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Atlantis vs Nessus Comparison

Last updated:

Atlantis

4.5(290 reviews)

Starting at Free free

  • Small Business
  • Mid-Market

Atlantis is an open-source Terraform pull request automation tool that runs Terraform plan and apply operations from GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket pull requests. When a PR is opened touching Terraform files, Atlantis aut…

Nessus

4.3(144 reviews)

Starting at $2,790 /Year

  • Free Trial
  • Large Enterprises
  • Medium Business

Nessus is a vulnerability scanner of its kind, giving user a complete picture of organization's security status. Instantly scan thousands of systems for the latest vulnerabilities and react to them in real time. Nessus m…

Atlantis leads on user satisfaction with a 4.5-star rating across 290 reviews.

Atlantis vs Nessus — at a glance

FeatureAtlantisNessus
Rating4.5 / 54.3 / 5
Reviews290144
Starting priceFree free$2,790 /Year
Free trial No Yes
Free version No No
Best forSmall Business, Mid-Market, EnterpriseLarge Enterprises, Medium Business, Small Business
CategoryCloud Management PlatformVulnerability Management Software
PlatformsOn-Premise, Linux, CloudSaaS/Web/Cloud, Installed - Windows, Installed - Mac
APIAvailable
Support modesGitHub Issues, Community Slack, Documentation24/7 (Live rep), Online
Data residencyUS

Key differences between Atlantis and Nessus

  • Pricing: Atlantis starts at Free free, while Nessus starts at $2,790 /Year.
  • Free trial: Nessus offers a free trial; Atlantis does not.
  • Target audience: Atlantis is built for Small Business and Mid-Market, while Nessus targets Large Enterprises and Medium Business.
  • User satisfaction: Atlantis scores higher with a 4.5-star average.
  • Deployment: Atlantis supports On-Premise, Linux, Cloud; Nessus supports SaaS/Web/Cloud, Installed - Windows, Installed - Mac.

Atlantis vs Nessus — find the better fit before you commit.

01

Which tool fits your team best

02

Which is actually cheaper for your team size

03

Where each product wins, per real buyers

Most Cloud Management Platform tools look identical on paper. This comparison cuts to the differences that matter — pricing structure, team fit, and what real buyers found after signing up.

Atlantis logo
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Nessus - Vulnerability Management Software
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Atlantis vs Nessus: Biggest differences

Start here before you go deeper into features.

Atlantis

Best for

Small Business, Mid-Market, Enterprise

Nessus

Best for comprehensive, flexible vulnerability scanning across diverse IT environments.

Choose if
  • You need accurate, up-to-date vulnerability detection with automated scanning and reporting.
  • Your team values a user-friendly interface that supports both agent-based and credentialed scans.
  • You require scalable vulnerability management with flexible licensing for any organization size.
Consider alternatives if
  • You need extensive third-party integrations beyond core vulnerability scanning capabilities.
  • Your workflows demand highly customizable reporting without complex setup or cumbersome configuration.

Atlantis typically suits Small Business and Mid-Market. Nessus tends to fit Large Enterprises and Medium Business better. The right choice depends on your team size, workflow, and whether a free trial matters.

Description

Atlantis is an open-source Terraform pull request automation tool that runs Terraform plan and apply operations from GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket pull requests. When a PR is opened ... Read More about Atlantis

Nessus is a vulnerability scanner of its kind, giving user a complete picture of organization's security status. Instantly scan thousands of systems for the latest vulnerabilities and react ... Read More about Nessus

Entry Level Pricing

  • Starts from Free
  • Starts from $2,790

Free Trial Availability

  • No free trial

SpotScore

What's this? ↗

9.0/10

Not Available

User Ratings

Based on verified Spotsaas reviews

4.34

(144)

Best Company Size

Small BusinessLarge Enterprises
Get pricing help
Get pricing help

Where each option fits best

See where each product is strongest, which teams it fits, and what causes buyers to keep looking — before you commit.

Based on buyer reviews and verified product data collected by Spotsaas.

Strengths

Key strengths

Atlantis

  • Terraform Review in the Code Review: Plan output in PR comments means reviewers see infrastructure changes alongside code changes — keeping IaC review in the existing GitHub workflow.
  • Zero State Corruption: Workspace locking serializes applies — only one apply runs per workspace at a time, preventing the concurrent-apply state corruption that plagues team Terraform.
  • Audit Trail in Git: Every plan and apply is tied to a PR, commit, and GitHub user — complete audit history of who changed what infrastructure and when.

Nessus

No key benefits available yet.

Best fit

Best fit

Atlantis

  • DevOps teams implementing Terraform PR workflows without the operational overhead of Terraform Cloud or managed platforms
  • Engineering teams preventing concurrent Terraform state corruption through workspace locking in multi-engineer environments
  • Platform teams providing developers self-service infrastructure deployment via PR-comment-driven apply without giving direct Terraform access

Nessus

No best-fit guidance available yet.

Software Demo

Demo

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Step 1 of 4

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How do Atlantis and Nessus Compare on Features?

Total Features

3 Features

6 Features

Unique Features

No unique features

No unique features

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Compare Atlantis and Nessus on pricing

Review starting price, plan structure, and free-trial access side by side so you can see which option fits your budget and buying process.

Pricing Option

      Starting From

      • Free
      • $2,790

      Pricing Plans

      • Open Source

        Free

        • Full features

        • Apache 2.0

        • Self-hosted

        Show more +

      • Not Available

      Pricing Page

      Pricing information not available

      Nessus pricing

      Atlantis vs Nessus: Other Details

      Organization Types supported

      • Large Enterprises
      • Medium Business
      • Small Business
      • Individuals
      • Large Enterprises
      • Medium Business
      • Small Business
      • Individuals

      Platforms Supported

      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Installed - Windows
      • Installed - Mac
      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Installed - Windows
      • Installed - Mac
      • Browser Based (Cloud)

      Modes of support

      • 24/7 (Live rep)
      • Business Hours
      • Online
      • 24/7 (Live rep)
      • Business Hours
      • Online

      API Support

      • Available
      • Not Available
      Get help choosing
      Get help choosing

      Atlantis vs Nessus Security & Compliance

      Certifications, data handling, and security controls for IT and compliance evaluators.

      Data Residency

      🇺🇸 US

      Atlantis User Reviews & Rating Comparison

      User Ratings

      4.5

      (based on 290 reviews)

      Rating Distribution

      0

      0

      0

      0

      0

      125

      53

      6

      0

      1

      Spotsaas Editor’s POV generated by AI

      Buyer sentiment

      Buyer sentiment is very strong across 290 reviews, with consistently positive feedback.

      What buyers like

      • Free and open-source (Apache 2.0) with thousands of production deployments — the most battle-tested Terraform PR automation workflow available.
      • PR-comment-driven workflow (`atlantis plan`, `atlantis apply`) is simple, auditable, and requires no new UI to learn — all workflow happens in the existing code review process.
      • Workspace locking prevents concurrent applies to the same Terraform workspace — the most common cause of Terraform state corruption in team environments.

      Common complaints

      • Self-hosted only — requires a server to run Atlantis and webhook configuration for each repository, with ongoing maintenance responsibility.
      • Does not scale as cleanly as managed platforms for very large numbers of stacks — teams with 100+ stacks often outgrow Atlantis and move to Spacelift or Terraform Cloud.

      Buyer sentiment

      Overall positive sentiment highlights Nessus’s strong vulnerability detection and user-friendly interface, tempered by occasional scan inconsistencies and limited marketplace options.

      What buyers like

      • Ease of use
      • Comprehensive vulnerability coverage
      • Automation and reporting

      Common complaints

      • Scan time inconsistency
      • Limited marketplace integrations

      Pros and Cons

      • Free and open-source (Apache 2.0) with thousands of production deployments — the most battle-tested Terraform PR automation workflow available.

      • PR-comment-driven workflow (`atlantis plan`, `atlantis apply`) is simple, auditable, and requires no new UI to learn — all workflow happens in the existing code review process.

      • Workspace locking prevents concurrent applies to the same Terraform workspace — the most common cause of Terraform state corruption in team environments.

      • Self-hosted only — requires a server to run Atlantis and webhook configuration for each repository, with ongoing maintenance responsibility.

      • Does not scale as cleanly as managed platforms for very large numbers of stacks — teams with 100+ stacks often outgrow Atlantis and move to Spacelift or Terraform Cloud.

      • Comprehensive and accurate vulnerability detection with regularly updated plugin repository

      • User-friendly interface with automated scanning and reporting that boosts productivity

      • Supports both agent-based and credentials-based scanning implementations

      • Scan times and results can be inconsistent at times

      • Limited marketplace options for additional apps and connectors

      Positive Reviews

      No reviews available for the product

      No reviews available for the product

      Used Atlantis or Nessus? Tell buyers what actually differs.

      Atlantis and Nessus Customers

      Customers

      No Customers information available.

      VMware

      VMware

      DocuSign

      DocuSign

      American Eagle Outfitters

      American Eagle Outfitters

      Media and Screenshots

      Screenshots

      No screenshots available.

      Nessus Plugins

      5 Screenshots

      Videos

      No videos available.

      video-0

      3 Videos

      Top Alternatives to Atlantis and Nessus in 2026

      Alternatives

      No Alternative products available.

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      Disclaimer: This research has been collated from a variety of authoritative sources. We welcome your feedback at [email protected].

      Frequently asked questions

      Which is better, Atlantis or Nessus?
      Atlantis edges out the other on user ratings (4.5 vs 4.3). That said, the best pick depends on your use case — use the comparison tables above to evaluate each dimension.
      Do Atlantis and Nessus offer a free trial?
      Nessus offers a free trial. Atlantis does not.
      What is the starting price of Atlantis vs Nessus?
      Atlantis starts at Free free. Nessus starts at $2,790 /Year.
      What are the top alternatives to Nessus?
      Top alternatives to Nessus include Tenable.io, BeyondTrust Vulnerability Management, Qualys VM, Microsoft Threat Vulnerability Management, Flexera Software Vulnerability Management.