Masscan vs ScanSearch
Masscan
github.com
ScanSearch
scansearch.netSide by side
| Figure | Masscan | ScanSearch |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $0.30/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 2 | 9 |
| Spec score · Port Scanner Software | 8.7 (#2) | 7.8 (#14) |
| Intended users | The README describes Masscan as tuned for scanning many machines across wide ranges, while Nmap is described as designed for intensive scanning of a single machine or small range. | ScanSearch identifies security researchers, penetration testers, red teams, bug bounty hunters, blue teams, and defenders as intended users. |
| Security | The project says it offers a vulnerability bounty and uses functions such as safe_strcpy() in place of strcpy(). | The privacy policy says ScanSearch uses HTTPS encryption, secure password hashing, firewall protection, and regular security audits. |
| What it does | Masscan is an Internet-scale TCP port scanner intended to discover open ports across very large address spaces. | ScanSearch runs on-demand live SYN scans and service detection against specified targets and returns current network exposure results. |
Plans
ScanSearch
- Internet Scanner — paid$0.30 a month
- Dork Search — Pro$39 a month
- Attack Surface Monitoring — Pro$49 a month
- Dork Search — Business$99 a month
- Attack Surface Monitoring — Business$149 a month
- Attack Surface Monitoring — FreePrice not published
- Dork Search — FreePrice not published
- Internet Scanner — EnterprisePriced on request
- Internet Scanner — FreePrice not published
In their own words
Masscan
Masscan is a free command-line TCP port scanner for scanning many machines across wide address ranges. The project says one machine can transmit 10 million packets per second. It supports asynchronous transmission, arbitrary port and address ranges, and scanning IPv4 and IPv6 together without a separate IPv6 mode. Banner checks cover protocols and services including FTP, HTTP, IMAP4, memcached, POP3, SMTP, SSH, SSL, SMBv1, SMBv2, Telnet, RDP and VNC. Results can be saved as XML, binary, grepable, JSON or list output. Its usage and output are intended to be familiar to Nmap users, with some Nmap-compatible options. Masscan runs on Linux, macOS and Windows and is available for self-hosting. The project describes PF_RING DNA support for high-speed transmission and says it can use PF_RING ZC when the adapter name indicates it. It is free software under the GNU Affero General Public License version 3, whose notice states there is no warranty. Users must specify ports and target IP addresses or simple ranges; DNS names are not accepted. The README warns that its custom TCP/IP stack can conflict with the local stack and describes using a separate source IP or firewalling its source port.
ScanSearch
ScanSearch is a cloud service for on-demand network exposure checks. It runs live SYN scans and detects services on specified targets, which can be IP addresses, CIDR or country ranges, ASNs, or resolved domains. Its Nmap-based engine identifies software, versions, and protocols from more than 12,000 signatures covering over 1,200 services. Depending on enabled modules, results can add TLS/SSL details, HTTP security headers, geolocation, technology stack information, and CVE matches. Results appear in a live dashboard and can be exported as TXT, JSON, or CSV. The REST API supports JSON, webhooks, batch operations, and an official Python SDK and CLI. Separate tools automate Google dork queries and monitor attack surfaces with scheduled scans, change tracking, dashboards, and alerts. Scan data is retained for 7 days on free accounts and 90 days on paid accounts. ScanSearch requires permission for every target and describes its use as authorized security testing, network administration, and research. A free plan and trial are available; the listed paid Internet Scanner plan costs $0.30 a month, billed per kpps/month.