Ghidra vs Hiew

Ghidra is a software reverse engineering framework maintained by the NSA Research Directorate. It analyzes compiled code with tools for disassembly, assembly, decompilation, graphing and scripting, and supports many processor instruction sets and executable formats. The framework can operate interactively or in automated workflows, including work intended to address team and scale needs in complex reverse engineering. Users can write extensions and scripts in Java or Python. Development options include a GhidraDev plugin for Eclipse and support for script editing and module projects in Visual Studio Code. The project describes compiled-code analysis on Windows, macOS and Linux. Installation requires a 64-bit JDK 25 and an official multi-platform release archive. Ghidra is free under the Apache License, Version 2.0, whose terms grant no-charge, royalty-free copyright and patent licenses. The repository warns that some versions have known security vulnerabilities and directs users to security advisories. Its policy directs vulnerability reports to GitHub private vulnerability reporting rather than public issues.

Hiew is a Windows console program for viewing and editing files of unlimited size in text, hex, and disassembler modes. Its maker describes it as a classic since 1991. Disassembly includes x86-64 with AVX instruction support and an ArmV6 disassembler. Listed executable formats include NE, LE, LX, PE/PE32+, little-endian ELF and ELF64, Mach-O, and TE/TE64. Users can follow direct calls and jumps with a click and search instruction patterns in disassembler mode. Other listed capabilities include block operations, multi-file search and replace, keyboard macros, Unicode and UTF-8, binary templates, scripting, disk editing, plugins, and HEM modules. The free demo omits editing, crypt, assembler, 64-bit and ARM disassembly, drive support, keyboard macros, and HEM support, among other restrictions. The single-version license costs $25 as a one-time purchase with no updates. Lifetime updates cost $249 as a one-time purchase; Hiewix 32-bits costs $59, paid once with free 1-year updates.