Cybersecurity · head to head
Metasploit vs OpsLevel
Metasploit
Cybersecurity
The world's most used penetration testing framework
- From
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
OpsLevel
Developer Tools
Internal developer portal that scores service ownership and production readiness
- From
- On request
- Free plan
- No
The short version
- Only Metasploit has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Metasploit the free Framework edition is command line only; the web interface is Pro only; OpsLevel opsLevel does not publish prices at all, not even a starting figure, so you cannot size a budget or compare against Backstage's zero licence cost without entering a sales cycle.
- They diverge on capability: Metasploit covers Exploit database, OpsLevel covers Service catalogue.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Metasploit and OpsLevel actually diverge.
| Attribute | Metasploit | OpsLevel |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | On request |
| Pricing model | freemium | quote |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Desktop, Cli | Web |
| Category | Cybersecurity | Developer Tools |
| Founded | 2000 | Unknown |
Identical on both: 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 Metasploit
- Exploit database
- Payload generation
- Post-exploitation
- Evasion modules
- Auxiliary scanners
- Social engineering
- Credential harvesting
- Session management
Only in OpsLevel
- Service catalogue
- Scorecards and rubric
- Checks
- Campaigns
- Self-service actions
- Slack and Teams integration
- Catalogue auto-enrichment
- Deployment on request
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Metasploit
- Penetration testing and exploit development against known vulnerabilitiesnot OpsLevel
- Validating whether a reported vulnerability is actually exploitablenot OpsLevel
- Running phishing and credential attack simulations on the Pro editionnot OpsLevel
OpsLevel
- A platform team that needs to prove every production service has a named owner and an on-call rota before an auditnot Metasploit
- Driving a fleet-wide migration such as a runtime upgrade across 400 services with a deadline and visible progressnot Metasploit
- Giving developers a paved road to create a new service from a template without waiting on the platform teamnot Metasploit
- An organisation where an incident took an hour to route because nobody could identify the owning teamnot Metasploit
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Metasploit
- The free Framework edition is command line only; the web interface is Pro only
- Automated exploitation, automated credential attacks and antivirus evading dynamic payloads are restricted to Metasploit Pro
- Reporting, audit wizards, task chains and closed loop vulnerability validation are Pro only
- Rapid7 publishes no price for Metasploit Pro and routes buyers to contact sales
OpsLevel
- OpsLevel does not publish prices at all, not even a starting figure, so you cannot size a budget or compare against Backstage's zero licence cost without entering a sales cycle.
- The Standard plan caps at 50 users, which is below the size at which service ownership becomes a real problem, so most genuine buyers land on Enterprise and its unpublished pricing.
- Scores are only as honest as the metadata teams maintain; where ownership records go stale the rubric produces confident numbers about a catalogue that no longer reflects reality, and leadership acts on them.
- It reports on quality rather than producing it, so it can generate friction between platform teams who set the rubric and product teams who see it as a scoreboard imposed on them without extra headcount to fix the findings.
- As a hosted product it needs read access to source control, cloud accounts and observability tooling, which is a meaningful vendor review in regulated environments; on-premises exists but only on the Enterprise tier.
Pricing, plan by plan
Metasploit
Free- Metasploit Framework (OSS)Free
- Open source
- 1500+ exploits
- Command line
- Metasploit ProFree
- Web interface
- Automated testing
- Phishing campaigns
OpsLevel
On request- Standard$undefined/year
- Up to 50 users
- Unlimited catalogued components
- Scorecards, campaigns and the global rubric
- Enterprise$undefined/year
- Unlimited users
- Custom integrations
- Customisable dashboards
Which should you pick?
Choose Metasploit if
- You need exploit database.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Desktop, Cli.
- You also want payload generation.
Questions people ask
- Is Metasploit or OpsLevel better?
- Neither clearly leads. Metasploit starts at Free and OpsLevel at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Metasploit or OpsLevel?
- Metasploit has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Metasploit and On request for OpsLevel.
- Does Metasploit or OpsLevel run on more platforms?
- Metasploit runs on Desktop, Cli. OpsLevel runs on Web.
- Can I use Metasploit for free?
- Yes. Metasploit has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. OpsLevel starts at On request.
- What is Metasploit best used for?
- Metasploit is most often used for penetration testing and exploit development against known vulnerabilities, validating whether a reported vulnerability is actually exploitable, running phishing and credential attack simulations on the pro edition. Of those, penetration testing and exploit development against known vulnerabilities and validating whether a reported vulnerability is actually exploitable are not what OpsLevel is typically brought in for.
- What can Metasploit do that OpsLevel cannot?
- Metasploit covers Exploit database, Payload generation, Post-exploitation, Evasion modules. OpsLevel covers Service catalogue, Scorecards and rubric, Checks, Campaigns.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Metasploit: Is Metasploit Framework free to use?
Yes, Metasploit Framework is available as free open-source software with source code accessible via GitHub. Community support is provided through Slack, GitHub, Twitter, and email.
SourceOpsLevel: How much does OpsLevel cost?
It does not publish pricing. Billing is per developer using the portal, with volume discounts, and a quote requires a sales conversation.
Metasploit: What is the difference between Metasploit Framework and Metasploit Pro?
Metasploit Framework is the free open-source version. Metasploit Pro is a commercial offering with customer support from Rapid7, though specific pricing and features are not detailed on the download page.
SourceOpsLevel: How does it compare with Backstage?
Backstage has no licence fee but you staff a team to build and run it. OpsLevel is hosted with checks, campaigns and scorecards out of the box, and you pay per developer instead.
Metasploit: What support is available for the free Framework version?
Community-based support for Metasploit Framework is available through Slack, GitHub, Twitter, and email ([email protected]). Commercial customers using Metasploit Pro receive customer support from Rapid7.
SourceOpsLevel: Does it require writing catalogue YAML by hand?
No. It auto-discovers and enriches entries from connected systems, though teams still curate ownership and metadata.
OpsLevel: Can it run on premises?
Yes, but only on the Enterprise plan.
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