Cybersecurity

Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)

Fast, YAML-templated vulnerability scanner — community-driven rules for web, API, network, and cloud misconfig.

Free
Pricing Tier
Medium
Learning Curve
1–2 weeks to tune templates
Implementation
small, medium, large, enterprise
Best For
Visit website ↗🔖 Save to StackAsk AI about Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)
Use when

Security teams running continuous surface scans, bug bounty hunters, and red teams needing fast signature-driven testing.

Avoid when

Teams looking for deep SAST or SCA — Nuclei is about active probing of exposed assets, not codebase analysis.

What is Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)?

Nuclei is an open-source scanner from ProjectDiscovery where templates (YAML) define exactly what to check — a CVE signature, an exposed admin panel, a misconfigured header. The community maintains 10,000+ templates covering CVEs, misconfigurations, default creds, and exposures. Widely used by red teams, bug bounty hunters, and security operations. ProjectDiscovery Cloud adds managed scanning and asset discovery.

Key features

10,000+ community templates
YAML template language
Fast parallel scanning
DNS, HTTP, TCP, headless, code templates
CI integration for continuous scanning

Integrations

GitHubJiraSlack
💰 Real-world pricing

What people actually pay

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No price data yet for Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery). Help the community — share what you pay (anonymized).

HONEST ALTERNATIVES

Before you buy Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)

Vendors don't tell you about their competitors. We do — with verdicts attached when we have them.

1 of 3 have a StackMatch Editorial verdict.
See all in Cybersecurity
REAL COST CALCULATOR

What Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) actually costs

Sticker price isn't the real cost. We add implementation, training, and a probability-weighted lock-in penalty.

1500
Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) is free-tier. Real cost is the implementation effort ($15K) plus training ($25K for 50 seats) plus your team's time. Total over 3 years: $45K.
Heuristic — uses median industry rates. Negotiate to beat list pricing; the implementation and training estimates assume reasonable rollout.
NEGOTIATION TIMING

When to negotiate Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)

Vendor sales pressure is non-uniform — quarter-close, year-end, and post-funding-round are your high-leverage windows.

HIGH LEVERAGE28 days to Q2 close

Strong negotiation window. Reps will push for end-of-quarter signature. Don't move first — let them initiate the discount. Target 15-30% off list plus negotiated terms.

Q1
302d out
Q2
28d out
Q3
120d out
Q4
212d out
Calendar-quarter heuristic. Vendors on fiscal-year ≠ calendar may shift these windows; ask the rep what their fiscal year-end is.
BUYER'S QUESTION LIST

Take this to your sales call

8 questions vendor sales teams steer around — generated from Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)'s pricing tier, lock-in profile.

  1. 1
    PRICING
    Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) starts on the free tier. What forces an upgrade — specific feature gates, usage caps, or support tier? Give me the realistic monthly bill at small scale.
  2. 2
    CONTRACT
    Auto-renewal: how many days notice is required to terminate, and what happens if we miss the window? Will you commit to a renewal-reminder email at 90 and 60 days?
  3. 3
    MIGRATION
    Data export: what's the complete spec — format, frequency, and what data does the export NOT include? After contract end, how long do we have read-only access?
  4. 4
    MIGRATION
    Implementation runs 1–2 weeks to tune templates. Who from your team is included by default, and who do we add at additional cost? Is a CSM assigned?
  5. 5
    FIT
    Connect us with 2-3 reference customers at our company size in your industry — not the case-study list, customers who've been live for 18+ months.
  6. 6
    INTEGRATION
    Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) lists 3 integrations including GitHub, Jira, Slack. Which of OUR existing tools — bring our list — have you confirmed shipping integration with versus "on roadmap"? Show me the actual status.
  7. 7
    VENDOR
    Track record over the last 18 months: any pricing model changes, executive departures, layoffs, M&A activity, or material customer churn we should know about?
  8. 8
    VENDOR
    If you're acquired or shut down, what's the contractual continuity — source-code escrow, data portability, transition period? Show me the actual clause.
Auto-generated from Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)'s structured profile. Edit before sending — you know your situation better than we do.
ANTI-DEMO CHECKLIST

What to actually test in the demo

Vendor sales teams script demos to maximize close rate. Here's what they'd rather you not test — derived from Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery)'s lock-in profile.

  1. 1
    PERFORMANCE
    Bring YOUR data, not their demo data. Insist on running the demo workflow against a sample of your real records, files, or queries. If they refuse — that's a signal.
  2. 2
    PERFORMANCE
    Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) demo will be built around the happy path. Ask: "Show me what happens when [the most common failure mode in our context]" — make them improvise.
  3. 3
    EDGE CASES
    Push the limits live: largest dataset, longest workflow, most users concurrent. Vendors prep demos for medium loads — your real-world usage might 10x what they show.
  4. 4
    EDGE CASES
    Mobile and offline behavior: how does Nuclei (ProjectDiscovery) degrade on slow connections, on iPad, in airplane mode? Test in the demo if your team uses these surfaces.
  5. 5
    PRICING
    Find the upgrade triggers. Which features force a paid plan? Which usage limits trigger overage? Get the rep to demo your team hitting each cap.
  6. 6
    INTEGRATION
    Vendors love their integration logo wall. Test the actual depth: pick the 2-3 (GitHub, Jira-style) integrations you depend on most, and ask the rep to demo a real two-way data sync, not a marketing screenshot.
  7. 7
    INTEGRATION
    API and webhook reality check: rate limits, payload size limits, retry behavior, auth refresh handling. Ask for actual API docs in the demo, not "we'll send those."
  8. 8
    MIGRATION
    Demo the full data export workflow. Even with low lock-in, you want to see how clean the exit looks before signing.
  9. 9
    SUPPORT
    Submit a real support ticket DURING the demo. Use the actual support channel customers use, not the rep's email. Time the response. This is your most honest data point about post-sale reality.
  10. 10
    SUPPORT
    Ask to be connected with a customer in the demo who you can email TODAY (not "we'll arrange a reference call next week"). The vendor's confidence in their references is a tell.
Print it, bring it to the demo call, and check items off as you cover them. The rep noticing you have a list changes the energy.

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