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Customer Support · head to head

ServiceNow vs Tenable Nessus

ServiceNow logo

ServiceNow

Customer Support

The world works with ServiceNow

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tenable Nessus logo

Tenable Nessus

Cybersecurity

Network vulnerability scanner

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Tenable Nessus has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: ServiceNow listed on G-Cloud 14 by reseller UP3 Services Ltd at £81.00 per licence per month for ServiceNow; 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: ServiceNow covers ITSM, Tenable Nessus covers Network scanning.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ServiceNow and Tenable Nessus actually diverge.

Attributes where ServiceNow and Tenable Nessus differ
AttributeServiceNowTenable Nessus
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquotesubscription
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWindows, Linux, Macos, Cloud
CategoryCustomer SupportCybersecurity
Founded20042002

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 ServiceNow

  • ITSM
  • IT Operations
  • Customer workflows
  • Employee workflows
  • App development
  • AI/ML capabilities
  • Slack
  • Microsoft Teams

Only in Tenable Nessus

  • Network scanning
  • Vulnerability detection
  • Configuration assessment
  • Malware detection
  • Compliance checking
  • Cloud security assessment
  • Mobile scanning
  • API access

Both cover

  • AWS
  • Azure

What people use each for

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

ServiceNow

  • Enterprise IT managementnot Tenable Nessus
  • Digital transformationnot Tenable Nessus
  • Workflow automationnot Tenable Nessus

Tenable Nessus

  • Vulnerability scanning of servers, network devices and web applicationsnot ServiceNow
  • Configuration and compliance auditing against hardening benchmarksnot ServiceNow
  • Point in time assessments by consultants and penetration testersnot ServiceNow

Where each one falls short

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

ServiceNow

  • Listed on G-Cloud 14 by reseller UP3 Services Ltd at £81.00 per licence per month for ServiceNow

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

ServiceNow

On request
  • IT Service Management$undefined/month
    • Incident management
    • Problem management
    • Change management
  • IT Operations Management$undefined/month
    • Discovery
    • Service mapping
    • Event management
  • Customer Service Management$undefined/month
    • Omnichannel engagement
    • Self-service
    • 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 ServiceNow if

  • You need itsm.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want it operations.
ServiceNow review

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.
Tenable Nessus review

Questions people ask

Is ServiceNow or Tenable Nessus better?
Neither clearly leads. ServiceNow starts at On request and Tenable Nessus at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ServiceNow or Tenable Nessus?
Tenable Nessus has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for ServiceNow and Free for Tenable Nessus.
Does ServiceNow or Tenable Nessus run on more platforms?
ServiceNow runs on Web, Ios, Android. Tenable Nessus runs on Windows, Linux, Macos, Cloud.
Can I use Tenable Nessus for free?
Yes. Tenable Nessus has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. ServiceNow starts at On request.
What is ServiceNow best used for?
ServiceNow is most often used for enterprise it management, digital transformation, workflow automation. Of those, enterprise it management and digital transformation are not what Tenable Nessus is typically brought in for.
What can ServiceNow do that Tenable Nessus cannot?
ServiceNow covers ITSM, IT Operations, Customer workflows, Employee workflows. Tenable Nessus covers Network scanning, Vulnerability detection, Configuration assessment, Malware detection. Both handle AWS, Azure.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

ServiceNow: Does ServiceNow offer a free trial?

ServiceNow provides product trials and demos for prospects. Organizations can request a demo to see the platform capabilities for IT service management, customer service management, and business workflows.

Source
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.

Source
ServiceNow: How is ServiceNow priced?

ServiceNow uses subscription-based pricing with custom quotes based on the number of users and modules selected. Organizations must contact ServiceNow directly to receive pricing for their specific deployment needs.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
ServiceNow: What implementation support does ServiceNow provide?

ServiceNow offers professional services, customer success management, and training programs to help organizations maximize value from the platform. Implementation support is available through direct services teams and certified implementation partners.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
Tenable Nessus: How frequently are Nessus plugins updated?

Nessus plugins are updated daily, based on when vendors and security research sites publish new vulnerabilities.

Source
Tenable 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.

Source
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