Government · head to head
Ring Neighbors vs Tenable Nessus
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Ring Neighbors neighbors by Ring is a free app only available in the US, per the vendor's own page (Internet Archive capture, 1 January 2023); Tenable Nessus nessus Professional is $4,790 for one year, sold as an annual licence rather than a per scan or usage based fee
- They diverge on capability: Ring Neighbors covers Video Request Portal, Tenable Nessus covers Network scanning.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Ring Neighbors and Tenable Nessus actually diverge.
| Attribute | Ring Neighbors | Tenable Nessus |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | freemium | subscription |
| Platforms | Web, Ios, Android | Windows, Linux, Macos, Cloud |
| Category | Government | Cybersecurity |
| Founded | 2013 | 2002 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Ring Neighbors
- Video Request Portal
- Community Alerts
- Geographic Requests
- Case Management
- Resident Opt-in
- Ring Devices
- CAD Systems
- Social Media
Only in Tenable Nessus
- Network scanning
- Vulnerability detection
- Configuration assessment
- Malware detection
- Compliance checking
- Cloud security assessment
- Mobile scanning
- API access
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Ring Neighbors
- Citizen Servicesnot Tenable Nessus
- Records Managementnot Tenable Nessus
- Public Safetynot Tenable Nessus
- Civic Engagementnot Tenable Nessus
Tenable Nessus
- Vulnerability scanning of servers, network devices and web applicationsnot Ring Neighbors
- Configuration and compliance auditing against hardening benchmarksnot Ring Neighbors
- Point in time assessments by consultants and penetration testersnot Ring Neighbors
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Ring Neighbors
- Neighbors by Ring is a free app only available in the US, per the vendor's own page (Internet Archive capture, 1 January 2023)
Tenable Nessus
- Nessus Professional is $4,790 for one year, sold as an annual licence rather than a per scan or usage based fee
- Support beyond the base entitlement costs an extra $400 per year for Advanced Support with 24x365 phone and chat access
- The on demand training course is a separate $275 purchase for a single person for one year
- Multi year discounts require paying for two or three years up front
Pricing, plan by plan
Ring Neighbors
Free- Public Safety PortalFree
- Video Requests
- Community Alerts
- Case Management
Tenable Nessus
Free- Nessus EssentialsFree
- Up to 16 ips
- Network scanning
- Vulnerability assessment
- Nessus Professional$2600/year
- Unlimited targets
- Enterprise features
- Advanced analytics
- Nessus Expert$5200/year
- All Professional features
- Cloud integration
- Advanced reporting
Which should you pick?
Choose Ring Neighbors if
- You need video request portal.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want community alerts.
Choose Tenable Nessus if
- You need network scanning.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Linux, Macos, Cloud.
- You also want vulnerability detection.
Questions people ask
- Is Ring Neighbors or Tenable Nessus better?
- Neither clearly leads. Ring Neighbors starts at Free and Tenable Nessus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Ring Neighbors or Tenable Nessus?
- Ring Neighbors starts at Free and Tenable Nessus at Free.
- Does Ring Neighbors or Tenable Nessus run on more platforms?
- Ring Neighbors runs on Web, Ios, Android. Tenable Nessus runs on Windows, Linux, Macos, Cloud.
- Can I use Ring Neighbors for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Ring Neighbors best used for?
- Ring Neighbors is most often used for citizen services, records management, public safety, civic engagement. Of those, citizen services and records management are not what Tenable Nessus is typically brought in for.
- What can Ring Neighbors do that Tenable Nessus cannot?
- Ring Neighbors covers Video Request Portal, Community Alerts, Geographic Requests, Case Management. Tenable Nessus covers Network scanning, Vulnerability detection, Configuration assessment, Malware detection.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Tenable Nessus: What are the three Nessus offerings?
Nessus Essentials is a free introductory offering for educators, students, and career starters, limited to 16 IPs for scanning. Nessus Professional is designed for consultants and SMBs, providing unlimited IT scans across any location. Nessus Expert is the premium offering extending Professional with web application scanning, infrastructure-as-code scanning, and external attack surface assessment up to 5 domains.
SourceTenable Nessus: What OS platforms does Nessus support?
Nessus runs on Debian/Kali Linux, Fedora, FreeBSD, Mac OS X, Red Hat/CentOS, SUSE Linux, Ubuntu, and various Windows versions including Server 2008, 2012, and Windows 7-10.
SourceTenable Nessus: Can I use Nessus to scan third-party networks as a consultant?
Yes, Tenable permits you to use Nessus to scan third-party networks. Nessus Professional is ideal for consultants.
SourceTenable Nessus: Can Nessus perform PCI external scanning?
Yes, you can use Nessus Professional to perform external network scans as required by the PCI DSS 11.2.2 requirement.
SourceTenable Nessus: What additional features does Nessus Expert provide?
Web application scanning, which is dynamic application security testing (DAST) providing comprehensive visibility and insight into web application security issues; scanning code repositories for vulnerabilities; and assessing external attack surface with subdomain discovery.
SourceTenable Nessus: What support options exist for Nessus Professional?
Standard Support includes software upgrades, patches, plugin access, and 24x7 support via chat and community portal. Advanced Support adds 24x7 phone access and committed SLAs: P1 less than 2 hours, P2 less than 4 hours, P3 less than 12 hours, P4 less than 24 hours.
SourceTenable Nessus: How frequently are Nessus plugins updated?
Nessus plugins are updated daily, based on when vendors and security research sites publish new vulnerabilities.
SourceTenable Nessus: How does licensing work in virtual machine environments?
Whether you are using Nessus in a physical or a virtual environment, the IP addresses or hosts that you are scanning from must be licensed.
SourceRelated pages
More on Ring Neighbors
More on Tenable Nessus
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- Tenable Nessus vs Norton 360
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- Tenable Nessus vs Fortinet FortiGate
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- Tenable Nessus vs Qualys VMDR
- Tenable Nessus vs Acunetix
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