, that could be improved. When I'm doing an application scan, HCL AppScan has the ability to generate information about what components are in use. For example, if I'm scanning a web application, it shows me the various components being used. It tells me whether I have Java libraries, .NET frameworks, or other log management libraries such as Log4j, and what versions of those specific components are present. I would like to see more detailed reports from the tool. Currently, you can find out the components belonging to a specific software, but if detailed reporting became available, you would be in a better position to identify vulnerabilities. For instance, I could identify that I had the Log4j vulnerability and know that I need to fix my application accordingly. If they add the features I'm describing, I would consider giving them a higher rating. However, I've only been experienced with the product for three months.

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Mustufa Bhavnagarwala

CyberRisk Solution Advisor at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees

Though a stable tool, the UI needs improvement

Kiuwan can improve its UI a little more. The user experience can be made better. Kiuwan offers a user interface that is similar to the one offered by Windows 7 or Windows 98, which I saw when I ran the tool and tried to scan the repository to find the security issues. The product's UI has certain shortcomings, where improvements are required.

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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

"We use it as a security testing application."

"With AppScan, we are now deploying less defects to production."

"HCL AppScan has helped us improve our security posture, as we've been able to identify quite a few issues."

"Now we just send it to AppScan and we can do other stuff like defining processes or dealing with management issues."

"You can easily find particular features and functions through the UI."

"The HCL AppScan performance is both stable and reliable."

"This solution saves us time due to the low number of false positives detected."

"The reporting part is the most valuable feature."

More HCL AppScan pros

"With Kiuwan, we were able to help our clients get a better visibility of their development activities and to mitigate risks."

"Customer service is excellent."

"From the tool itself, the developer can run an analysis with the same quality, and with this tool, every developer has the opportunity to do an unlimited analysis."

"I've tried many open source applications and the remediation or correction actions that were provided by Kiuwan were very good in comparison."

"The solution will measure your development team, give a KPI for the CISO, reduce the time it takes to find and correct coding errors, and more."

"We switched because Kiuwan covers the entire SDLC; provides direct information to act upon, for the developer, architects, QA, CIO and CISO, in a few seconds; automatically, fully integrated in any CI/CD setup."

"I have found the security and QA in the source code to be most valuable."

"Kiuwan has enabled us to give our customers peace of mind through early identification of code vulnerabilities and remediation before delivery to the customer."

More Kiuwan pros

Cons

"It's a little bit basic when you talk about the Web Services. If AppScan improved its maturity on Web Services testing, that would be good."

"There is room for improvement in the pricing model."

"IBM Security AppScan Source is rather hard to use."

"AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives."

"The performance could be better. Sometimes it doesn't work so well."

"We have experienced challenges when trying to integrate this solution with other products; when you compare it with the other SecOps products, the quality of the output is too low and it is very outdated."

"We would like to be able to integrate to some of the other tools that we are using."

"The solution's scalability can be a matter of concern because one license runs on one machine only."

More HCL AppScan cons

"The next release should include more flexibility in the reporting."

"The QA developer and security could be improved."

"Different languages, such Spanish, Portuguese, and so on."

"The rate of false positives, where it reports issues that are not really issues, can be improved."

"The next release should include more flexibility in the reporting."

"Integration of the programming tools could be improved."

"The solution seems to give us a lot of false positives. This could be improved quite a bit."

"For mobile development, we are not too experienced, and it is not the perfect tool because the integration with certain products is very manual."

More Kiuwan cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The price is very expensive."

"The solution is moderately priced."

"I would rate the product's pricing a nine out of ten. The product's pricing is expensive compared to the features that they offer."

"The solution is cheap."

"I rate the product's price a seven on a scale of one to ten, where one is low, and ten is high. HCL AppScan is an expensive tool."

"AppScan is a little bit expensive. IBM needs to work a little bit on the pricing model, decreasing the license cost."

"The tool was expensive."

"The product has premium pricing and could be more competitive."

More HCL AppScan pricing and cost advice

"The price of Kiuwan is lower than that of other tools on the market."

"Check with your account manager."

"This solution is cheaper than other tools."

"Nothing special. It's a very fair model."

"It follows a subscription model. I think the price is somewhere in the middle."

"Kiuwan is an open-source solution and free to use."

"I recommend contacting a sales person who will create the best plan payment plan for you, as we did."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

10%

Government

10%

Manufacturing Company

University

11%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	31

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	16
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	6

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL AppScan?

The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is its integration with the SDLC, particularly during the coding phase.

See all answers

What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?

I'm currently working with BigFix and HCL AppScan. At least three people in my company are using HCL AppScan. Since we are a reseller, we run it in both lab environments and live production applica...

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Comparisons

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Compared 6% of the time

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SonarQube vs Kiuwan

Compared 20% of the time

Veracode vs Kiuwan

Compared 11% of the time

GitHub vs Kiuwan

Compared 8% of the time

Checkmarx One vs Kiuwan

Compared 7% of the time

Coverity Static vs Kiuwan

Compared 3% of the time

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Product Reports

HCL AppScan

Download HCL AppScan product report

Download Kiuwan product report

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan

No data available

Overview

HCL AppScan offers quick vulnerability detection with effective SDLC integration and is known for its user-friendly interface and seamless security integration.

HCL AppScan provides dynamic and static scanning to identify vulnerabilities like XSS and SQL injection. It integrates well into CI/CD pipelines, supports multiple languages, and offers web and dynamic scanning, helping businesses ensure security across development lifecycles. Users benefit from API coverage, Postman integration, and its ability to function in cloud and on-premise environments, facilitating a shift from DevOps to DevSecOps practices.

What features define HCL AppScan?

User-friendly interface: Simplifies navigation and usage.
Vulnerability detection: Quickly identifies issues like XSS and SQL injection.
Integration with SDLC: Seamlessly blends with development processes.
Dynamic scanning: Offers comprehensive security evaluations.
Multiple language support: Supports diverse programming environments.

What benefits should users consider?

Scalability: Adapts to growing needs and projects.
Low false-positive rates: Delivers accurate and reliable results.
Detailed reporting: Provides comprehensive vulnerability insights.
Effective integration: Enhances CI/CD pipeline security.

HCL AppScan is leveraged in sectors requiring rigorous security checks, such as finance and healthcare, where it conducts comprehensive scans and offers insights into potential vulnerabilities. Its robust scanning capabilities aid companies in maintaining compliance and security standards.

HCLSoftware

Kiuwan offers comprehensive security and vulnerability testing capabilities, focusing on code analysis, fast scanning, and detailed risk assessments. Supporting many technologies, it integrates well into development workflows to ensure code compliance and enhance code quality.

Known for its application portfolio governance, Kiuwan provides fast scanning and reporting features, alongside an intuitive interface. It supports languages from COBOL to JavaScript, offering modular capabilities and security integration for continuous deployment. Developers can perform efficient local or cloud-based scans, benefiting from action plans for better code correction. Integration with tools like Jenkins facilitates quick processing and detailed risk assessments, while challenges remain in language support expansion and smoother integration with Azure DevOps and popular IDEs. Enhanced frameworks and mobile development testing would amplify its utility, with users seeking improved navigation, report downloading, and technical support.

What are the most important features of Kiuwan?

Fast Scanning: Provides quick scans for immediate insights.
Reporting: Robust features for generating detailed reports.
Intuitive UI: Easy-to-navigate interface.
Technology Coverage: Supports a range of languages from COBOL to JS.
Tool Integration: Seamlessly integrates with Jenkins for CI/CD processes.
Modularity: Allows specific models for targeted analysis.

What benefits or ROI should users look for in Kiuwan reviews?

Enhanced Code Security: Identifies vulnerabilities swiftly and efficiently.
Continuous Integration: Facilitates ongoing security assessments.
Improved Code Compliance: Helps maintain adherence to coding standards.
Actionable Insights: Provides risk assessments with actionable recommendations.

In industries focused on software development, Kiuwan is integral for security and vulnerability assessments. It's embedded into workflows to analyze, detect and correct vulnerabilities, addressing threats like SQL injection and adhering to OWASP Top 10. The tool supports secure coding practices and performance evaluation, aiding organizations in maintaining rigorous security standards.

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT

DHL, BNP Paribas, Zurich, AXA, Ernst & Young, KFC, Santander, Latam, Ferrovial

HCL AppScan vs. Kiuwan