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Developer Tools · head to head

PartyKit vs Qualys VMDR

P

PartyKit

Developer Tools

Platform for building and deploying realtime multiplayer servers on the edge

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 PartyKit has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: PartyKit documentation and FAQ material on the marketing site is sparse compared to larger realtime platforms.; 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: PartyKit covers Stateful edge servers, Qualys VMDR covers Cloud Agent.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where PartyKit and Qualys VMDR differ
AttributePartyKitQualys VMDR
Starting priceFree$3/month
Pricing modelfreemiumsubscription
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, apiWeb, 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 PartyKit

  • Stateful edge servers
  • WebSocket-first API
  • CRDT library compatibility
  • Framework integrations
  • Global edge deployment
  • Custom domains

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.

PartyKit

  • Multiplayer collaborative appsnot Qualys VMDR
  • Realtime AI agent backendsnot Qualys VMDR
  • Live cursors and presencenot Qualys VMDR
  • Collaborative whiteboards and documentsnot 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 PartyKit
  • PCI DSS external scanning where an approved scanning vendor report is a contractual requirementnot PartyKit
  • An estate spanning datacentre, multiple public clouds and endpoints that needs one vulnerability view rather than three toolsnot PartyKit
  • Organisations replacing a manual patch-verification process with agent-reported evidence that a fix actually landednot PartyKit

Where each one falls short

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

PartyKit

  • Documentation and FAQ material on the marketing site is sparse compared to larger realtime platforms.
  • Commercial free tier requires deploying to the user's own Cloudflare account, adding setup complexity.
  • Storage on the free Individual plan clears every 24 hours, limiting it to prototyping rather than persistent production data.
  • Smaller ecosystem and community than more established realtime infrastructure providers.

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

PartyKit

Free
  • IndividualFree
    • Up to 10 live projects
    • Deploy to the global edge platform
    • Storage clears every 24 hours
  • CommercialFree
    • Unlimited projects
    • Custom domains
    • Runs on your own Cloudflare account; pay only Cloudflare usage

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 PartyKit if

  • You need stateful edge servers.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want websocket-first api.
PartyKit 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 PartyKit or Qualys VMDR better?
Neither clearly leads. PartyKit 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, PartyKit or Qualys VMDR?
PartyKit has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for PartyKit and $3/month for Qualys VMDR.
Does PartyKit or Qualys VMDR run on more platforms?
PartyKit runs on web, api. Qualys VMDR runs on Web, Cloud, Api.
Can I use PartyKit for free?
Yes. PartyKit has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Qualys VMDR starts at $3/month.
What is PartyKit best used for?
PartyKit is most often used for multiplayer collaborative apps, realtime ai agent backends, live cursors and presence, collaborative whiteboards and documents. Of those, multiplayer collaborative apps and realtime ai agent backends are not what Qualys VMDR is typically brought in for.
What can PartyKit do that Qualys VMDR cannot?
PartyKit covers Stateful edge servers, WebSocket-first API, CRDT library compatibility, Framework integrations. Qualys VMDR covers Cloud Agent, Scanner appliances, Authenticated scanning, TruRisk scoring.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

PartyKit: How much does PartyKit cost?

PartyKit is completely free. Both the Individual and Commercial plans have no upfront costs.

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.

PartyKit: What is PartyKit's Individual plan?

The Individual plan is free and includes deployment to a global edge platform, support for up to 10 live projects, and is suitable for small projects. Storage is cleared every 24 hours.

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.

PartyKit: What is PartyKit's Commercial plan?

The Commercial plan is free but requires deploying to your own Cloudflare account. It includes custom domains, unlimited projects, and you pay only your Cloudflare usage costs.

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.

PartyKit: Can I upgrade from Individual to Commercial plan?

Yes, both plans are free but offer different feature sets. The Commercial plan removes project restrictions but requires managing your own Cloudflare infrastructure.

Source
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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