Qualys Web Application Scanning vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec comparison

The compared Qualys and Rapid7 solutions aren't in the same category. Qualys is ranked #13 in AS , with an average rating of 7.7, and holds a 2.0% mindshare in the category. Rapid7 is ranked #2 in DAST , with an average rating of 7.8, and holds a 9.6% mindshare. Additionally, 88% of Qualys users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 94% of Rapid7 users who would recommend it.

Qualys Web Application Scan...

Read 40 Qualys Web Application Scanning reviews

3,874 Views
2,363 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Read 19 Rapid7 InsightAppSec reviews

1,519 Views
425 Comparison Views

94% willing to recommend

Qualys Web Application Scan...

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Qualys Web Application Scanning and Rapid7 InsightAppSec based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Application Security Tools solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Qualys Web Application Scanning vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec Report (Updated: May 2022).

Buyer's Guide

Qualys Web Application Scanning vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

May 2022

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Helped 868,706 peers since 2012

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 Web Application Scan...

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Security Tools (13th), Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (10th)

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

While both are Quality Assurance solutions, they serve different purposes. Qualys Web Application Scanning is designed for Application Security Tools and holds a mindshare of 2.0%, up 1.9% compared to last year.
Rapid7 InsightAppSec, on the other hand, focuses on Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST), holds 9.6% mindshare, up 9.6% since last year.

Application Security Tools Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Qualys Web Application Scanning	2.0%
SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)	20.5%
Checkmarx One	10.4%
Other	67.1%

Application Security Tools

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Rapid7 InsightAppSec	9.6%
OpenText Dynamic Application Security Testing	17.7%
HCL AppScan	14.0%
Other	58.7%

Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)

Featured Reviews

AnkitSharma13

Security Officer at Cisco

Web scanning needs improvement but offers good vulnerability detection

The downside of Qualys Web Application Scanning is that it cannot crawl automatically. If I provide an IP address and a login form, it does basic testing, but it doesn't go deep as IBM AppScan does. If Qualys Web Application Scanning could improve its crawling capability, it would be more user-friendly. Qualys Web Application Scanning does IP-level testing, requiring direct input of credentials, and can only scan a few pages to provide known generic vulnerabilities, which isn't as beneficial from my point of view. The Vulnerability Management also relies heavily on version numbers and will flag vulnerabilities based on the component version, but it doesn't check if a real fix exists, leading to flags on components that actually have workarounds available.

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Shritam Bhowmick

Vulnerability Management Lead at garrett

Provides reliable applications security but needs better integration options

There are areas for improvements regarding false positives. Integration capabilities are lacking, as options for integrations with other tools such as SNOW, Jira, or other integration tools are not sufficient in Rapid7 InsightAppSec. The user interface sometimes has glitches, which may prevent appropriate results during navigation, and even when we get appropriate results, it can be impossible to export them to CSV records or download files. Regarding scalability, Rapid7 InsightAppSec is not a scalable solution for our industry due to limited integration capabilities. Rapid7 relies on another tool called InsightConnect, which requires additional investment, detracting from scalability. Another area that needs improvement is the integration of AI capabilities into the platform. Both Rapid7 InsightAppSec and InsightVM need to advance in that area. In terms of behavioral and pattern recognition, identifying complex attacks such as SQL, blind SQL, JSON, and LDAP injections often results in 94% false positives. This necessitates improvement in their behavioral-based analytics feature.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a cloud-based solution, so it is easy to scale."

"It scans web applications to identify vulnerabilities during deployment."

"This product is designed for easy scalability and can easily scale up without major challenges."

"The most valuable feature is that we are able to scan the services and put credentials like a user ID password. We can verify the vulnerability level."

"The advantage of Qualys Web Application Scanning lies in its user-friendly dashboard and appealing reports, which are useful for presentation to leadership."

"The simplicity of exporting reports and the simplicity and clarity of the reports included with the product are good."

"The feature that I have found most valuable is the progressive scan. It is good. It's done in 24 hours."

"It works with many different products."

More Qualys Web Application Scanning pros

"The solution is stable."

"Relatively speaking, InsightAppSec is good compared to Insight VM."

"We have seen measurable decrease in the mean time to respond to threats by 20 percent."

"Relatively speaking, InsightAppSec is good compared to Insight VM."

"I would rate the technical support from Rapid7 a ten, indicating high-quality support."

"It is a very robust solution."

"When considering DAST, it is not attributed to a singular feature but rather the capabilities of the engine that provides a genuine penetration testing experience and delivers insightful reports."

"I rate stability ten out of ten."

More Rapid7 InsightAppSec pros

Cons

"The pricing does not seem to be competitive."

"I would like it to be cheaper because it is a bit expensive compared to competitors like Tenable Nessus."

"There should be better visibility into the application."

"We have many websites. We don't force scanning on all of them at once because it's taking some time."

"Qualys Web Application Scanning is very complex to use, and its graphical interface is not very user-friendly."

"There should be better visibility into the application."

"Sometimes the response time is low because the handshake fails, and then you have to re-login and start again."

"Deployment can be complicated."

More Qualys Web Application Scanning cons

"Currently, InsightAppSec lacks similar functionality. Customers must wait for remediation during the developers' preparation of a new version."

"There is room for improvement in the response time of customer service and support levels."

"The interface should be a little bit easier to manage. Sometimes, the logic that they use is kind of strange. They need to work a little bit more on their interface to make it more understandable. The interface is the only problem. I'm using Rapid7, which is very intuitive. There are other applications available in the market with a better interface. They can include more techniques or options to test different types of security because the templates are limited. It would be great to see them follow the MITRE ATT&CK framework or what is there in tools like Veracode and Synopsys."

"We'd like to see integrations with WAF solutions."

"The number of web applications we can scan is limited."

"They should add more features. I would like to see them do a little more on static analysis and also interactivity analysis. Currently, it does very basic static analysis. It could do a little more static analysis, which is something that would help. A lot more interactivity analysis should also be there. It should basically look at security during interactivity."

"In terms of behavioral and pattern recognition, identifying complex attacks such as SQL, blind SQL, JSON, and LDAP injections often results in 94% false positives."

"Currently, InsightAppSec lacks similar functionality. Customers must wait for remediation during the developers' preparation of a new version."

More Rapid7 InsightAppSec cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Qualys has an IT-based licensing based on a yearly license, which is a good way of handling it. However, in some cases, when we do the PCI scanning, the host will not like the scanning and we lose the IT license. So, this could be improved."

"Qualys WAS' pricing is competitive."

"Try the free trial of the product to understand the basic working mechanisms."

"The product is expensive, at least initially, in comparison to other products in this category."

"We are on an annual license for the solution and the pricing could be more affordable."

"We normally purchase an annual license."

"The product has a very good licensing model."

"From my perspective, it is a budget-friendly option."

More Qualys Web Application Scanning pricing and cost advice

"I rate Rapid7 InsightAppSec’s pricing an eight out of ten."

"They offer a good price, but I don't remember its cost. It is fair as compared to the competition. We have opted for project-based licensing, not user-based. We can add any number of users. That doesn't matter. It is worth the money."

"The price of this product is very cheap."

"Rapid7 InsightAppSec is cheap."

"Its price is competitive. It is not expensive."

"I'm not sure how much it costs exactly, but I know it's expensive."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

13%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Government

Computer Software Company

16%

Manufacturing Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	8
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	27

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	11
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	5

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Qualys Web Application Scanning?

The vulnerability management feature is a strong one. And also the patch management feature.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Qualys Web Application Scanning?

Regarding pricing, I think for personal use, it is costly, but if organizations are ready to pay, then it is fine as they are using it.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Qualys Web Application Scanning?

See all answers

What do you like most about Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

In Rapid7 InsightAppSec, a distinctive feature is the provision of a CDM for integrating web servers and web applications. To establish the connection between these applications, you only need to p...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Rapid7 InsightAppSec?

Our main use case for Rapid7 InsightAppSec is to perform internal assessment of applications and external facing applications. We have a cloud engine plus on-premises engine, and we have been lever...

See all answers

Comparisons

OWASP Zap vs Qualys Web Application Scanning

Compared 16% of the time

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) vs Qualys Web Application Scanning

Compared 9% of the time

Veracode vs Qualys Web Application Scanning

Compared 9% of the time

Acunetix vs Qualys Web Application Scanning

Compared 7% of the time

HCL AppScan vs Qualys Web Application Scanning

Compared 5% of the time

More Qualys Web Application Scanning Competitors

Rapid7 AppSpider vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 28% of the time

PortSwigger Burp Suite Professional vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 14% of the time

OWASP Zap vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 12% of the time

Invicti vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 10% of the time

HCL AppScan vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec

Compared 3% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Qualys Web Application Scanning

September 2025

Download Qualys Web Application Scanning product report

Buyer's Guide

Rapid7 InsightAppSec

September 2025

Download Rapid7 InsightAppSec product report

Also Known As

Qualys WAS

InsightAppSec

Overview

Qualys Web Application Scanning (WAS) is a fully cloud-based web application security scanner. The scanner will automatically crawl periodically and test web applications to discover potential vulnerabilities, including cross-site scripting (XSS) and SQL injection. The consistent testing equips the automated service to generate consistent results, lessen false positives, and offer the ability to scale to protect thousands of websites effortlessly.

Qualys Web Application Scanning is bundled with different scanning technology to carefully scan websites for malware infections and will send notifications to website owners to assist in preventing blacklisting and brand reputation damage. As digital transformation takes place in various organizations, Qualys WAS gives organizations the ability to track and document their web app security status through its interactive reporting capabilities.

Qualys WAS empowers organizations to remediate any web application vulnerabilities quickly. Some of the key tools offered are:

Deep Scanning: All apps and APIs on your internal network and public cloud are covered by Qualys WAS deep scanning to show you any visible vulnerabilities.
DevSec Ops Tool: Detect security issues in your code while still in app development stages and generate comprehensive reports.
Comprehensive Discovery: Discover and catalog new and unknown web apps in your network.
Malware Detection: Scan a website, identify vulnerabilities, and receive alerts to any infections.

Benefits of Qualys Web Application Scanning

Qualys Web Application Scanning offers many benefits, including:

Quick Deployment: Requires no infrastructure or software to upkeep.
Effortless Scalability: Effortlessly launch a deep scan and protect thousands of websites.
Centralized Management: Manage and mend all web app vulnerabilities through a single interface.
Excellent Integration Capabilities: Integrates with Qualys Web App Firewall (WAF) for a single-click virtual patching of found vulnerabilities.
Respond to Threats Immediately: Qualys Continuous Monitoring offers the user a hands-free service by automatically launching scanning and sending notifications of a potential threat.
Cost-effective Solution: Data is analyzed in real time as Qualys WAS is an end-to-end solution; this helps avoid costs associated with managing multiple security vendors.

Reviews from Real Users

Qualys Web Application Scanning stands out among its competitors for a variety of reasons. Two of those reasons are its progressive scan and quick detection of vulnerabilities.

P.K., a senior software developer at a tech vendor, writes, "The feature that I have found most valuable is the progressive scan. It is good. It's done in 24 hours."

Nagaraj S., lead cybersecurity engineer at a tech service company, notes, "I have found the detection of vulnerabilities tool thorough with good results and the graphical display output to be wonderful and full of colors. It allows many types of outputs, such as bar and chart previews."

Qualys

Your web applications may be complex, but your application security testing tool doesn’t need to be. InsightAppSec brings Rapid7’s proven Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) technology to the Insight platform, combining powerful application crawling and attack capabilities, flexibility in scan scope and scheduling, and accuracy in results with a modern UI, intuitive workflows, and sensible data organization. This enables you to identify XSS, SQL injection, CSRF, and other vulnerabilities with unparalleled ease. The best part? All of these capabilities are delivered via the cloud so that you’re up and running in minutes to identify the critical security risks that exist in your applications.

Rapid7

Sample Customers

BskyB, Cartagena, ClearPoint Learning Systems, Connect Group, du, Fortrex Technologies, HBOR, HDI, Highlights for Children, The Lithuanian State Enterprise Centre of Registers, City of Miami Beach, Microsoft, MidlandHR, MSCI Inc., Northern Arizona University, Ofgem, Olympus Europa, PhoneFactor, RTL Nederland, ThousandEyes, VGZ Organisatie B.V.

CenterPoint Energy, CPA Australia, Hypertherm, First American Financial Corporation, Rackspace

Buyer's Guide

Qualys Web Application Scanning vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

May 2022

Free Report: Qualys Web Application Scanning vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec

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