OWASP DefectDojo

OWASP DefectDojo brings security scanner findings into a shared process for prioritizing risk and tracking remediation. It is best suited to AppSec and DevSecOps teams coordinating results across multiple tools, particularly those that need self-hosting or air-gapped deployment. The free Community Edition is a substantial starting point; teams needing scheduled integrations, richer governance or vendor-backed support will need to weigh Pro’s added capabilities against its findings-based costs.

Overview

DefectDojo is a findings-management layer, not a replacement for the scanners that generate its input. It deduplicates results and supports remediation workflows, helping teams turn output from many tools into work they can track. That approach is useful when security findings otherwise remain scattered across scanners, but teams seeking a scanning product itself should look elsewhere.

The deployment options include self-hosting and air-gapping, with data export through a documented REST API. That flexibility suits organizations with tighter data-handling requirements, though those choosing to run it themselves take on the deployment responsibility that a hosted service would otherwise avoid.

Key features

DefectDojo says it natively integrates with more than 500 security tools across SAST, DAST, software composition analysis, cloud and container categories. Community Edition accepts those integrations through file import or API push; Pro offers more than 130 scheduled-pull connectors. The free routes cover broad intake, while scheduled pulls are a meaningful step up for teams that want findings refreshed without relying on manual imports or their own push workflows.

Pro enriches findings with EPSS and CISA KEV threat intelligence and supports risk prioritization tuned to assets. Triage rules can automate triage, closure and risk acceptance, and Sensei can ship fixes as pull requests. These capabilities are most relevant to teams handling enough findings to benefit from consistent, repeatable decisions. Pro Reachability remains labeled beta; its five verdicts have a ceiling that KEV overrides, so it should not be treated as an unqualified reachability signal.

Community Edition includes bi-directional Jira ticketing. Pro adds ticketing for GitHub, GitLab, Azure DevOps and ServiceNow, alongside SAML 2.0 or OIDC SSO, granular role-based access control, a full audit trail, SLA enforcement and audit-ready reporting. Those additions make Pro a better fit for organizations with formal governance and service commitments; a smaller team already comfortable with Jira may have less reason to upgrade.

The Trust Center covers SOC 2 Type 2, GDPR and the EU Cyber Resilience Act among its compliance areas. Pro support includes an SLA-backed service and a dedicated Customer Success Engineer; Community Edition support runs through OWASP Slack and GitHub. The distinction matters to teams that need a named support relationship, while community channels may suit teams able to resolve issues independently.

Pricing

Community Edition costs nothing, billed Free forever. It is the clearest fit for teams that can use file imports or API pushes, need Jira ticketing and can rely on OWASP Slack and GitHub support. It retains the broad integration intake, but gives up Pro’s scheduled-pull connectors, threat-intelligence enrichment, automation, expanded ticketing, governance features and SLA-backed support.

Pay As You Go costs $100 a month, billed $100 /mo plus $0.15 per finding processed, with no annual commitment. Sensei AI is billed per use. This plan gives teams a way to adopt paid capabilities without an annual commitment, but the per-finding charge means the total rises with processed volume, and Sensei use adds a separate variable cost.

Pre-Pay & Save has custom pricing: it is priced per month, billed annually on a one-year commitment, and starts in the low four figures a month. It is sized by findings volume, includes a Sensei AI allowance and uses custom agreement terms. More than 1 million findings per year requires a custom agreement. This is aimed at organizations prepared to commit annually for a volume-sized arrangement, not teams wanting a month-to-month entry point.

The pricing model is freemium, with a 14-day trial also offered. The trial length is the only stated trial term; no additional trial conditions are given.

Platforms

DefectDojo supports API, Linux, self-hosted and web platforms. Its hybrid deployment model, self-hosting and air-gap options suit teams that need control over where findings are handled. The documented REST API also supports data export, which is useful for organizations connecting the platform to their own systems.

Who it's for

AppSec and DevSecOps teams are the most natural fit when they need one place to consolidate findings from a varied scanner estate and coordinate remediation. Penetration testers, compliance teams, PSIRTs, SOCs and executives are also among the audiences the vendor describes. Pro is more compelling for organizations that need automated triage, broader ticketing, governance controls or dedicated support; teams with modest intake and Jira-centered workflows can begin with Community Edition.

Pros and cons

Broad scanner intake: More than 500 integrations across security-tool categories let teams consolidate findings without replacing their scanners.

Useful free starting point: Community Edition is free forever and includes the broad integration set through imports or API pushes, plus bi-directional Jira.

Deployment control: Self-hosting, air-gapping and REST API export suit teams with data-handling constraints.

Paid costs scale with activity: Pay As You Go adds $0.15 per finding processed to its monthly charge, with Sensei billed per use.

Important capabilities sit in Pro: Scheduled pulls, automated triage, expanded ticketing, governance and SLA-backed support are not part of the free edition.

Reachability is still beta: Its five verdicts have a stated ceiling, with KEV overriding that ceiling.

Alternatives

For a wider comparison, see Application Security Posture Management Software, Application Security Orchestration Platforms, Vulnerability Management Software and DevSecOps Platforms.

Ivanti Neurons for Zero Trust Access is a paid option with named-user licensing and broad mobile, desktop, Linux, self-hosted and web platform support; consider it when that access-oriented platform scope is a closer match than findings consolidation.

Strobes ASPM may suit teams looking for a freemium ASPM option: its free plan covers up to 100 assets and 500 tasks per month, with ASM, RBVM and ASPM, one connector and community support.

Arnica Secrets Security is another freemium choice, with a free annual plan covering weekly automated reports, secrets scanning, and SAST, SCA, IaC, licensing and reputation scans.

OX Security is a paid alternative with code, dependency, secrets, infrastructure-as-code, container and CI/CD security capabilities; it may fit readers seeking a broader set of scanning functions.

SecurStack offers a free plan capped at 500 scan credits per month, three users and ten projects, covering SAST, SCA and secrets. It is a more bounded option for small teams with limited monthly scanning needs.

Conviso Platform has a free plan for up to five contributing developers, five assets, ten users and two integrations, making those explicit caps relevant to smaller teams comparing entry-level options.

Phoenix Security offers a free plan for up to 1,000 assets, two premium users plus guests, community support and dashboard reporting; consider it when those asset and user allowances fit the intended deployment.

apPosture API Security is a paid option with a free trial and an Essentials plan priced at $35 a year, billed $35 / dev · mo annually. Its listed coverage spans SAST, SCA, secrets, IaC, containers and API security, with DAST as a per-URL add-on.

Verdict

Choose OWASP DefectDojo if your team needs to consolidate findings from many scanners, coordinate remediation and retain control over deployment, with a free edition that supports broad intake and Jira. Its main advantage is the combination of scanner coverage, deduplication and workflow support; its main drawback is that richer automation, governance and integrations sit behind paid plans whose costs can rise with findings volume. Teams needing those Pro controls should compare the per-finding economics with their expected workload, while teams seeking a scanner rather than a findings-management layer should look elsewhere.