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Cybersecurity · head to head

Endor Labs vs Visual Studio

Endor Labs logo

Endor Labs

Cybersecurity

Security and AI agent governance for code and supply chain

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Visual Studio logo

Visual Studio

Developer Tools

IDE for .NET and C++ development on Windows

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Endor Labs pricing requires contacting sales, no transparent rates; Visual Studio community edition is free only for individual developers, classroom use, academic research and open-source contribution, not general commercial use
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Endor Labs and Visual Studio actually diverge.

Attributes where Endor Labs and Visual Studio differ
AttributeEndor LabsVisual Studio
Pricing modelSeat-based per contributing developer with volume discountsfreemium
PlatformsWeb, CLI, IDEWeb
CategoryCybersecurityDeveloper Tools
Founded2021Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Endor Labs

  • AI coding agent governance
  • SAST scanning
  • Secrets detection
  • Reachability analysis
  • Open source dependency scanning
  • Package firewall
  • MCP server integration

Only in Visual Studio

Nothing recorded that Endor Labs does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Endor Labs

  • Securing AI coding agent outputs before deploymentnot Visual Studio
  • Reducing SAST false positives with reachability analysisnot Visual Studio
  • Managing open source supply chain risknot Visual Studio
  • Enforcing security policies in CI/CD pipelinesnot Visual Studio

Visual Studio

  • Managing complex, large-scale projects across multiple platformsnot Endor Labs
  • Commercial development in small businessesnot Endor Labs
  • DevOps and automated deployment workflowsnot Endor Labs
  • Windows/SQL Server developer and tester rolesnot Endor Labs
  • Short-term or month-to-month IDE access needsnot Endor Labs

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Endor Labs

  • Pricing requires contacting sales, no transparent rates
  • Developer tier lacks UI and historical scan data
  • Free tier limited to local scanning only
  • Seat-based model may become expensive for large teams

Visual Studio

  • Community edition is free only for individual developers, classroom use, academic research and open-source contribution, not general commercial use
  • Monthly subscriptions are $45 per user per month for Professional and $250 per user per month for Enterprise, and do not include perpetual use rights the way annual Standard subscriptions do
  • A standalone perpetually licensed Visual Studio Professional 2022 costs $499 as a one-time purchase, separate from the subscription tiers

Pricing, plan by plan

Endor Labs

Free
  • DeveloperFree
    • Local scanning
    • Read-only vulnerability data
    • No UI, policies, or scan history

Visual Studio

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Visual Studio review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Endor Labs if

  • You need ai coding agent governance.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, CLI, IDE.
  • You also want sast scanning.
Endor Labs review

Choose Visual Studio if

  • You want to start without paying.
Visual Studio review

Questions people ask

Is Endor Labs or Visual Studio better?
Neither clearly leads. Endor Labs starts at Free and Visual Studio at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Endor Labs or Visual Studio?
Endor Labs starts at Free and Visual Studio at Free.
Does Endor Labs or Visual Studio run on more platforms?
Endor Labs runs on Web, CLI, IDE. Visual Studio runs on Web.
Can I use Endor Labs for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Endor Labs best used for?
Endor Labs is most often used for securing ai coding agent outputs before deployment, reducing sast false positives with reachability analysis, managing open source supply chain risk, enforcing security policies in ci/cd pipelines. Of those, securing ai coding agent outputs before deployment and reducing sast false positives with reachability analysis are not what Visual Studio is typically brought in for.
What can Endor Labs do that Visual Studio cannot?
Endor Labs covers AI coding agent governance, SAST scanning, Secrets detection, Reachability analysis.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Endor Labs: What is the difference between Endor Labs Developer and paid tiers?

Developer tier is free and provides local scanning via MCP server with read-only vulnerability access and no UI. Paid tiers (Core and Pro) add team features like policy enforcement, enterprise integrations, reporting, and scan history.

Source
Visual Studio: What are the pricing differences between subscription types?

Standard subscriptions include access to more benefits, such as Azure dev/test pricing, monthly Azure individual credit, software and download access, services, training, and support. Monthly subscriptions offer flexibility but fewer benefits.

Source
Endor Labs: How does Endor Labs define seats for pricing?

Seats are calculated per contributing developer (those with commits in monitored repositories within the last 90 days). Volume discounts apply as team size grows.

Source
Visual Studio: Are discounts available for startups?

There aren't any discounts available to start-ups, however an unlimited number of users within an organization can use Visual Studio Community for specific scenarios like open source work.

Source
Endor Labs: Does Endor Labs support on-premises deployment?

The platform is cloud-based SaaS by default. Enterprise customers should contact sales to discuss custom deployment options.

Source
Visual Studio: Who can use Visual Studio Community for free?

In non-enterprise organizations, up to five users can use it. Enterprise organizations (greater than 250 PCs or greater than $1M annual revenue) cannot use it beyond academic/open-source scenarios.

Source
Visual Studio: What's the renewal pricing structure?

Enterprise standard renews at $214.09/month (after initial $499.92); Professional at $66.59/month (after $99.99).

Source
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