Best Burp Suite Alternatives in 2026: Free & Paid Options

Key Takeaways

Burp Suite Pro costs ~$475/year per user; the free Community Edition has throttled scanning and no automated scanner, pushing teams toward ZAP (fully free) or StackHawk (freemium).
ZAP provides an intercepting proxy, automated scanner, and YAML automation framework for CI/CD at zero cost with 14,700+ GitHub stars.
Invicti's proof-based scanning verifies vulnerabilities at 99.98% accuracy, virtually eliminating false positive triage that Burp Suite users handle manually.
StackHawk wraps ZAP's engine with YAML configuration, reporting 20-minute setup from signup to first CI/CD scan with 3-10 minute scan times.
Dastardly from PortSwigger uses the Burp Scanner engine for free in CI/CD Docker containers with a 10-minute scan cap and zero configuration.

Why Look for Burp Suite Alternatives?

The best Burp Suite alternatives in 2026 are ZAP, Nuclei, Acunetix, Invicti, StackHawk, Bright Security, Dastardly, and Nikto.

Burp Suite is the standard toolkit for web application security testing. Pre-installed in Kali Linux, taught in every web security course, and widely used by professional pentesters.

Its intercepting proxy, manual testing tools, and extensible scanner make it hard to match for hands-on security work.

But not every team needs a hands-on pentesting toolkit. The most common reason organizations look for alternatives is that they need automated DAST scanning in CI/CD pipelines, not manual testing.

Burp Suite Professional is a desktop application designed for individual pentesters. While Burp Suite DAST (the enterprise edition) supports CI/CD, it carries enterprise pricing that may not fit smaller teams or those just starting with automated security testing.

Cost is a real factor. Burp Suite Professional costs ~$475/year per user.

The Community Edition is free but severely limited — throttled scanning, no project saves, and no automated scanner. Teams that need automated scanning for multiple developers face either the Professional per-seat cost or the enterprise DAST pricing.

Some teams also find that Burp Suite’s strength in manual testing is irrelevant to their workflow.

If you need a DAST scanner that runs in a Docker container, integrates with GitHub Actions, and returns results in JUnit format, you do not need an intercepting proxy.

A developer-focused DAST tool can deliver automated scanning at a fraction of the complexity.

Top Burp Suite Alternatives

1. ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy)

ZAP is the open-source counterpart to Burp Suite. Maintained by Checkmarx (previously an OWASP project) with 14,700+ GitHub stars, it provides an intercepting proxy, automated scanner, spider, fuzzer, and WebSocket support. ZAP’s automation framework supports YAML-based configuration for CI/CD integration.

The feature overlap with Burp Suite Professional is significant. ZAP offers both manual and automated testing, a marketplace of add-ons, and API scanning for REST, GraphQL, and SOAP.

Where Burp wins on polish and scanner depth, ZAP wins on cost (free) and transparency (fully open-source).

Best for: Teams that want Burp Suite capabilities without the license cost, or those who need full source code visibility into their scanning engine. License: Open-source (Apache 2.0) Key difference: Completely free and open-source. YAML automation framework for CI/CD. Active community with regular updates.

ZAP review

2. Nuclei

Nuclei is a template-based vulnerability scanner with 11,000+ community-contributed detection templates. Instead of crawling an application and probing dynamically, Nuclei runs specific checks defined in YAML templates. This makes it fast, deterministic, and easy to extend.

The scanner supports HTTP, DNS, TCP, SSL, WebSocket, and headless browser protocols. AI-powered template generation helps create custom templates from CVE descriptions.

Nuclei is widely used for reconnaissance, vulnerability validation, and known-CVE detection.

Best for: Security teams that want fast, template-driven scanning for known vulnerabilities and misconfigurations. License: Open-source (MIT) Key difference: Template-based approach with 11,000+ community templates. Faster than traditional DAST crawlers. Does not replace manual testing tools.

Nuclei review

3. Acunetix

Acunetix is a commercial DAST scanner known for its 99.98% accuracy claim and 7,000+ vulnerability checks. The Business Logic Recorder captures multi-step workflows for testing complex application flows. AI-powered Predictive Risk Scoring prioritizes findings by exploitability.

The AcuSensor IAST agent can be installed alongside DAST scanning for combined coverage. Acunetix supports both web application and API scanning, with reporting formatted for PCI DSS, HIPAA, and other compliance frameworks.

Best for: Organizations that need highly accurate automated scanning with compliance-ready reporting. License: Commercial Key difference: 99.98% accuracy with Business Logic Recorder for complex workflows. Built-in compliance reporting. No manual testing tools.

Acunetix review

4. Invicti

Invicti (formerly Netsparker) uses proof-based scanning to verify vulnerabilities with minimal false positives. When it finds a potential issue, it attempts to confirm exploitation and provides proof that the vulnerability is real. This dramatically reduces triage time.

The platform combines DAST, IAST, and SCA in one tool and scales to scan thousands of applications. Invicti claims 8x faster scanning than competitors and provides AI-powered remediation guidance.

Best for: Large organizations scanning many applications that need verified findings with minimal false positives. License: Commercial Key difference: Proof-based scanning confirms vulnerabilities are real, not theoretical. Scales to thousands of applications.

Invicti review

5. StackHawk

StackHawk is built for developers and CI/CD. Powered by the ZAP engine underneath, it wraps that scanning capability in a developer-friendly interface with YAML configuration, fast setup (20 minutes from signup to first CI/CD scan), and scan times of 3-10 minutes.

StackHawk supports REST, GraphQL, gRPC, and SOAP API testing. HawkAI provides API discovery, and the platform includes LLM security testing for AI-powered applications.

It integrates with GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins, CircleCI, and Azure DevOps.

Best for: Developer teams that want fast, automated DAST in CI/CD without the complexity of traditional security tools. License: Freemium Key difference: Developer-first UX with 20-minute setup. YAML-based configuration. Built on ZAP engine with a polished interface.

StackHawk review

6. Bright Security

Bright Security (formerly NeuraLegion) is a developer-focused DAST tool designed for CI/CD integration. It runs from a Docker container or CLI, supports HAR file import and OpenAPI/Swagger specs for API discovery, and uses AI-powered vulnerability validation to keep false positives under 3%.

The platform supports REST, GraphQL, SOAP, and WebSocket APIs. Scan results map directly to developer workflows with remediation guidance and code snippets.

Best for: API-heavy teams that want automated DAST with very low false positive rates. License: Freemium Key difference: AI-powered validation keeps false positives under 3%. Strong API scanning with OpenAPI/Swagger support.

Bright Security review

7. Dastardly

Dastardly is PortSwigger’s free CI/CD scanner. It uses the Burp Scanner engine in a Docker container, runs scans capped at 10 minutes, and outputs JUnit XML.

Zero configuration required — point it at a URL and it scans.

The tool is deliberately limited in scope. It covers a subset of Burp Suite’s vulnerability checks and has no manual testing capabilities.

But for teams that want a free, fast sanity check in CI/CD using a trusted scanning engine, Dastardly fills that gap.

Best for: Teams that want a free CI/CD DAST gate using the Burp Scanner engine, with zero configuration. License: Free Key difference: Same Burp Scanner engine, free, Docker-based, 10-minute cap. No manual testing. Limited vulnerability coverage compared to full Burp Suite.

Dastardly review

8. Nikto

Nikto is a fast, no-frills web server scanner that checks for 7,000+ potentially dangerous files, scripts, and server misconfigurations. It has been around since the early 2000s and is pre-installed in Kali Linux alongside Burp Suite.

Nikto focuses on server-level issues rather than application-level vulnerabilities. It checks for outdated server versions, dangerous default files, and common misconfigurations.

The tool runs from the command line and outputs HTML, XML, JSON, CSV, and plain text.

Best for: Quick server-level reconnaissance and misconfiguration checks during penetration tests. License: Open-source (GPL-2.0) Key difference: Server-focused rather than application-focused. Fast reconnaissance tool, not a comprehensive DAST scanner.

Nikto review

Feature Comparison

Feature	Burp Suite Pro	ZAP	Nuclei	Acunetix	Invicti	StackHawk	Dastardly
License	~$475/yr	Open-source	Open-source	Commercial	Commercial	Freemium	Free
Manual testing	Full toolkit	Yes	No	No	Limited	No	No
Intercepting proxy	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
Automated scanner	Yes	Yes	Template-based	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes (limited)
API scanning	Yes	REST, GraphQL, SOAP	HTTP, DNS, TCP	Yes	Yes	REST, GraphQL, gRPC, SOAP	Limited
CI/CD native	DAST edition	YAML automation	CLI-native	Yes	Yes	Core feature	Core feature
Extensions	500+ BApps	Add-ons marketplace	11,000+ templates	Limited	Limited	Limited	None
False positive handling	Manual triage	Manual triage	Template precision	99.98% accuracy	Proof-based	ZAP engine	Low rate
AI features	Burp AI	No	AI template generation	Predictive Risk Scoring	AI remediation	HawkAI	No

When to Stay with Burp Suite

Burp Suite remains the right choice in several scenarios:

You do manual penetration testing. Nothing matches Burp Suite’s combination of intercepting proxy, Repeater, Intruder, and Comparer for hands-on web security work. ZAP is the closest, but Burp Suite Professional is more polished and catches more edge cases.
You need Burp Collaborator for out-of-band testing. Collaborator detects blind SSRF, blind XSS, and other out-of-band vulnerabilities that most automated scanners miss entirely. This capability has no direct equivalent in most alternatives.
The BApp ecosystem matters to your workflow. With 500+ extensions covering JWT manipulation, authorization testing, content discovery, and more, the BApp Store extends Burp Suite in ways that are hard to replicate.
Your team already knows Burp Suite. It is the most documented and taught web security tool in the world. Training materials, tutorials, and PortSwigger’s Web Security Academy provide a learning ecosystem that no alternative matches.
You need both manual and automated testing. Burp Suite Professional combines manual tools with an automated scanner. If your workflow involves manual exploration followed by targeted scanning, this integrated approach saves time compared to switching between tools.

For detailed reviews of each alternative, browse the AppSec Santa DAST tools category.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best free alternative to Burp Suite?

ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy) is the most complete free alternative. It is open-source under Apache 2.0, offers both manual testing tools and automated scanning, and has a large community and plugin ecosystem. Nuclei is another strong free option for automated scanning with its template-based approach and 11,000+ community templates. Dastardly from PortSwigger is free for CI/CD-only scanning using the Burp Scanner engine.

Is ZAP as good as Burp Suite Professional?

ZAP covers much of what Burp Suite Professional offers: intercepting proxy, automated scanner, fuzzer, and extensibility. Burp Suite Professional generally has a more polished interface, catches more vulnerability types in head-to-head tests, and has deeper manual testing tools like Collaborator for out-of-band detection. ZAP is fully free and open-source, which makes it the better choice for teams on a budget or those that want full transparency into the scanning engine.

Which Burp Suite alternative is best for CI/CD pipelines?

StackHawk, Dastardly, and Bright Security are all designed specifically for CI/CD integration. StackHawk reports 20-minute setup from signup to first scan in CI/CD. Dastardly is free and uses the Burp Scanner engine in a Docker container with a 10-minute scan cap. Bright Security offers Docker-based scanning with low false positive rates. Burp Suite DAST (the enterprise edition) also supports CI/CD but at enterprise pricing.

Can Nuclei replace Burp Suite for automated scanning?

Nuclei excels at running known vulnerability checks against targets using its 11,000+ community templates. It is fast, scriptable, and great for reconnaissance and known-CVE detection. However, Nuclei does not replace Burp Suite’s manual testing capabilities (intercepting proxy, Repeater, Intruder) or its dynamic crawling and active scanning engine. Most security teams use Nuclei alongside Burp Suite rather than as a replacement.

What is the best Burp Suite alternative for API security testing?

StackHawk and Bright Security both specialize in API security testing with support for REST, GraphQL, gRPC, and SOAP APIs. StackHawk uses YAML configuration to define API endpoints and authentication. Bright Security supports OpenAPI/Swagger specifications for automated API discovery. For manual API testing, Burp Suite Professional remains the standard due to its proxy and Repeater tools.

Suphi Cankurt

AppSec Enthusiast

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10+ years in application security. Reviews and compares 170 AppSec tools across 11 categories to help teams pick the right solution. More about me →