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Cybersecurity · head to head

JumpCloud vs Qualys VMDR

JumpCloud logo

JumpCloud

Cybersecurity

Unified identity and device management for hybrid workforce.

From
$9/user/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Qualys VMDR logo

Qualys VMDR

Cybersecurity

Cloud-delivered vulnerability management licensed per asset, using scanner appliances and a lightweight agent.

From
$3/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: JumpCloud platform Essentials tier capped at 300 users; larger organisations must purchase unbundled tiers or negotiate custom pricing; Qualys VMDR licensing is per asset and each capability is its own subscription, so patch management, endpoint detection, web application scanning, container security and policy compliance are separate line items, and the platform demonstrated in a proof of concept is rarely the platform in the quote.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which JumpCloud and Qualys VMDR actually diverge.

Attributes where JumpCloud and Qualys VMDR differ
AttributeJumpCloudQualys VMDR
Starting price$9/user/month$3/month
PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, APIWeb, Cloud, Api
FoundedUnknown1999

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cybersecurity).

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 JumpCloud

Nothing recorded that Qualys VMDR does not also cover.

Only in Qualys VMDR

  • Cloud Agent
  • Scanner appliances
  • Authenticated scanning
  • TruRisk scoring
  • Asset inventory
  • Patch Management
  • Cloud connectors
  • Container sensor

What people use each for

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

JumpCloud

  • Organisations modernising from Active Directory to cloud identity infrastructurenot Qualys VMDR
  • Companies requiring unified user and device management in hybrid work environmentsnot Qualys VMDR
  • IT teams implementing zero-trust security modelsnot Qualys VMDR
  • Managed service providers requiring multi-tenant identity and device managementnot Qualys VMDR
  • Educational institutions and nonprofits (eligible for special pricing)not Qualys VMDR

Qualys VMDR

  • A hybrid workforce where scheduled network scans miss most laptops and continuous agent-based assessment is the only way to get real coveragenot JumpCloud
  • PCI DSS external scanning where an approved scanning vendor report is a contractual requirementnot JumpCloud
  • An estate spanning datacentre, multiple public clouds and endpoints that needs one vulnerability view rather than three toolsnot JumpCloud
  • Organisations replacing a manual patch-verification process with agent-reported evidence that a fix actually landednot JumpCloud

Where each one falls short

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

JumpCloud

  • Platform Essentials tier capped at 300 users; larger organisations must purchase unbundled tiers or negotiate custom pricing
  • À la carte pricing can become expensive when purchasing multiple features; device management at $9/user, SSO at $11/user totals $20/user for basic functionality
  • Bundled Platform and Platform Prime packages require contacting sales; no published pricing limits transparency
  • Zero-trust and AI & SaaS management capabilities only available in Platform Prime tier with custom pricing
  • No on-premises or self-hosted option; cloud-only deployment

Qualys VMDR

  • Licensing is per asset and each capability is its own subscription, so patch management, endpoint detection, web application scanning, container security and policy compliance are separate line items, and the platform demonstrated in a proof of concept is rarely the platform in the quote.
  • Ephemeral cloud instances consume asset entitlement until they age out of inventory, so an autoscaling group that creates and destroys hosts hourly can burn licence capacity on machines that existed for minutes, and controlling that means tuning purge policies rather than tuning the cloud.
  • Authenticated scanning produces materially better results than unauthenticated, but it requires storing and rotating privileged credentials for every target platform, which is a security project in its own right, and teams that skip it receive reports full of unconfirmed potential findings that nobody trusts.
  • The console is a set of modules with separate interfaces, search syntaxes and report engines, so an analyst moving between vulnerability management, policy compliance and web application scanning learns each one, and cross-module reporting usually ends in a spreadsheet or a script against the API.
  • The tool surfaces findings far faster than any organisation can remediate them, and it does not solve the ownership problem: without an agreed prioritisation policy and a named owner in IT operations, a first scan producing tens of thousands of findings becomes a dashboard that everyone learns to ignore.

Pricing, plan by plan

JumpCloud

$9/user/month
  • À La Carte - Device Management$9/user/month (annual) or $11 (monthly)
    • Device management across Windows, Mac, Linux
    • Remote assistance
    • Patch management
  • À La Carte - SSO$11/user/month (annual) or $13 (monthly)
    • Single sign-on
    • Multi-factor authentication
    • Password management
  • Platform Essentials$undefined/variable
    • Identity and device management with SSO and passwordless auth
    • Maximum 300 users
    • Contact sales for pricing
  • Platform$undefined/variable
    • Unified identity, device and access management
    • Contact sales for pricing

Qualys VMDR

$3/month
  • VMDR$3/month
    • Per asset
    • Vulnerability scanning
    • Detection
  • VMDR+$5/month
    • All VMDR features
    • Advanced analytics
    • Cloud integration
  • VMDR Complete$7/month
    • All VMDR+ features
    • Threat intel
    • Response automation

Which should you pick?

Choose JumpCloud if

  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, API.
JumpCloud review

Choose Qualys VMDR if

  • You need cloud agent.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, Api.
  • You also want scanner appliances.
Qualys VMDR review

Questions people ask

Is JumpCloud or Qualys VMDR better?
Neither clearly leads. JumpCloud starts at $9/user/month and Qualys VMDR at $3/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, JumpCloud or Qualys VMDR?
JumpCloud starts at $9/user/month and Qualys VMDR at $3/month.
Does JumpCloud or Qualys VMDR run on more platforms?
JumpCloud runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android, API. Qualys VMDR runs on Web, Cloud, Api.
What is JumpCloud best used for?
JumpCloud is most often used for organisations modernising from active directory to cloud identity infrastructure, companies requiring unified user and device management in hybrid work environments, it teams implementing zero-trust security models, managed service providers requiring multi-tenant identity and device management. Of those, organisations modernising from active directory to cloud identity infrastructure and companies requiring unified user and device management in hybrid work environments are not what Qualys VMDR is typically brought in for.
What can JumpCloud do that Qualys VMDR cannot?
Qualys VMDR covers Cloud Agent, Scanner appliances, Authenticated scanning, TruRisk scoring.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

JumpCloud: What devices does JumpCloud support?

JumpCloud supports unified endpoint management for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android devices.

Source
Qualys VMDR: Agent or scanner: which do I need?

Usually both. The agent covers endpoints and servers you control and gives continuous data; scanners cover devices you cannot install an agent on, such as network gear, printers and appliances, and provide the external perimeter view.

JumpCloud: Can I use JumpCloud to replace Active Directory?

Yes. JumpCloud is designed for organisations modernising from on-premises Active Directory to cloud-based directory and identity management.

Source
Qualys VMDR: Does it patch as well as detect?

Yes, through the Patch Management module, which is a separate subscription using the same agent. Core VMDR detects and prioritises but does not deploy fixes.

JumpCloud: Is there a free trial?

Yes. All users can access a 30-day free trial before purchasing.

Source
Qualys VMDR: How are assets counted for licensing?

By the number of assets in inventory, which includes cloud instances and containers depending on the modules in use. Short-lived cloud assets count until they are purged, so purge settings directly affect what you consume.

Qualys VMDR: Can I keep the data in a specific region?

Yes. Qualys operates several regional platform instances and you choose which one your subscription lives on. Moving between them later is not trivial, so decide before onboarding.

Qualys VMDR: Does it scan web applications?

Web Application Scanning is a separate module licensed per application, not part of core VMDR, and it is a dynamic scanner with the usual limits around authenticated flows in single-page applications.

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