KubeArmor vs Kubescape
KubeArmor
kubearmor.io
Kubescape
kubescape.ioSide by side
| Figure | KubeArmor | Kubescape |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $30/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 6 |
| Spec score · Kubernetes Security Software | 8.6 (#3) | 9.1 (#1) |
| Spec score · Container Security Software | 8.6 (#4) | 9.1 (#1) |
| Deployment | The support matrix documents Kubernetes, non-Kubernetes container, virtual-machine, and bare-metal workload deployments. | The CLI supports offline and air-gapped operation by downloading artifacts for local use. |
| Founded | 2020 | 2021 |
| Integrations | Project repositories include OpenTelemetry, Prometheus, Kafka, Grafana, ELK dashboards, a GitHub Action, and a Rancher UI extension. | Documented integrations include GitHub, GitLab CI/CD, Lens and Visual Studio Code. |
| Purpose | KubeArmor is an open-source, cloud-native runtime security system that hardens workloads and enforces security policies. | Kubescape is an open-source Kubernetes security platform for end-to-end security coverage. |
| Support | Project-level questions can be directed to the maintainer group by email, CNCF Slack, GitHub Discussions, or GitHub Issues. | The project says it aims to respond to issues within 48 hours and provides CNCF Slack users and developers channels. |
| What it does | KubeArmor is a cloud-native runtime security enforcement system that restricts process execution, file access, and networking operations for pods, containers, and nodes. | Kubescape is an open-source Kubernetes security platform covering configuration, vulnerability, compliance, policy and runtime security. |
Plans
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
KubeArmor
KubeArmor is an open-source runtime security system for enforcing policies on cloud-native workloads. It uses Linux Security Modules such as AppArmor, SELinux, and BPF-LSM, with eBPF for alerts, telemetry, and container-process tracking. Policies can restrict process execution, file access, networking operations, and resource use. Container policies support Allow, Audit, and Block actions, with Block as the default; system-call monitoring is audit-only. Kubernetes policies can target pods through labels and label expressions, and rules can match paths, network protocols, capabilities, and system calls. The deployment matrix covers Kubernetes, non-Kubernetes containers, virtual machines, and bare-metal hosts. It lists Kubernetes environments including GKE, AKS, OKE, IKS, EKS, OpenShift, Rancher, and DigitalOcean Kubernetes, but support varies by operating system, architecture, and enforcement mode. Some environments are observability-only, and VMware Tanzu entries are under construction. KubeArmor is a community-governed CNCF Sandbox project. The free plan is free; installation guidance uses Helm and kubectl.
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.