Chef InSpec vs Kubescape
Chef InSpec
docs.chef.io
Kubescape
kubescape.ioSide by side
| Figure | Chef InSpec | Kubescape |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $4.92/mo | $30/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 8 | 6 |
| Spec score · Security Configuration Management Software | 9.4 (#1) | 9.1 (#3) |
| Integrations | The kitchen-inspec verifier lets users run InSpec profiles through Test Kitchen. | Documented integrations include GitHub, GitLab CI/CD, Lens and Visual Studio Code. |
| Purpose | Chef InSpec tests and audits applications and infrastructure by comparing their actual state with a desired state expressed in InSpec code. | Kubescape is an open-source Kubernetes security platform for end-to-end security coverage. |
| Rating on G2 | 4.2 out of 5 from 105 reviews | 4.5 out of 5 from 44 reviews |
| Self-hosting | InSpec runs locally or against remote targets and can be installed as a native package, Habitat package or Ruby-based source distribution. | The operator is installed with Helm and runs as Kubernetes microservices inside the customer cluster. |
| Support | The licensing page lists community Slack support for Free and Trial tiers and contract support for Commercial licenses. | The project says it aims to respond to issues within 48 hours and provides CNCF Slack users and developers channels. |
| Telemetry | The Chef Licensing Telemetry service gathers activation, usage, environment, and bug data for InSpec and is enabled for free and trial tiers, but not commercial users. | Optional OpenTelemetry support can send component metrics to a collector and user-selected tracing backend. |
| What it does | Chef InSpec is a framework and rule language that tests applications and infrastructure against desired security, compliance and policy states, reporting violations for users to remediate. | Kubescape is an open-source Kubernetes security platform covering configuration, vulnerability, compliance, policy and runtime security. |
Plans
Chef InSpec
- FreeFree
- FreeFree
- TrialFree
- TrialFree
- Business$59 a year
- Enterprise$189 a year
- CommercialPriced on request
- Enterprise PlusPriced on request
Kubescape
- ARMO Platform FreeFree
- Kubescape open sourceFree
- Kubescape Open SourceFree
- ARMO Platform Startup$30 a month
- ARMO PlatformPriced on request
- ARMO Platform EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
Chef InSpec
Chef InSpec tests and audits applications and infrastructure against a desired state described in InSpec code. Its runtime framework and rule language express compliance, security and policy requirements. Reusable profiles group controls and can include versioning, platform requirements and dependencies. Resources support testing AWS, Azure, AliCloud and GCP infrastructure, and users can create custom resources. Tests can run locally or against cloud services and infrastructure such as Linux in Docker containers. Results can be exported as JSON, HTML or plain text, or sent to Chef Automate. The kitchen-inspec verifier also runs profiles through Test Kitchen. Chef offers premium CIS- and STIG-based profiles for compliance scanning. The free tier is for non-production workloads and personal, non-commercial use; the 30-day trial is for product evaluation under non-production conditions. Commercial licensing covers production and non-production workloads, with entitlements based on purchase order. Chef InSpec 7 requires EULA acceptance, and license-key requirements depend on the distribution source. Telemetry is enabled for free and trial tiers, but not commercial users.
Kubescape
Kubescape is an open-source platform for Kubernetes security across configuration, images, compliance, and activity in running clusters. It analyzes Kubernetes manifests, Helm charts, and live clusters for misconfigurations. Its operator scans deployed container images for vulnerabilities using Grype and public vulnerability databases, and monitors active clusters for suspicious behavior and threats. Kubescape supports CIS, NSA-CISA, MITRE ATT&CK, and SOC 2 frameworks. Its policy engine uses Open Policy Agent to evaluate Kubernetes objects against posture controls written in Rego; the operator runs as microservices that continuously monitor cluster posture. Integrations are available for GitHub, GitLab CI/CD, Lens, and Visual Studio Code. The CLI can download artifacts for local use, including in offline and air-gapped environments. Results can be exported as JSON or JUnit XML or rendered as HTML or PDF. The CLI and Kubernetes operator are self-hosted and free under Apache License 2.0. ARMO Platform is a compatible provider for uploading scan results and downloading custom artifacts; its price depends on vCPUs and other cloud resources.