Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Acunetix VS Nmap

Compare Acunetix VS Nmap and see what are their differences

Acunetix logo Acunetix

Audit your website security and web applications for SQL injection, Cross site scripting and other...

Nmap logo Nmap

Nmap Free Security Scanner, Port Scanner, & Network Exploration Tool. Download open source software for Linux, Windows, UNIX, FreeBSD, etc.
  • Acunetix Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-03-13
  • Nmap Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-06-15

Acunetix features and specs

  • Comprehensive Vulnerability Scanning
    Acunetix offers a thorough and detailed scan of websites, identifying a wide range of vulnerabilities, including SQL injection, XSS, and more.
  • Advanced Automation
    The tool automates much of the scanning process, reducing the need for manual interventions and speeding up the identification of security flaws.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    Acunetix comes with an intuitive and easy-to-navigate interface, making it accessible even for users who are not cybersecurity experts.
  • Continuous Monitoring
    It provides continuous security monitoring, keeping track of any changes in the web application that could introduce new vulnerabilities.
  • Comprehensive Reporting
    The tool offers detailed reporting features that provide insights into found vulnerabilities, making it easier to understand and fix security issues.
  • Integration Capabilities
    Acunetix can be integrated with various CI/CD pipelines and other security tools, enhancing its utility in a modern DevOps environment.

Possible disadvantages of Acunetix

  • Cost
    Acunetix can be relatively expensive, especially for small businesses or independent developers who might find it cost-prohibitive.
  • Resource Intensive
    The scanning process can be resource-intensive, requiring significant server resources and sometimes impacting the performance of the application being scanned.
  • False Positives
    While advanced, the scanner can sometimes generate false positives, which require time and expertise to manually verify.
  • Limited Mobile App Scanning
    Acunetix primarily focuses on web applications and offers limited capabilities when it comes to scanning mobile apps.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its user-friendly interface, new users may still face a learning curve to fully understand and utilize all the features effectively.
  • Customization
    Some users have reported that the tool's customization options are not as extensive as they would like, limiting the ability to tailor scans to specific needs.

Nmap features and specs

  • Comprehensive Scanning
    Nmap can perform a wide variety of scans, including port scanning, service detection, and OS fingerprinting, making it a versatile tool for network exploration and security auditing.
  • Open Source
    As an open-source tool, Nmap is free to use and has a large community of users contributing to its development and improvement.
  • Scripting Engine
    The Nmap Scripting Engine (NSE) allows users to write custom scripts to automate tasks, detect vulnerabilities, and extract information, significantly extending its capabilities.
  • Cross-Platform Support
    Nmap is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux, and macOS, ensuring broad accessibility for users.
  • Large Knowledge Base
    Nmap has extensive documentation and a wealth of online resources, tutorials, and community support, making it easier for beginners to learn and use the tool effectively.
  • Performance Optimization
    Nmap is designed to be efficient and can handle large networks, making it suitable for both small-scale and enterprise-level scanning.

Possible disadvantages of Nmap

  • Complexity
    Due to its extensive features and options, Nmap can be overwhelming for beginners, requiring a steep learning curve to fully utilize its capabilities.
  • Potential for Misuse
    Nmap can be used for malicious activities such as unauthorized network scanning, potentially leading to security violations and ethical concerns.
  • Permission Issues
    Using Nmap without proper authorization can be illegal in some jurisdictions, and unauthorized scans can be considered invasive or hostile by network administrators.
  • False Positives/Negatives
    Like any scanning tool, Nmap can produce false positives and negatives, requiring additional verification and analysis to ensure accuracy.
  • Resource Intensive
    Some Nmap scans, especially comprehensive ones, can be resource-intensive, potentially affecting network performance and consuming significant CPU and memory resources.
  • Network Disruption
    Aggressive scanning techniques used by Nmap can disrupt network services and lead to denial of service, particularly in sensitive or critical environments.

Analysis of Acunetix

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Acunetix is considered a good tool for web vulnerability scanning, particularly valued for its extensive database of vulnerabilities and efficient scanning effectiveness. Its capabilities make it a preferred option for organizations looking to enhance their web security posture.

Why this product is good

  • Acunetix is regarded as a robust web vulnerability scanner designed to find vulnerabilities in web applications. It is praised for its comprehensive scanning capabilities, ease of use, speed, and the breadth of vulnerabilities it can detect. The tool helps in identifying and fixing potential security issues before they can be exploited.

Recommended for

  • Organizations looking for an automated web vulnerability scanner
  • Security teams aiming to identify security weaknesses in web applications
  • Developers who need a reliable tool to integrate into their security processes
  • Businesses seeking to comply with security standards and best practices

Analysis of Nmap

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Nmap is a highly effective and reliable tool for network scanning and security auditing. Its comprehensive suite of features and frequent updates ensure it remains relevant in the constantly evolving landscape of network security.

Why this product is good

  • Nmap is widely regarded as a powerful and versatile network scanning tool. It is known for its ability to discover hosts and services on a computer network, thus creating a 'map' of the network. Security professionals and system administrators use it to conduct network inventory, manage service upgrade schedules, and monitor host or service uptime. Its robustness, open-source nature, and support of a wide range of platforms make it a staple in the toolkit of network security experts.

Recommended for

  • Network security professionals
  • System administrators
  • Penetration testers
  • IT professionals responsible for network management
  • Anyone interested in learning more about network mapping and security

Acunetix videos

How to Perform Security Testing Using Acunetix Web Vulnerability Scanner Tool

More videos:

  • Review - Acunetix - Best Web Application Security Scanner @Web Hacking
  • Review - Acunetix Quick-start Guide

Nmap videos

Nmap Tutorial For Beginners - 1 - What is Nmap?

More videos:

  • Review - Nmap - Review of Scan Types
  • Review - LABS 50 Bypassing Windows Firewall Using Nmap Evasion Techniques REVIEW

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Acunetix and Nmap)
Cyber Security
100 100%
0% 0
Monitoring Tools
0 0%
100% 100
Security
29 29%
71% 71
Ethical Hacking
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Acunetix and Nmap

Acunetix Reviews

10 Best Burp Suite Alternatives For Windows In 2023
Verdict: Operating on two unique threat detecting technologies, Acunetix performs fast scans to detect vulnerabilities accurately in an application, API, or website. It is easy to deploy and caters to the sensibilities of non-technical employees. This quality alone makes Acunetix a better alternative to Burp Suite.
Best Burp Suite Alternatives (Free and Paid) for 2023
Acunetix by Invicti is the market leader in providing automated web application security testing and is the software of choice for many Fortune 500 customers. It can detect and report on a wide array of web application vulnerabilities. Acunetix integrates with popular Issue Trackers and WAFs and is also available on Windows and Linux.
9 Best Angry IP Scanner Alternatives Reviewed 2021 (Free & Paid)
Acunetix is a powerful network and web application scanner that can help you discover open ports, hidden services, and vulnerabilities across your network. Acunetix is unique in combining both web scanning, and network scanning into one easy to use graphical tool thatโ€™s compatible for both Windows and Linux.
10 Best Tenable Nessus Alternatives For 2021 [Updated List]
Acunetix is an intuitive and easy-to-use web application security scanner. Its setup is very simple, with no need for lengthy configurations. The platform can scan all types of pages, APIs, and complex web applications. These include pages that contain lots of HTML5 and JavaScript. Acunetix can perform lightning-fast scans without overloading the server.
Best Nessus Alternatives (Free and Paid) for 2021
It offers advanced Vulnerability Management features right into its core, prioritizing risks based on data through a consolidated view. Acunetix also offers the ability to automate your scan. It is suitable for large-scale organizations as it can handle many devices on a network. HSBC, NASA, USA Air force are few giants that use Acunetix for vulnerability tests.

Nmap Reviews

The Top 5 Open Source Vulnerability Scanners
Nmap is a tool that scans ports, does service fingerprinting, and identifies versions of operating systems. Nmap also comes with a scripting engine that detects security vulnerabilities. Once these are detected, Vulcanโ€™s platform can help you to prioritize and fix vulnerabilities.
Source: vulcan.io
9 Best Angry IP Scanner Alternatives Reviewed 2021 (Free & Paid)
If youโ€™re a network administrator looking for more depth and raw power from a port scanner, look no further than Nmap. What Nmap lacks in frills and functional GUI it makes up for with sheer command-line based power. If youโ€™re not a fan of strictly just a command-line interface, you can always use Zenmap, which is the exact same software just with a graphical interface. Both...
15 Best Nmap Alternatives Network Security Scanner
Nmap is an open-source tool that lots of IT professionals find useful in their careers. It is a tool that can locate available hosts and other services that they offer within a network. The Nmap program makes use of raw IP packets to find the hosts and services that are available.
10 Best WireShark Alternatives for Android Devices in 2021
Nmap is a popular open-source network scanning app for Android and desktop. While it works on both rooted and non-rooted Android, you get more functionality during a rooted Android smartphone. Like some apps, Nmap is not available on Google play store or their website.
Source: techreen.com
Alternatives to Nmap: from simple to advanced network scanning
This month marks the 20th anniversary of Nmap, the open-source network mapping tool that became the standard used by many IT professionals, but that can be a bit much if you only need to do general network maintenance and are intimidated by its command-line interface.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Nmap seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 202 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Acunetix mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Acunetix yet. Tracking of Acunetix recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Nmap mentions (202)

  • Network Reconnaissance with Nmap: The Complete Guide
    -- Example NSE script Local nmap = require "nmap" Local shortport = require "shortport" Local http = require "http" Description = [[ Example HTTP service detection script. ]] Author = "Your Name" License = "Same as Nmap--See https://nmap.org/book/man-legal.html" Categories = {"safe", "discovery"} Portrule = shortport.http Action = function(host, port) local response = http.get(host, port, "/") if... - Source: dev.to / 23 days ago
  • Would you like to be a movie star by contributing to open source?
    As described on its web site nmap is a Network exploration tool and security / port scanner. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • ๐Ÿ›ก๏ธ Top 10 Free Penetration Testing Tools Every Security Team Should Use in 2025
    Nmap (Network Mapper) is like a GPS for your network. Scan ports, find devices, and discover whatโ€™s alive and vulnerable. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • 3 Types of Chaos Experiments and How To Run Them
    Start by mapping out your networkโ€™s topology, including routers, switches, gateways, and the connections between different segments. Tools like Nmap or network diagram software can help visualize your networkโ€™s structure. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • How to Install and Use Nmap in Termux
    If you want to scan a website, Nmap can help you find its open ports, see active IPs, and get other important details quickly. For anyone serious about cybersecurity, Nmap is a necessary tool. To learn more, visit their official website at Nmap.org. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Acunetix and Nmap, you can also consider the following products

HackerOne - HackerOne provides a platform designed to streamline vulnerability coordination and bug bounty program by enlisting hackers.

Angry IP Scanner - Open-source and cross-platform network scanner designed to be fast and simple to use

Intruder - Intruder is a security monitoring platform for internet-facing systems.

Zenmap - Zenmap is the official cross-platform GUI for the Nmap Security Scanner.

Trustwave Services - Trustwave is a leading cybersecurity and managed security services provider that helps businesses fight cybercrime, protect data and reduce security risk.

Fing - Discover which devices are connected to any Wi-Fi network, map devices, detect intruders, assess...