XBOW vs NodeZero

XBOW and NodeZero side by side: what each one is, what it costs to start, and whether you can try it free. Everything below comes from the vendors' own sites and other public sources, not from hands-on testing.

At a glance

Prices are in US dollars unless shown otherwise. Confirm the current price on the vendor's site before you buy.

Key differences

Neither lists a free tier, so expect to pay to use either one.

Pricing is not directly comparable from the numbers we hold (XBOW: Custom pricing; NodeZero: Custom pricing), so check each vendor's pricing page.

Both are in our Cybersecurity AI category.

About each tool

X

XBOW

Autonomous AI pentesting platform for web apps and APIs that returns exploit-validated findings with remediation steps; pricing is not published (request a quote).

Who it is for

Security, audit and compliance teams that want continuous application testing instead of a point-in-time annual pentest; the vendor says coverage can range from a single application to thousands. The vendor describes it as a platform sold on a scoped, usage basis, so it is aimed at organizations that will talk to sales rather than self-serve buyers.

Strengths

• XBOW says each finding is proven with a working exploit and a reproducible trace, with independent validators confirming it, and reports include evidence, severity and remediation.
• The platform page lists controls for scope, impact level (off, moderate or deep), rate limits, testing windows, a one-session-at-a-time mode, optional human approval for the first run, and pause at any time.
• The platform page lists Jira and GitHub issues as ticketing targets and an API to launch assessments from release pipelines; the docs list Jira, Microsoft Sentinel and Security Copilot integrations.
• XBOW's docs say attack commands are checked by a separate AI model acting as a safety judge plus deterministic rules, and that exploits are demonstrated in known-benign ways.
• XBOW says it retests a fix after deployment and confirms whether the issue is closed.
• The pricing page says it is sold through AWS, Google, Oracle and Microsoft marketplaces so spend can use existing committed agreements.

Limitations

• The pricing page lists no plans or amounts: pricing is described as usage-based and scoped to your environment, with a Request a Quote button and a demo page.
• A November 2025 release and vendor blog give a Pentest On-Demand starting price of $6,000, but the blog now carries an editor's note that Lightspeed (the name in its title) was deprecated as of 2026-07-16 and to contact sales, so that figure may no longer be available.
• No free plan or free trial is mentioned on the pricing page.
• XBOW's trust documentation says the platform is hosted on AWS in the United States, with other residency options in private preview, and that retention follows a Data Management Policy that was not read, so specific retention periods are unconfirmed.
• The platform page says it routes tasks across multiple models but names none, and says some vulnerability classes are in preview rather than generally available.

XBOW profileVisit site ↗

N

NodeZero

Autonomous pentesting platform from Horizon3.ai using graph reasoning, ML and scoped GenAI; list prices start at $15 per asset per test (Flex), sold by quote.

Who it is for

Security and IT teams and pentesters who want to test internal, external, cloud, Kubernetes, Active Directory and web app environments, once or on a schedule. The vendor also lists federal and compliance-related pages, and a partner portal and tech alliances program.

Strengths

• Horizon3.ai says internal tests run from a free Docker host or OVA appliance with an execution script, and external tests run automatically from its cloud with no local setup.
• The packaging page lists Flex features such as internal, external, cloud, Kubernetes, AD password audit, insider threat and phishing impact testing, plus Fix Actions with one-click verify.
• The vendor says it uses graph-based reasoning for attack planning, classical ML to classify files, and scoped GenAI for tasks such as High-Value Targeting, next-step suggestions, file content analysis, web app logic checks and a chat over a live test.
• The vendor says NodeZero never uses GenAI to create or execute exploits, that every action is deterministic and pre-validated, and that GenAI runs on models hosted in AWS Bedrock.
• Horizon3.ai's data-handling factsheet says customer data is not shared with model providers or used to train models, data is encrypted in transit with mutually authenticated TLS, and sensitive test data is scrubbed within 5 business days.
• The packaging page lists Premium Support options (Standard included with every subscription) and a WebApp pentesting add-on, and the NodeZero page links an MCP Server product page.

Limitations

• Pricing is per asset and sold by quote. Packaging page list prices are $15 (Flex), $50 (Core), $65 (Pro) and $85 (Elite) per asset, in USD, and actual contract terms are set through sales.
• The packaging page labels Core, Pro and Elite prices 'per asset, per test' but its text says each asset counts once a year however often it is tested, and Flex counts assets each time they are tested. The page does not reconcile the two.
• Scheduling and Threat Informed Perspectives start at Core, Tripwires and Rapid Response at Pro, and Risk-Based Exposure Management, High-Value Targeting, Advanced Data Pilfering and threat actor intelligence at Elite.
• Web app pentesting is a separate add-on: WebApp Flex is $10,000 per app on a 12-month prepaid pool, and WebApp Continuous is per-app custom pricing. Enhanced support is 10% of the annual subscription ($7,500 minimum) and Premier is 20% ($25,000 minimum).

NodeZero profileVisit site ↗

Keep comparing

• Burp Suite vs XBOW

All comparisons · Browse the full directory →