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Qualys Exposure Management vs VAPT comparison

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 13, 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
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
53
Ranking in other categories
Container Security (11th), Cloud Workload Protection Platforms (CWPP) (9th), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM) (8th), SaaS Security Posture Management (SSPM) (2nd), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platforms (CNAPP) (7th)
Qualys Exposure Management
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
IT Asset Management (3rd), Configuration Management Databases (3rd), Container Security (10th), Risk-Based Vulnerability Management (1st)
VAPT
Ranking in Vulnerability Management
49th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
2.2
Number of Reviews
1
Ranking in other categories
Penetration Testing Services (6th), API Security (13th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2026, in the Vulnerability Management category, the mindshare of Qualys TotalCloud is 1.2%, up from 1.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Qualys Exposure Management is 4.0%, down from 7.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VAPT is 0.4%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Vulnerability Management Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Qualys Exposure Management4.0%
Qualys TotalCloud1.2%
VAPT0.4%
Other94.4%
Vulnerability Management
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2859021 - PeerSpot reviewer
Sr Security Engineer at a tech vendor with 5,001-10,000 employees
Risk-based triage has transformed container security and now prioritizes high-impact threats
The best features Qualys TotalCloud offers currently include managing cloud infrastructure and container security while facing major challenges such as alert fatigue. Traditional vulnerability scanners flag hundreds of CVEs on short-lived Kubernetes containers, some of which have no internet exposure or are gone before we can even triage them. I leverage Qualys TotalCloud to move beyond static CVSS. I use it to implement runtime exposure, correlation risk reprioritization, and shift-left integration. This notifies developers to fix a base image upstream rather than patching live ephemeral instances. In my work with cloud and container security, the biggest operational hurdle was alert fatigue. I use Qualys to shift left from static CVSS severity to context-aware risk prioritization. I correlated raw vulnerability data with real-time risk factors such as public network exposure, active runtime execution, or overly permissive IAM roles. This allows us to immediately drop the priority of isolated containers and escalate lower-severity CVEs that sit on an exposed, high-risk path. We can map these findings directly back to our CI/CD pipelines so developers can patch the root base images upstream. We have drastically cut down the signal-to-noise ratio, saved a lot of manual hours doing triage work, and ensured engineering effort goes directly towards high-impact risk reduction.
Ajay Paul - PeerSpot reviewer
System Engineer at a outsourcing company with 10,001+ employees
Vulnerability management has prioritized high‑risk patching and simplified bulk system reporting
The primary issue is with the reporting functionality. Even though we fix vulnerabilities, the reports do not reflect the changes immediately. Sometimes we need to manually run a script to scan the systems before Qualys Enterprise TruRisk Management will update the scan results. The main issue is the reporting delay, and sometimes the Qualys Enterprise TruRisk Management agent will not scan the system, which means we do not receive accurate reports in a timely manner. Additionally, there are many metrics for calculating vulnerabilities, such as the Qualys ID, severity scores, CVSS scores, and other metrics. The abundance of information can be confusing. These two aspects are the most significant negatives I have experienced with this tool.
Suneel Singh Tomar - PeerSpot reviewer
Assistant Manager, Information Security at Birlasoft IndiaLtd.
Governed layered vulnerability management has improved continuous scanning and remediation
We are using a couple of tools in terms of scanning and remediation. We leverage some of our in-house tools and some cloud tools, so we have a layered security architecture. Some tools work on the transport layer, some on the network layer, and some on the application layer. The team scans across those tool layers. Based on identifying gaps, they fulfill them. Everything feels accurate to me. In today's landscape, we have so many threats and threat actors working around that may damage any available entities. The team scans and finds anything that appears immediately necessary to remediate. They follow the steps accordingly. The team is working around the clock and doing their due diligence on their jobs.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Its excellent graphical interface makes the scanning process simple."
"While automatic inventory detection upon connection is a helpful feature, a truly valuable capability would be assessing an environment's security posture against Azure and CIS best practices."
"One of the features I appreciate is the ability to generate daily reports without relying on anyone else."
"Qualys TotalCloud has significantly reduced our workload in terms of managing risks, helping us to be more efficient and save substantial resources."
"The scalability is good as well. I would rate it ten out of ten."
"TotalCloud offers a comprehensive suite of features, including EDR, XDR, and TrueRisk, providing a centralized platform for managing vulnerabilities and security risks."
"I would definitely recommend Qualys TotalCloud to other customers."
"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."
"They also have threat detection which maps threats. There is a feed that comes from Qualys when a new vulnerability is found. It tells us which machines are infected with that vulnerability."
"I like the Qualys Cloud Agent because it's very easy to use."
"Qualys VM's best features are vulnerability management and customizable scoring."
"Overall, the solution is highly rated because of its simplicity and efficiency."
"I like the solution's web application security for scanning, the solution is flexible with good integration."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"Almost all of the features are great."
"It's a good product. After the scan our internet works well. It scans our security posture."
"Everything feels accurate to me."
 

Cons

"In TotalCloud, I would suggest improvements in policy checks to cater to various inventory types like VPCs, subnets, S3 buckets, or IAMs. There is a lack of data segregation according to criticality or inventory."
"Qualys TotalCloud needs to improve its accuracy for non-Windows operating systems."
"Two areas for improvement in Qualys TotalCloud are the speed of the public cloud platform and vulnerability detection."
"Customer support with Qualys TotalCloud needs a little improvement with the response times."
"In terms of improvement, remediation still belongs to the cloud team, which is one of the issues we faced with Qualys TotalCloud."
"It is already perfect, but they can bring some newer dashboards and customization options for the dashboard. It would be great to be able to include on-prem assets on the dashboard."
"From a downside perspective, the UI is not user-friendly and feels dated compared to other tools like Prisma Cloud."
"A feature improvement could be the inclusion of Windows OS support for container security, as it is currently only supported for Linux."
"I think the only area to improve it is the way the scores are calculated."
"The customer support is very bad."
"One of the biggest issues from the clients' perspective is that all Qualys computing is on the cloud."
"The reporting and the GUI need improvements. Tenable dominated in these two areas: reporting and graphical user interface."
"Some of the older features could be polished instead of focusing on releasing new features."
"Qualys could be improved in its overall performance compared to other vulnerability management or scanning tools."
"Qualys currently does not have any features for scanning SCADA, IoT, and Industrial Control Systems."
"The tool needs to improve the adding assets and report generation features. I would like to see the policy scan of offline appliances in the product's future releases."
"There are so many challenges while running this vulnerability program."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"While Qualys TotalCloud's pricing is currently acceptable, it is becoming increasingly expensive and may soon be considered overpriced."
"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."
"Qualys TotalCloud is cost-efficient and was selected for its value compared to other products."
"Qualys TotalCloud offers competitive pricing given its comprehensive suite of features, including integration, assessment, remediation, and detection capabilities, all within a single platform."
"It isn't cheap, but it's reasonable. It helps us to manage things with very few resources."
"As a middle management member, I do not have direct pricing knowledge, but based on the knowledge from our meetings, its pricing is competitive."
"TotalCloud's price is about right where I would expect it to be."
"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."
"Qualys VM is quite expensive. It's a subscription-based license, and it's yearly. Right now, it's open for me, and I don't have any limitations or caps on the licenses. They are seeing if the product is viable for 4500 users. I can add as much as I want, and at the end of the subscription, they'll let me know how many licenses were actually used and bill me accordingly. On a scale from one to five, I would give their pricing a three. It's still expensive."
"The pricing and licensing for Qualys could be improved."
"When you want to cover yourself for scalability, you will be charged for the number you place on the scan itself."
"It is a high cost product. Compared to the other solutions, it is around 15 to 20% higher in cost."
"It's very expensive, especially if you want to use multiple modules of Qualys."
"Qualys VM is better suited for medium to large companies because the price can be too much for smaller customers."
"Usually every implementation is different and the quote is in function of number of assets."
"The pricing is very competitive."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
18%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
22%
Manufacturing Company
14%
Outsourcing Company
8%
Healthcare Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business16
Midsize Enterprise10
Large Enterprise38
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business21
Midsize Enterprise12
Large Enterprise75
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys TotalCloud?
We purchased Qualys TotalCloud for GCP and Azure as well. It is comparatively better than others regarding pricing. T...
What needs improvement with Qualys TotalCloud?
I am unsure about how Qualys TotalCloud can be improved. I do not have anything else to add about the needed improvem...
What is your primary use case for Qualys TotalCloud?
My main use case for Qualys TotalCloud is telemetry, although I am unsure about the specifics. A quick specific examp...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys VMDR?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing shows that we can consider both time and money saved.
What needs improvement with Qualys VMDR?
I haven't explored Qualys VMDR's vulnerability lifecycle automation yet. One of my analysts mentioned that queries la...
What advice do you have for others considering Qualys VMDR?
I have some understanding about PeerSpot, and I have visited the website. PeerSpot is similar to TrustRadius. It take...
What needs improvement with VAPT?
There are so many challenges while running this vulnerability program. It is a very complex program where everyone ha...
What is your primary use case for VAPT?
I am in a position where we govern VAPT and vulnerability management programs. My associates initiate quick scans of ...
What advice do you have for others considering VAPT?
I did not use Redscan at all. I have used formal VAPT services in my SOC role. In terms of focusing on prioritization...
 

Also Known As

Qualys TotalCloud with FlexScan
Qualys VM, QualysGuard VM, Qualys Asset Inventory, Qualys Container Security
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Agrokor Group, American Specialty Health, American State Bank, Arval, Life:), Axway, Bank of the West, Blueport Commerce, BSkyB, Brinks, CaixaBank, Cartagena, Catholic Health System, CEC Bank, Cegedim, CIGNA, Clickability, Colby-Sawyer College, Commercial Bank of Dubai, University of Utah, eBay Inc., ING Singapore, National Theatre, OTP Bank, Sodexo, WebEx
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Wiz, Qualys, Tenable and others in Vulnerability Management. Updated: September 2026.
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