Software · head to head
Nessus vs Idira
Idira
Software
Built on CyberArk's legacy and powered by Palo Alto Networks
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Nessus has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Nessus nessus Professional is $4,790 for one year, with no free or low cost commercial tier; Idira no pricing is published anywhere on the product page; every call to action is Request a Demo or a sales contact form
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Nessus and Idira actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
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 Nessus
- Vulnerability scanning
- Configuration auditing
- Malware detection
- Web application scanning
- Cloud scanning
- Compliance checks
- Patch auditing
- Pre-built policies
Only in Idira
Nothing recorded that Nessus does not also cover.
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Nessus
- Scanning hosts and applications for known vulnerabilities and misconfigurationsnot Idira
- Running compliance and configuration audits against a defined scopenot Idira
Idira
No use cases recorded yet. See the Idira review.
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Nessus
- Nessus Professional is $4,790 for one year, with no free or low cost commercial tier
- Multi year terms are the only discount route, at $9,330.95 for two years and $13,637.54 for three
- It is a single user scanner, so team workflows mean migrating to another Tenable product
- Tenable One vulnerability management is priced separately, starting at $3,500 a year for 100 assets
Idira
- No pricing is published anywhere on the product page; every call to action is Request a Demo or a sales contact form
- Endpoint privilege management and agentic AI identity governance are sold as separate solution categories rather than one bundled price, so evaluating total cost requires multiple sales conversations
Pricing, plan by plan
Nessus
Free- Nessus Essentials (Free)Free
- 16 IP addresses
- Vulnerability scanning
- Configuration auditing
- Nessus Professional$2990/year
- Unlimited IPs
- Compliance checks
- Live results
- Nessus Expert$5290/year
- All Pro features
- External attack surface
- Cloud infrastructure scanning
Idira
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Idira review.
Which should you pick?
Choose Nessus if
- You need vulnerability scanning.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Desktop, Api.
- You also want configuration auditing.
Choose Idira if
Nothing in the data separates Idira from Nessus on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.
Questions people ask
- Is Nessus or Idira better?
- Neither clearly leads. Nessus starts at Free and Idira at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Nessus or Idira?
- Nessus has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Nessus and On request for Idira.
- Does Nessus or Idira run on more platforms?
- Nessus runs on Desktop, Api. Idira runs on Web.
- Can I use Nessus for free?
- Yes. Nessus has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Idira starts at On request.
- What is Nessus best used for?
- Nessus is most often used for scanning hosts and applications for known vulnerabilities and misconfigurations, running compliance and configuration audits against a defined scope. Of those, scanning hosts and applications for known vulnerabilities and misconfigurations and running compliance and configuration audits against a defined scope are not what Idira is typically brought in for.
- What can Nessus do that Idira cannot?
- Nessus covers Vulnerability scanning, Configuration auditing, Malware detection, Web application scanning.