Comparison · Vexta
Vexta vs Burp Suite: an honest comparison.
Burp Suite (PortSwigger) is the dominant manual web application security testing tool - used by professional pentesters. Vexta is a different product class: an automated scanner with CI/CD integration that any developer can run. They complement more than they compete.
This Vexta vs Burp Suite comparison is built from first-hand work: customers who have used both, engineers who have written exploits against the same target with each scanner, and procurement teams who have negotiated both contracts. No paid placements, no affiliate links - we sell Vexta, so the bias is disclosed, but every row below is verifiable from public Burp Suite documentation.
Pick Vexta if
You want unattended continuous scanning that fits in CI/CD with no specialized pentester required.
Pick Burp Suite if
You have a dedicated pentester or app-sec engineer doing exploratory manual testing of web apps and APIs.
There is no single right answer in a Vexta vs Burp Suite decision. Both products solve the same surface problem - finding vulnerabilities before an attacker does - but they make different bets about who is operating the tool, how much manual review is acceptable, and what the report has to look like for downstream auditors.
The honest test is this: download both, point them at the same target, and compare the findings 48 hours later. We offer that as a paid pilot with Vexta. If you want the same from Burp Suite, ask their sales team for a free trial credit - most will accommodate.
Side-by-side
Vexta vs Burp Suite: feature comparison
| Feature | Vexta | Burp Suite |
|---|---|---|
| Continuous automated scanning Burp Enterprise has scheduled scans; Pro is manual. | ✓ | ∼ |
| CI/CD-native integration | ✓ | ∼ |
| Manual exploitation workflow (intercept, repeater, intruder) Burp is the gold standard for this. | ✕ | ✓ |
| AI-triaged findings | ✓ | ✕ |
| External + internal + app + SBOM in one tool Burp focuses on web apps. | ✓ | ∼ |
| CVE matching against dependencies | ✓ | ✕ |
| Self-host option | ✓ | ✓ |
| No-cost tier | Generous free tier | Burp Community is limited |
| Onboarding effort | Minutes - single binary | Hours - pentester knowledge required |
Common questions
Should we use Vexta INSTEAD of Burp Suite?
Probably not - they're complementary tools. Vexta is for continuous unattended scanning across your whole attack surface. Burp is for a pentester doing focused manual app testing. Mature security teams use both: Vexta running 24×7 across CI/CD, Burp during quarterly pentest engagements.
Does Vexta find the same things Burp does?
For the OWASP Top 10 automated checks - yes, broadly. For complex business-logic flaws, race conditions, or authorization bypasses that require an analyst to chain steps together - no, that needs a pentester running Burp. If you have no in-house security expertise, Vexta covers the 80%; if you have a pentester, Burp covers the long tail.
Can Vexta scan single-page apps (SPAs) and APIs?
Yes. Vexta crawls SPAs with a headless browser and supports REST, GraphQL, and gRPC APIs via OpenAPI spec import or proxy capture. For unusual authentication flows, you can record a login session and have Vexta replay it before scanning.
What's the pricing comparison?
Vexta has a generous free tier and paid plans from $49/mo. Burp Pro is $475/year per user (single seat), Burp Enterprise starts at $7k+ depending on scan volume. Different tools, different pricing models - they're hard to compare directly.
Try Vexta on one target.
No agents to install, no card to enter, no SDR call. Free tier covers single-target scanning indefinitely.