Softwr

Cloud · head to head

Puppet vs Rapid7 InsightVM

Puppet logo

Puppet

Cloud

Infrastructure automation for enterprises

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rapid7 InsightVM logo

Rapid7 InsightVM

Cybersecurity

Vulnerability management at scale

From
$1.62/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Puppet has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Puppet no pricing published for commercial tiers; requires contacting sales; Rapid7 InsightVM insightVM is now sold inside Exposure Command rather than as a standalone product
  • They diverge on capability: Puppet covers Manifests, Rapid7 InsightVM covers Asset discovery.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Puppet and Rapid7 InsightVM actually diverge.

Attributes where Puppet and Rapid7 InsightVM differ
AttributePuppetRapid7 InsightVM
Starting priceFree$1.62/month
Pricing modelquoteusage-based
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Mac, ApiWeb, Cloud, Api
CategoryCloudCybersecurity
Founded20052000

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 Puppet

  • Manifests
  • Modules
  • Classes
  • Variables
  • Facts
  • Puppet Master
  • Hiera
  • Facter

Only in Rapid7 InsightVM

  • Asset discovery
  • Vulnerability scanning
  • Risk prioritization
  • Threat intelligence
  • Custom policies
  • Remediation tracking
  • Compliance reporting
  • API access

Both cover

  • AWS
  • Azure
  • Cloud deployment

What people use each for

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

Puppet

  • Infrastructure automationnot Rapid7 InsightVM
  • Configuration managementnot Rapid7 InsightVM
  • DevOps at scalenot Rapid7 InsightVM
  • Enterprise infrastructurenot Rapid7 InsightVM

Rapid7 InsightVM

  • Vulnerability management and risk assessmentnot Puppet
  • Web application security scanningnot Puppet
  • Cloud infrastructure security monitoringnot Puppet

Where each one falls short

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

Puppet

  • No pricing published for commercial tiers; requires contacting sales
  • Enterprise and Advanced tiers require custom quote
  • Free tier limited to 25 nodes maximum

Rapid7 InsightVM

  • InsightVM is now sold inside Exposure Command rather than as a standalone product
  • Rapid7 states pricing is not publicly listed and is provided by custom quote based on the customer's environment
  • Billing counts billable assets including devices, software, identities, cloud compute instances and applications, so the asset count grows faster than a device inventory suggests
  • Cloud security, compliance, infrastructure as code scanning and application security testing require the Ultimate package rather than Essentials
  • Volume discounts are described as commonly available for larger asset counts, so smaller buyers pay the higher unit rate

Pricing, plan by plan

Puppet

Free
  • DeveloperFree
    • Up to 25 nodes
  • Core Commercial$null/custom
    • 25+ nodes
    • Vendor-backed SLAs
    • Training with Certified Engineers
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Web GUI
    • RBAC
    • Multi-environment support
  • Advanced$null/custom
    • AI-powered features
    • Advanced patching
    • Vulnerability remediation

Rapid7 InsightVM

$1.62/month
  • InsightVM$1.62/month per asset
    • Vulnerability risk management
    • Unlimited user accounts
    • 24/7 technical support
  • InsightAppSec$175/month
    • Web application security
    • Per application pricing
    • Unlimited user accounts
  • InsightCloudsec$5775/month
    • Cloud security
    • Up to 500 instances
    • Unlimited user accounts

Which should you pick?

Choose Puppet if

  • You need manifests.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api.
  • You also want modules.
Puppet review

Choose Rapid7 InsightVM if

  • You need asset discovery.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, Api.
  • You also want vulnerability scanning.
Rapid7 InsightVM review

Questions people ask

Is Puppet or Rapid7 InsightVM better?
Neither clearly leads. Puppet starts at Free and Rapid7 InsightVM at $1.62/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Puppet or Rapid7 InsightVM?
Puppet has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Puppet and $1.62/month for Rapid7 InsightVM.
Does Puppet or Rapid7 InsightVM run on more platforms?
Puppet runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, Api. Rapid7 InsightVM runs on Web, Cloud, Api.
Can I use Puppet for free?
Yes. Puppet has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Rapid7 InsightVM starts at $1.62/month.
What is Puppet best used for?
Puppet is most often used for infrastructure automation, configuration management, devops at scale, enterprise infrastructure. Of those, infrastructure automation and configuration management are not what Rapid7 InsightVM is typically brought in for.
What can Puppet do that Rapid7 InsightVM cannot?
Puppet covers Manifests, Modules, Classes, Variables. Rapid7 InsightVM covers Asset discovery, Vulnerability scanning, Risk prioritization, Threat intelligence. Both handle AWS, Azure, Cloud deployment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Puppet: How much does Puppet cost?

Puppet's Developer tier is free for up to 25 nodes. Commercial, Enterprise, and Advanced tiers require contacting their sales team for a custom quote.

Source
Rapid7 InsightVM: What is the starting price for Rapid7 InsightVM?

InsightVM starts at $1.62 per month per asset, with example pricing provided for 500-asset deployments.

Source
Puppet: Is there a free version of Puppet?

Yes, Puppet's Developer tier is free forever for up to 25 nodes of infrastructure.

Source
Rapid7 InsightVM: How much does InsightAppSec cost?

InsightAppSec starts at $175 per month per application for web application security scanning.

Source
Puppet: What does the Enterprise tier include?

Puppet's Enterprise tier includes web GUI, RBAC, and multi-environment support for organizations managing infrastructure at scale, with pricing available upon request.

Source
Rapid7 InsightVM: What does InsightCloudsec cover?

InsightCloudsec starts at $5,775 per month for cloud security monitoring of up to 500 instances.

Source
Rapid7 InsightVM: Do Rapid7 products include unlimited user accounts?

Yes, all Rapid7 products include unlimited user accounts, 24/7 technical support, single sign-on, and customer-success team access.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Puppet

More on Rapid7 InsightVM

Keep looking

Other head to heads