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HCL AppScan vs Rapid7 InsightAppSec comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 13, 2024

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

HCL AppScan
Ranking in Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)
1st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
43
Ranking in other categories
Application Security Tools (15th), Static Application Security Testing (SAST) (14th)
Rapid7 InsightAppSec
Ranking in Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
19
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) category, the mindshare of HCL AppScan is 14.0%, down from 22.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rapid7 InsightAppSec is 9.6%, up from 9.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
HCL AppScan14.0%
Rapid7 InsightAppSec9.6%
Other76.4%
Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST)
 

Featured Reviews

AnshulTomar - PeerSpot reviewer
Scalable platform with efficient static and dynamic testing features
We use the product for Static Application Security Testing (SAST) and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST). By integrating AppScan into our CI/CD pipelines, aligned with Agile methodologies, we ensure that security testing becomes an integral part of the software development lifecycle The…
Shritam Bhowmick - PeerSpot reviewer
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.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of the solution is Postman."
"Usually when we deploy the application, there is a process for ethical hacking. The main benefit is that, the ethical hacking is almost clean, every time. So it's less cost, less effort, less time to production."
"It comes with all of the templates that we need. For example, we are a company that is regulated by PCI. In order to be PCI compliant, we have a lot of checks and procedures to which we have to comply."
"IBM AppScan has made our work easy, as we can do four to five scans of websites at a time, which saves time when it comes to vulnerability."
"The solution is cheap."
"I like the recording feature."
"The product is useful, particularly in its sensitivity and scanning capabilities."
"You can easily find particular features and functions through the UI."
"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 paste the provided CDN into your metadata. Once connected, every piece of information, including vulnerabilities, can be accessed. It also offers demo sessions."
"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 would rate the technical support from Rapid7 a ten, indicating high-quality support."
"The product’s most valuable feature is UI. It is easy to manage and find vulnerabilities in the application."
"I rate stability ten out of ten."
"The templates feature is very easy. You just choose the kind of attack you want on your web application, and you run it against that template and receive a report. It's great."
"Relatively speaking, InsightAppSec is good compared to Insight VM."
"You have various attack modules, and you also have the Attack Replay feature for the attack sequence. You can reproduce an attack and see it. That is a very good feature I noticed in this solution. It helps developers as well."
 

Cons

"AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives."
"They should have a better UI for dashboards."
"They have to improve support."
"The pricing has room for improvement."
"The solution's scalability can be a matter of concern because one license runs on one machine only."
"There is room for improvement in the pricing model."
"Visibility is an issue for us. Our partners do not know we have integrations with some of IBM products."
"It's a little bit basic when you talk about the Web Services. If AppScan improved its maturity on Web Services testing, that would be good."
"The reporting feature of Rapid7 InsightAppSec needs improvement as it currently provides basic reports."
"In the future, if they can have integration with a lot of ticketing systems then it would be amazing."
"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 get a lot of false positives during the tests."
"The dynamic scanning feature has simplified and improved the security testing process. I suggest adding a SaaS feature to the solution to support scanning SaaS applications, making it more comprehensive. It would be beneficial if the solution could also scan mobile applications. It only scans web applications and should also cover mobile applications, including firmware recommendations."
"The reporting is definitely an aspect of the solution that's in need of some work. We found that we'd try to use widgets, but often getting them to work for us wasn't very clear. They need to be more user friendly or offer better instructions."
"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."
"I would like more details of what the product can do."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is moderately priced."
"The price of HCL AppScan is okay, in my opinion. You just buy HCL AppScan and don't pay anything anymore, meaning it is just a one-time purchase."
"Pricing was the main reason that we went ahead with this solution as they were the lowest in the market."
"The tool was expensive."
"Our clients are willing to pay the extra money. It is expensive."
"With the features, that they offer, and the support, they offer, AppScan pricing is on a higher level."
"The price is very expensive."
"HCL AppScan is expensive."
"I rate Rapid7 InsightAppSec’s pricing an eight out of ten."
"The price of this product is very cheap."
"I'm not sure how much it costs exactly, but I know it's expensive."
"Rapid7 InsightAppSec is cheap."
"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."
"Its price is competitive. It is not expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business13
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise31
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business11
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise5
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about HCL AppScan?
The most valuable feature of HCL AppScan is its integration with the SDLC, particularly during the coding phase.
What needs improvement with HCL AppScan?
AppScan needs to improve its handling of false positives. It also requires enhancements in customer support, similar to what Veracode provides. Regularly scheduling calls with clients to discuss fe...
What is your primary use case for HCL AppScan?
The primary use case for AppScan is for security purposes. I compare AppScan with other tools such as Veracode. We use AppScan for vulnerability detection and auto-remediation of vulnerabilities wi...
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...
What needs improvement with Rapid7 InsightAppSec?
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...
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...
 

Also Known As

IBM Security AppScan, Rational AppScan, AppScan
InsightAppSec
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Essex Technology Group Inc., Cisco, West Virginia University, APIS IT
CenterPoint Energy, CPA Australia, Hypertherm, First American Financial Corporation, Rackspace
Find out what your peers are saying about HCL AppScan vs. Rapid7 InsightAppSec and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
870,697 professionals have used our research since 2012.