GitHub Code Scanning vs SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) comparison

GitHub and Sonar are both solutions in the Static Application Security Testing (SAST) category. GitHub is ranked #16 with an average rating of 8.5, while Sonar is ranked #1 with an average rating of 8.3. GitHub holds a 1.5% mindshare in SAST, compared to Sonar’s 19.7% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of GitHub users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 81% of Sonar users who would recommend it.

GitHub Code Scanning

Read 6 GitHub Code Scanning reviews

1,150 Views
1,093 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

SonarQube Server (formerly ...

Read 117 SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) reviews

38,362 Views
28,004 Comparison Views

81% willing to recommend

GitHub Code Scanning

SonarQube Server (formerly ...

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 21, 2025

In the code analysis and security scanning domain, SonarQube Server and GitHub Code Scanning are competing products. SonarQube Server benefits from a strong reputation in code quality management with customization options, while GitHub Code Scanning offers superior integration capabilities with advanced security features.

Features: SonarQube Server includes robust code quality management, detailed reports, and customizable rules applicable to a wide range of programming languages. GitHub Code Scanning seamlessly integrates with GitHub workflows, supports extensive programming languages, and provides real-time security vulnerability alerts, appealing to organizations that require cohesive development and security processes.

Room for Improvement: SonarQube Server could enhance its security vulnerability capabilities and ease of integration with other tools. A more streamlined setup process could also be advantageous. GitHub Code Scanning may benefit from offering more affordable pricing options and providing better customization capabilities. Better support for on-premise deployment could expand its appeal.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: SonarQube Server allows for on-premises deployment, giving users significant control over data and infrastructure, and it supports diverse customer service options for technical independence. GitHub Code Scanning, as a cloud-based solution, integrates quickly and easily with GitHub’s ecosystem, offering deployment simplicity and automated scanning upon code pushes with integrated support mechanisms.

Pricing and ROI: SonarQube Server offers lower initial setup costs, especially for on-premise models, demonstrating cost-effectiveness over time. GitHub Code Scanning requires a higher upfront investment but offers reduced operational overhead and enhanced developer efficiency, justifying the cost through better security assurance.

To learn more, read our detailed GitHub Code Scanning vs. SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) Report (Updated: September 2025).

Buyer's Guide

GitHub Code Scanning vs. SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

September 2025

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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

GitHub Code Scanning

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

16th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SonarQube Server (formerly ...

Ranking in Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

1st

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

117

Ranking in other categories

Application Security Tools (1st), Software Development Analytics (1st)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Static Application Security Testing (SAST) category, the mindshare of GitHub Code Scanning is 1.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) is 19.7%, down from 27.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Static Application Security Testing (SAST) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)	19.7%
GitHub Code Scanning	1.5%
Other	78.8%

Static Application Security Testing (SAST)

Featured Reviews

VishalSingh

Consulting & Solutions, BA/BD in Enterprise IT on Open Source, Red Hat & EDB at KEEN AND ABLE COMPUTERS PVT LTD

Traverses the entire network, scanning every system to determine which ports are open

You can use the tool locally on your system or in the cloud. I rate it a nine out of ten. It's a very good tool for people who want to start using GitHubCode Scanning, especially for software development or team collaboration. GitHubCode Scanning allows teams to collaborate by uploading files to repositories. For example, if someone is developing an application, they can host the code on GitHub Code Scanning. Other developers can then download the code for testing purposes. If bugs are found, fixes can be applied using the GitHub Code Scanningrepository, and everyone on the team can see the changes. Software developers often use GitHub Code Scanning for version control, and it's essential for CI/CD pipelines to work.

Read full review

Sthembiso Zondi

Head of Software Engineering at ronaldmariah@gmail.com

Consistent improvements in code quality and security with effective integration and reliable technical support

The features of SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) that I find most useful are the suggestions received from reviewing the code. When they review the code, they provide suggestions on how to fix it, and we find those very useful from a development perspective. We use SonarQube Server's (formerly SonarQube) centralized management and visualization of code quality metrics on the dashboard because that's the executive dashboard that we send to the executives to show where we are in terms of quality, security, and where the company can improve. We use that for organizational improvement purposes. The ability to tailor metrics tracking in SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) has been beneficial to my team. There are team-specific dashboards which are related to specific repositories they utilize, and we have that aggregative dashboard that shows the whole organization's performance. We can drill down per specific repository, which makes it easier for the team to improve specific things.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It's very scalable, very easy to handle, and very intuitive."

"The static code analysis capability in GitHub Code Scanning is a very powerful feature, providing the ability to identify vulnerabilities and ensure code quality."

"GitHub Code Scanning has positively impacted my organization as it helps us recognize errors and avoid many later issues which may arise."

"The solution helps identify vulnerabilities by understanding how ports communicate with applications running on a system. Ports are like house numbers; to visit someone's house, you must know their number. Similarly, ports are used to communicate with applications. For example, if you want to use an HTTP web server, you must use port 80. It is the port on which the web application or your server listens for incoming requests."

"GitHub Code Spaces brings significant value with its simplicity and ease of use."

"We use GitHub Code Scanning mostly for source code management."

"We consider it a handy tool that helps to resolve our issues immediately."

"It automatically scans for code, detects vulnerabilities, and generates daily reports."

"The good thing with SonarQube is it covers a lot of issues, it's a very robust framework."

"There is a free version."

"Integrate it into the developers' workbench so that they can bench check their code against what will be done in the server-based audit version."

"Strong code evaluation for budget-minded clients."

"The product is simple."

"The SonarQube dashboard looks great."

More SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) pros

Cons

"When running code scans, GitHub Code Scanning provides recommendations for probable fixes. However, integrating a feature where developers receive real-time highlights of vulnerabilities when checking in or merging a PR would be beneficial."

"One area for improvement could be the ability to have an AI system digest the reports generated from code scanning and provide a summary. Currently, the reports can be extensive, and users may overlook details, such as outdated libraries, which could be highlighted for attention."

"At times it becomes very annoying as it highlights certain things which are intuitive. They require code coverage for those aspects as an extra overhead."

"GitHub Code Scanning should add more templates."

"I would also like SonarQube to be able to write custom scanning rules. More documentation would be helpful as well because some of our guys were struggling with the customization script."

"If I configure a project in SonarQube, it generates a token. When we're compiling our code with SonarQube, we have to provide the token for security reasons. If IP-based connectivity is established with the solution, the project should automatically be populated without providing any additional token. It will be easy to provide just the IP address. It currently supports this functionality, but it makes a different branch in the project dashboard. From the configuration and dashboard point of view, it should have some transformations. There can be dashboard integration so that we can configure the dashboard for different purposes."

"Dynamic scanning is missing and there are some issues with security scanning."

"SonarQube needs to improve its ease of use, integration with third-party platforms, and scalability."

"In terms of what can be improved, the areas that need more attention in the solution are its architecture and development."

"A little bit more emphasis on security and a bit more security scanning features would be nice."

"SonarQube can improve by scanning the internal library which currently it does not do. We are looking for a solution for this."

"SonarQube could improve by adding automatic creation of tasks after scanning and more support for the Czech language."

More SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The minimum pricing for the tool is five dollars a month."

"GitHub Code Scanning is a moderately priced solution."

"We're using an older version because it is the open-source flavor of it and we can continue using it at no cost. We're not paying any licensing at all, which was another factor in choosing this route so that we can learn and grow with it and not be committed to licenses and other similar things. If we choose to get something else, we have to relearn, but we don't have to relicense. Basically, we're paying no license costs."

"We're using their free Community Edition version."

"As a user and a consumer of this solution, it can be pricey for my company to support and use, even though there are many benefits. For this reason, we use the free version. In the future, as our product cycles develop and evolve at a more steady pace, we hope to invest in the licensing for this tool."

"There is both a free and licensed version. The free version has limitations on development languages and support."

"I was using the Community Edition, which is available free of charge."

"The development license cost is reasonable, and we've had no concerns about SonarQube when it comes to cost."

"We are using the community version of the solution and we plan on purchasing licenses for the upgraded version soon. There is a limitation on how many lines of code can be scanned and this is why we are going to purchase a license for an increased amount."

"I do not know about the pricing as I am using the community edition, which is free. But I compared the pricing with Sigma, and it is higher than SonarQube."

More SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

Transportation Company

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

14%

Manufacturing Company

14%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	32
Midsize Enterprise	21
Large Enterprise	75

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about GitHub Code Scanning?

We use GitHub Code Scanning mostly for source code management.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for GitHub Code Scanning?

The organization pays for the license of GitHub Code Scanning, but specific price details are unknown.

See all answers

What needs improvement with GitHub Code Scanning?

In my opinion, areas of GitHub Code Scanning that could be improved include that a few things are not visible to us, such as where it stores data and which path. There is a separate team for that w...

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Is SonarQube the best tool for static analysis?

I am not very familiar with SonarQube and their solutions, so I can not answer. But if you are asking me about which tools that are the best for for Static Code Analysis, I suggest you have a look...

See all answers

Which gives you more for your money - SonarQube or Veracode?

SonarQube is easy to deploy and configure, and also integrates well with other tools to do quality code analysis. SonarQube has a great community edition, which is open-source and free. Easy to use...

See all answers

How would you decide between Coverity and Sonarqube?

We researched Coverity, but in the end, we chose SonarQube. SonarQube is a tool for reviewing code quality and security. It helps to guide our development teams during code reviews by providing rem...

See all answers

Comparisons

Coverity Static vs GitHub Code Scanning

Compared 24% of the time

SonarQube Cloud (formerly SonarCloud) vs GitHub Code Scanning

Compared 9% of the time

Aikido Security vs GitHub Code Scanning

Compared 9% of the time

HCL AppScan vs GitHub Code Scanning

Compared 8% of the time

OWASP Zap vs GitHub Code Scanning

Compared 6% of the time

More GitHub Code Scanning Competitors

Checkmarx One vs SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

Compared 21% of the time

GitHub Advanced Security vs SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

Compared 9% of the time

Coverity Static vs SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

Compared 9% of the time

Veracode vs SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

Compared 6% of the time

More SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

GitHub Code Scanning

October 2025

Download GitHub Code Scanning product report

Buyer's Guide

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

September 2025

SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) report

Download SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) product report

Also Known As

No data available

Sonar

Overview

Code scanning is a feature that you use to analyze the code in a GitHub repository to find security vulnerabilities and coding errors. Any problems identified by the analysis are shown in GitHub.

GitHub

SonarQube Server enhances code quality and security via static code analysis. It detects vulnerabilities, improves standards, and reduces technical debt, integrating into CI/CD pipelines.

SonarQube Server is a comprehensive tool for enhancing code quality and security. It offers static code analysis to identify vulnerabilities, improve coding standards, and reduce technical debt. By integrating into CI/CD pipelines, it provides automated checks for adherence to best practices. Organizations use it for code inspection, security testing, and compliance, ensuring development environments with better maintainability and fewer issues.

What are the key features of SonarQube Server?

Support for 20+ languages: Extensive programming language support suitable for diverse coding environments.
Custom coding rules: Allows for tailored rule sets to match specific coding standards.
Flexible quality gates: Define criteria for code acceptance at various intervals.
CI/CD integration: Seamless integration with Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment tools.
Rich interface: User-friendly dashboard with detailed visual insights.

What benefits should users expect from SonarQube Server?

Improved code quality: Enhanced analysis contributes to fewer bugs and improved coding practices.
Security enhancements: Identifies and mitigates security vulnerabilities pre-emptively.
Maintainability: Reduces technical debt, yielding long-term development efficiency.
Customizable: Flexibility in configuration aligns with specific project needs.

Many industries implement SonarQube Server to uphold coding standards, maintain security protocols, and streamline their software development lifecycle. In sectors like finance and healthcare, adhering to regulations and ensuring reliable software is critical, making SonarQube Server invaluable. It is often integrated into CI/CD pipelines, ensuring that code changes meet set standards before deployment. This approach enhances productivity and maintains compliance with industry-specific requirements.

Sonar

Buyer's Guide

GitHub Code Scanning vs. SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube)

September 2025

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Find out what your peers are saying about GitHub Code Scanning vs. SonarQube Server (formerly SonarQube) and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.

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