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HCL AppScan vs Tenable.io Web Application Scanning comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 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

HCL AppScan
Ranking in Application Security Tools
21st
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
44
Ranking in other categories
Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (16th), Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (6th)
Tenable.io Web Application ...
Ranking in Application Security Tools
22nd
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Application Security Tools category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 2.3%, down from 2.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is 1.4%, up from 1.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Security Tools Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
HCL AppScan2.3%
Tenable.io Web Application Scanning1.4%
Other96.3%
Application Security Tools
 

Featured Reviews

Ravi Khanchandani - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
HL
Security Analyst at TOPNET
Web audits have identified vulnerabilities and now provide clear visibility into compliance gaps
We have experience with Tenable.io Web Application Scanning, and we use it as well; we have approximately ten licenses for web application scanning. We use it to find vulnerabilities, but Tenable.io Web Application Scanning does not include remediation; we remediate with other products. We use the…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The support I have received has been good."
"AppScan is within the top three or four static analyzers."
"It's honestly one of the best products in the application security portfolio."
"SAST is the only feature that works using the on-prem version."
"We catch them, we fix them, and we can offer a higher quality product to our clients."
"It was easy to set up."
"HCL AppScan has helped us improve our security posture, as we've been able to identify quite a few issues."
"AppScan is stable."
"The product provides comprehensive details and reports to help us understand everything and handle any patches in order to keep our system safe."
"Our customers adopt this solution because of the replication testing and the vulnerability assessment it can do. It is a multi-faceted product."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is very easy to use, provides very reliable results, and is easily managed by someone who lacks prior knowledge, information, or experience."
"We can get detailed information about vulnerabilities."
"It collects the vulnerabilities on the hostnames and sends them to the Tenable.io cloud. Tenable has its own cloud where Tenable.io is running, but there are many connectors to other cloud solutions. Tenable can do vulnerability scanning for other cloud managers such as Azure, Amazon, and so on."
"Our primary use case for the solution is automated scanning; it doesn't require scripting knowledge or any of those suites or other tools, so it is fully automated, and we provide the credentials and URL and the tool does all scanning and will show the result per the requirement."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"All the features are valuable to us as they offer cutting-edge scanning methods and address the latest issues with a contemporary approach. Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is highly stable. I rate it a nine out ten. Since the solution works on the Cloud, it's highly scalable. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. The setup of the solution is straightforward. The Return on Investment is substantial. I recommend the solution to all."
 

Cons

"Many silly false positives are produced."
"The performance could be better. Sometimes it doesn't work so well."
"The tool should improve its output. Scanning is not a challenge anymore since there are many such tools available in the market. The product needs to focus on how its output is being used by end users. It should be also more user-friendly. One of the major challenges is in the tool's integration with applications that need to be scanned. Sometimes, the scanning is not proper."
"They should have a better UI for dashboards."
"The depth was low, but the part that the user could miss was also diagnosed."
"It has crashed at times."
"One thing which I think can be improved is the CI/CD Integration"
"Improving usability could enhance the overall experience with AppScan. It would be beneficial to make the solution more user-friendly, ensuring that everyone can easily navigate and utilize its features."
"The market is standard for vulnerability scanning, however, the posture can be improved through Tenable's prioritization engine."
"It isn't easy to manage vulnerabilities in Tenable."
"We have encountered some problems with the technical support from Tenable; I would rate it a five out of ten. It is not efficacious, especially the first-level support."
"They have a general dashboard for web application scanning, but the dashboards and reporting can be improved. They probably have some features in their roadmap."
"The report customization needs to be better."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning could improve by offering faster fuzzing."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is not very user-friendly and you need a lot of information to get proper reports. The tool's support is not very responsive."
"The platform's technical support services could be better."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is moderately priced, though it's an investment due to extensive code analysis needs."
"The solution is moderately priced."
"The solution is cheap."
"Our clients are willing to pay the extra money. It is expensive."
"The price is very expensive."
"The tool was expensive."
"Pricing was the main reason that we went ahead with this solution as they were the lowest in the market."
"The price of HCL AppScan is okay, in my opinion. You just buy HCL AppScan and don't pay anything anymore, meaning it is just a one-time purchase."
"It follows the same licensing scheme as Tenable.io and Tenable. sc."
"The price of the solution is reasonable compared to the competitors. The license cost is based on the number of users and the annual usage."
"I rate the product's pricing a four out of ten."
"The application is extremely affordable. There are no additional costs involved with licensing. We switched to Tenable.io Web Application Scanning from other solutions due to pricing."
"For Tenable.io Web Application Scanning, it comes to around 6,50,000 Indian rupees, plus taxes."
"The pricing is okay."
"Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is expensive for small businesses."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise31
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business7
Midsize Enterprise5
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?
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 interf...
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...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HCL AppScan?
AppScan is considered more cost-effective than Veracode, although I have not updated the exact pricing details. Companies often choose based on budget constraints, with Veracode being on the higher...
What needs improvement with Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
If there were a solution, I would like to see automation and an integrated remediation solution for vulnerability or patch management.
What advice do you have for others considering Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
I do not understand what API approach means; I do not understand this term. I think Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is the best option on the market at the moment. My review rating for this pro...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Tenable.io Web Application Scanning?
I think the price is expensive. We do not have an idea of how much we have to pay approximately, but comparing to other products, Tenable.io Web Application Scanning is expensive.
 

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT
IMDEX
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL AppScan vs. Tenable.io Web Application Scanning and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,495 professionals have used our research since 2012.