Cobalt
Cobalt is a Pentest as a Service platform that combines SaaS efficiency with a global community of security experts to identify and remediate vulnerabilities in your applications.
Burp Suite
Burp Suite is a comprehensive web security testing platform that provides automated and manual tools to help you identify, analyze, and exploit vulnerabilities in web applications and APIs.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Cobalt | Burp Suite |
|---|---|---|
| Website | cobalt.io | portswigger.net |
| Pricing Model | Custom | Freemium |
| Starting Price | Custom Pricing | Free |
| FREE Trial | ✘ No free trial | ✘ No free trial |
| Free Plan | ✘ No free plan | ✓ Has free plan |
| Product Demo | ✓ Request demo here | ✓ Request demo here |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2013 | 2004 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, USA | Knutsford, United Kingdom |
Overview
Cobalt
Cobalt transforms traditional penetration testing into a dynamic, tech-enabled experience through its Pentest as a Service (PtaaS) platform. You can move away from slow, static PDF reports and instead launch comprehensive security assessments in days rather than weeks. The platform connects you directly with a vetted community of on-demand security researchers who test your web applications, APIs, and cloud infrastructure in real-time.
You can manage the entire testing lifecycle from a single dashboard, allowing your developers to communicate directly with testers for faster vulnerability remediation. It integrates with your existing development workflows to ensure security keeps pace with your release cycles. Whether you need to meet compliance requirements like SOC2 or harden your external attack surface, you get actionable data and on-demand retesting to stay secure.
Burp Suite
Burp Suite is the industry-standard toolkit for web application security testing. You can use it to map out an application's attack surface, analyze its communication with servers, and find critical vulnerabilities like SQL injection or cross-site scripting. Whether you are performing manual penetration tests or automated compliance scans, the platform provides the precision you need to secure your digital assets.
You can choose between the Community Edition for basic manual testing or the Professional and Enterprise editions for advanced automation and team-wide vulnerability management. It helps you move from simple bug hunting to integrated DevSecOps by catching security flaws early in your development lifecycle. The software is widely used by security researchers, bug bounty hunters, and enterprise security teams globally.
Overview
Cobalt Features
- On-Demand Pentesting Launch a manual pentest in as little as 24 hours to meet tight production deadlines or compliance windows.
- Real-Time Reporting View vulnerabilities as testers find them so your team can start fixing critical bugs before the test even finishes.
- Direct Researcher Access Chat directly with your assigned security experts to clarify findings and get specific guidance on complex remediation steps.
- SDLC Integrations Push findings automatically to Jira, GitHub, or Slack so your developers can manage security fixes in their existing tools.
- Complimentary Retesting Request a free retest once you've applied a fix to ensure the vulnerability is fully resolved and verified.
- Compliance Reporting Generate audit-ready reports for SOC2, HIPAA, and PCI-DSS with a single click to satisfy your stakeholders and auditors.
Burp Suite Features
- Intercepting Proxy. Inspect and modify the raw traffic between your browser and the target application in real-time to uncover hidden flaws.
- Vulnerability Scanner. Automatically crawl and scan your web applications to identify over 100 different types of security vulnerabilities and misconfigurations.
- Burp Intruder. Automate customized attacks against your web applications to perform credential stuffing, fuzzing, and data harvesting at high speeds.
- Burp Repeater. Strip down and resend individual HTTP requests manually to fine-tune your exploits and verify specific vulnerability findings quickly.
- BApp Store. Extend your toolkit's capabilities by installing hundreds of community-developed extensions to handle specialized security testing requirements.
- OAST Testing. Detect invisible vulnerabilities that other scanners miss by using out-of-band application security testing through the Burp Collaborator.
Pricing Comparison
Cobalt Pricing
Burp Suite Pricing
- Essential manual tools
- Intercepting Proxy
- Burp Repeater
- Basic tool configuration
- Access to BApp Store
- Everything in Community, plus:
- Automated vulnerability scanner
- Burp Intruder (unthrottled)
- Burp Collaborator (OAST)
- Advanced manual tools
- Save and restore projects
Pros & Cons
Cobalt
Pros
- Significantly faster setup time than traditional consulting firms
- Direct communication with testers speeds up remediation
- Clean dashboard replaces messy PDF report management
- High-quality, vetted researchers provide deep manual insights
Cons
- Credit-based pricing can be complex to forecast
- Platform focus is primarily on manual testing over automation
- Premium pricing reflects the high-touch expert service
Burp Suite
Pros
- Industry-standard tool recognized by all security firms
- Extensive library of community-made extensions and plugins
- Highly accurate automated scanning for common vulnerabilities
- Powerful manual interception and request manipulation capabilities
Cons
- Significant learning curve for non-security professionals
- Interface can feel cluttered and dated to some
- Professional version requires a yearly upfront payment
- High memory consumption during large-scale application scans