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Developer Tools · head to head

Nx Cloud vs Qualys VMDR

Nx Cloud logo

Nx Cloud

Developer Tools

Distributed CI and remote caching for monorepo teams

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
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
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Nx Cloud has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Nx Cloud requires Nx workspace setup; integration limited to Nx build system; 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.
  • They diverge on capability: Nx Cloud covers Nx Replay, Qualys VMDR covers Cloud Agent.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Nx Cloud and Qualys VMDR actually diverge.

Attributes where Nx Cloud and Qualys VMDR differ
AttributeNx CloudQualys VMDR
Starting priceFree$3/month
Pricing modelcredits-basedsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, CI/CD SystemsWeb, Cloud, Api
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity
FoundedUnknown1999

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 Nx Cloud

  • Nx Replay
  • Nx Agents
  • Remote execution
  • Advanced analytics
  • Conformance rules
  • AI-powered recovery
  • Multi-repository visibility

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.

Nx Cloud

  • Accelerating monorepo CI pipelines with distributed task executionnot Qualys VMDR
  • Reducing build times through remote caching and incremental buildsnot Qualys VMDR
  • Scaling development teams across complex multi-package projectsnot Qualys VMDR
  • Enforcing consistency and standards across monorepo workspacesnot 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 Nx Cloud
  • PCI DSS external scanning where an approved scanning vendor report is a contractual requirementnot Nx Cloud
  • An estate spanning datacentre, multiple public clouds and endpoints that needs one vulnerability view rather than three toolsnot Nx Cloud
  • Organisations replacing a manual patch-verification process with agent-reported evidence that a fix actually landednot Nx Cloud

Where each one falls short

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

Nx Cloud

  • Requires Nx workspace setup; integration limited to Nx build system
  • Free tier restricted to 5 contributors; larger teams require paid plans
  • Credits system adds complexity to cost prediction vs flat-rate competitors
  • Self-hosted Enterprise deployment requires significant operational overhead

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

Nx Cloud

Free
  • HobbyFree
    • 50,000 monthly credits
    • 5 contributors
    • 10 concurrent CI connections
  • Team$29/month
    • Usage-based credits ($29 base plus overage)
    • Unlimited contributors
    • Remote caching
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Complete feature access
    • Conformance rules
    • Cross-repository visibility

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 Nx Cloud if

  • You need nx replay.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, CI/CD Systems.
  • You also want nx agents.
Nx Cloud 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 Nx Cloud or Qualys VMDR better?
Neither clearly leads. Nx Cloud starts at Free and Qualys VMDR at $3/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Nx Cloud or Qualys VMDR?
Nx Cloud has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Nx Cloud and $3/month for Qualys VMDR.
Does Nx Cloud or Qualys VMDR run on more platforms?
Nx Cloud runs on Web, CI/CD Systems. Qualys VMDR runs on Web, Cloud, Api.
Can I use Nx Cloud for free?
Yes. Nx Cloud has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Qualys VMDR starts at $3/month.
What is Nx Cloud best used for?
Nx Cloud is most often used for accelerating monorepo ci pipelines with distributed task execution, reducing build times through remote caching and incremental builds, scaling development teams across complex multi-package projects, enforcing consistency and standards across monorepo workspaces. Of those, accelerating monorepo ci pipelines with distributed task execution and reducing build times through remote caching and incremental builds are not what Qualys VMDR is typically brought in for.
What can Nx Cloud do that Qualys VMDR cannot?
Nx Cloud covers Nx Replay, Nx Agents, Remote execution, Advanced analytics. Qualys VMDR covers Cloud Agent, Scanner appliances, Authenticated scanning, TruRisk scoring.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Nx Cloud: What is included in the free Hobby plan?

The Hobby plan includes 50,000 monthly credits, support for 5 contributors, 10 concurrent CI connections, and basic analytics at no cost with no credit card required.

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.

Nx Cloud: How are overages charged on the Team plan?

The Team plan starts at $29/month with included credits. Additional credits cost $5.50 per 10,000 credits, extra contributors cost $19 each, and additional CI connections cost $2.25 each.

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.

Nx Cloud: Can Nx Cloud be self-hosted?

Yes, Enterprise customers can deploy Nx Cloud on-premises or on managed infrastructure to maintain full control over data and infrastructure.

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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