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Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management vs Nucleus Security comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 23, 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 Vulnerability Management
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
39
Ranking in other categories
Container Security (13th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (9th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (8th), SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) (1st), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (8th)
Microsoft Defender Vulnerab...
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
13th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
18
Ranking in other categories
Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) (18th), Microsoft Security Suite (18th), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (6th)
Nucleus Security
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
41st
Average Rating
7.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Application Security Tools (27th), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (14th), Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) (13th)
 

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.
OB
Microsoft Solutions Manager at Self-Employed
Ensures strong threat and vulnerability management with continuous risk assessment
The major priority is identity, which is crucial; we have lots of companies in manufacturing, energy, or various sectors, and it varies from one to another. I assess Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management as very effective in continuously assessing vulnerabilities without requiring scans. We use automatic investigation and remediation features, safe attachments, safe links, and real-time reports, which are also very effective. For Active Directory, Defender has threat intelligence, and we are using that. The risk-based prioritization within Vulnerability Management affects my ability to manage vulnerabilities, particularly in relation to the Zero Trust Model utilized by our customers. The end-users often do as they please in their systems.
reviewer2808414 - PeerSpot reviewer
Health Care Specialist at a healthcare company with 11-50 employees
Improved radiation safety and compliance has supported patient care but daily workflows still need refinement
I think it can be improved by making it more practical, integrated, and easier for teams to apply in real-world workflow from a healthcare perspective. The main improvements I can see right now are better user training with real-case scenarios rather than only theory, and clear and simple protocols for day-to-day operations. Strong integration between safety compliance and documentation systems would help significantly in practice for the healthcare field, which is a niche field. The biggest gain would come from making security processes easier to follow consistently, especially in busy environments where teams need to be aware of clarity and really need to rely on the documentation they are using.I chose a rating of seven because it offers strong value in safety, risk reduction, and compliance, especially in healthcare. However, there is still room for improvement in usability and day-to-day integration. Protocols can be too complex in practice sometimes, and some processes can feel heavy and disconnected from our daily workflow.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"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."
"Qualys TotalCloud provides a single, prioritized view of risk, reducing the workload associated with consolidating multiple sources for risk prioritization."
"Qualys TotalCloud has significantly reduced our workload in terms of managing risks, helping us to be more efficient and save substantial resources."
"The agent and agentless scanning in TotalCloud, particularly the FlexScan method, is incredibly valuable. With traditional scanning approaches, we had to give IP ranges and whitelist IPs. All that is now simplified. FlexScan requires minimal intervention, and after configuration, it automatically collects data and performs necessary scans."
"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."
"Its dashboards are brilliant. It provides in-depth insights."
"Qualys TotalCloud's most valuable feature is its agent versatility."
"Qualys TotalCloud's most valuable features are its cloud security posture management, Kubernetes, and container security capabilities."
"The integration with Sentinel has been one of the most valuable features for my organization."
"Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management is versatile and assesses vulnerabilities, providing detailed information on CVEs, their categories, and exploit statuses."
"Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management is a good product, and I believe it deserves a positive recommendation."
"The product’s most valuable features are compliance, recommendations, and inventories."
"The integration with SIEM is the best, specifically the native integration with Microsoft SIEM."
"The real-time threat intelligence feature of Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management is helpful in terms of security."
"Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management provides several valuable features that I utilize, as I use it to control security configuration, for example, the apps that I use or the many connections from my router, and with this configuration, I can filter content and malware."
"A valuable feature is the ease of management and integration with Microsoft products."
"We have seen clear compliance and risk control outcomes more than other operational metrics, including fewer process gaps during documentation and safety checks, strong consistency in following protocols for handling, traceability, and staff awareness, better audit readiness, a lower chance of procedure errors, and faster escalation when something appears out of standard, which is very important for us in the healthcare sector."
 

Cons

"With the growing integration of AI, I would like Qualys to enhance its service offerings to better accommodate AI-related risks."
"Qualys's ticketing system can be confusing when assigning tasks to individuals, and support could be improved by offering instant call solutions with engineers in addition to ticket replies."
"Two areas for improvement in Qualys TotalCloud are the speed of the public cloud platform and vulnerability detection."
"We encountered challenges identifying the correct resource category for certain items, such as those in containers or storage."
"TotalCloud could improve its scanning of niche devices like Wi-Fi dongles and USB modems because they are often untested. It covers everything else, like laptops, mobile devices, and Bluetooth IoT devices. They can improve on the small IoT devices because hackers and testers use these."
"The price is very expensive, actually."
"With the growing integration of AI, I would like Qualys to enhance its service offerings to better accommodate AI-related risks."
"Some major banks and insurance companies require an on-premises solution for comprehensive vulnerability management, which TotalCloud does not offer."
"Probably my only criticism would be the cost. It is expensive."
"When I create rules, it gave me problems and I did not know where the problem was located."
"It is challenging to extract and customize reports from the system."
"The product is not stable; it is very resource-intensive, consuming a lot of memory and CPU, which makes it slow."
"Configuration of Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management is something that needs improvement."
"The general support could be improved."
"The documentation from Microsoft needs significant improvement. The documents are disorganized, with one document linking to another, making the steps unclear and difficult to follow."
"Integration can be improved."
"Protocols can be too complex in practice sometimes, and some processes can feel heavy and disconnected from our daily workflow."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing for TotalCloud is attractive and competitive in the market. Given the features, especially the dashboard, I have no concerns regarding pricing."
"It isn't cheap, but it's reasonable. It helps us to manage things with very few resources."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers cost-effective licensing flexibility."
"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 is expensive."
"TotalCloud's price is about right where I would expect it to be."
"I am not sure about the pricing. From what I understand, it is a bit on the higher side, but I do not have the exact numbers."
"Although Qualys TotalCloud is relatively expensive due to its unique automation features, its cost-effectiveness is rated an eight out of ten, with ten being the most costly."
"I rate the product's price a three on a scale of one to ten, where one is a low price, and ten is a high price."
"The tool is a bit costly."
"The licensing costs are reasonable."
"The product’s pricing is medium."
"The licensing model follows a per-user per-month structure."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
16%
Computer Software Company
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Construction Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business10
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise28
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise8
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 needs improvement with Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management?
Configuration of Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management is something that needs improvement. In future updates o...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management?
I can control the applications using Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management, which are its best features for me ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nucleus Security?
I have a good experience with that, so we don't have much problem dealing with pricing, setup, and licensing.
What needs improvement with Nucleus Security?
I think it can be improved by making it more practical, integrated, and easier for teams to apply in real-world workf...
What is your primary use case for Nucleus Security?
I have been using Nucleus Security for the past few years in my company, particularly in the healthcare field.I use N...
 

Also Known As

Qualys TotalCloud with FlexScan
No data available
No data available
 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Defender Vulnerability Management vs. Nucleus Security and other solutions. Updated: May 2026.
896,099 professionals have used our research since 2012.