# Tenable Nessus: how AI models rank it, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Named in 26 judge labels across 4 categories by 11 of 14 models. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/tenable-nessus

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Vulnerability management platforms](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/security/vulnerability-management-platforms/index.md) | 2% | 10 | 35% | 20 |
| [Penetration testing as a service](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/security/penetration-testing-as-a-service/index.md) | 0% | 117 | 75% | 4 |
| [API security platforms](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/security/api-security-platforms/index.md) | 0% | 89 | 0% | 1 |
| [Dynamic application security testing](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/developer/dynamic-application-security-testing/index.md) | 0% | 60 | 0% | 1 |

## What the models said for it

- "Tenable Nessus and Tenable Vulnerability Management rank as the best overall solution due to strong integrations and comprehensive capabilities." (Claude Haiku 4.5, Vuln management)
- "the industry standard... Deep scans, excellent asset discovery, and best-in-class integrations, but costs more." (DeepSeek V4 Flash, Vuln management)
- "For most companies with limited budget, I'd pick Nessus Professional" (GPT-5.4 mini, Vuln management)
- "For smaller mid-market deployments, consider Tenable Nessus Professional which offers similar scan quality at a lower price point." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Vuln management)

## And against it

- "Avoid standalone scanners unless you are a solo practitioner or a very small shop." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Vuln management)
- "you might not yet have the massive security operations center (SOC) staffing required to justify the complexity of full-scale enterprise suites like Nessus Essentials" (Qwen 3.7 Flash, Vuln management)
- "Many cheap providers run an automated scanner (like Nessus or Qualys), put a custom cover on the PDF, and sell it as a "penetration test."" (Gemini 3.5 Flash, PTaaS)
- "Companies that run automated vulnerability scans (Nessus, OpenVAS, etc.) and repackage the results as a "penetration test"" (Kimi K2, PTaaS)

## By model

| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Warning | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Grok 4.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mistral Small | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Kimi K2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 |

## Sources returned with these answers

The sites and pages cited by the answers that named Tenable Nessus, from 66 of the 88 answers that named it (only the models that return a source list).

### Domains cited

- g2.com: 23
- axis-intelligence.com: 21
- softwareadvice.com: 21
- tenable.com: 17 (its own site)
- linfordco.com: 16
- reddit.com: 16
- getapp.com: 14
- spotsaas.com: 12
- intruder.io: 10
- geekflare.com: 9

### Pages cited

- https://axis-intelligence.com/best-vulnerability-management-tools-tested: 18
- https://linfordco.com/blog/choosing-vulnerability-assessment-tools: 16
- https://softwareadvice.com/vulnerability-management/small-business: 15
- https://spotsaas.com/list/vulnerability-management-software/for-small-business: 12
- https://softwareadvice.com/vulnerability-management: 9
- https://tenable.com/buy: 9
- https://geekflare.com/cybersecurity/best-vulnerability-management-software: 8
- https://defendify.com/blog/best-vulnerability-management-tools: 7

## In its own words

What Tenable Nessus's own pages state, read 2026-09-28. Stated by the vendor, not checked by the index.

- Positioning: Get free access to Tenable Nessus for education (https://www.tenable.com/tenable-nessus-for-education)
- For: verified students and instructors (https://www.tenable.com/tenable-nessus-for-education)
- Price stated: free (https://www.tenable.com/tenable-nessus-for-education)
- Free plan or trial: a free one-year license to Nessus Essentials Plus (https://www.tenable.com/tenable-nessus-for-education)

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/it.