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The average vulnerability assessment cost in 2025 ranges between $1,000 and $5,000. Various factors can affect what you pay, such as the tools used, the complexity of scanning required, and the scope of the task.
However, as we advise all our customers, vulnerability scanning is never something you should avoid or remove from your budget. It’s a critical process that can save you even more money in potential compliance fines and loss of business from hacking and data loss later down the line.
In this guide, we explore what vulnerability assessments entail, what makes up the average costs, and how to find the best assessment provider for your needs.
What Is a Vulnerability Assessment?
A vulnerability assessment is an end-to-end review of your cybersecurity posture that hunts down potential misconfigurations, defects, and exploitable in-roads in your systems, networking, and infrastructure.
Vulnerability assessments typically involve using scanning tools and methodologies to discover hidden weaknesses and to grade the potential risks they open up if left behind.
Typically, a thorough vulnerability assessment should provide comprehensive advice on where your infrastructure is at its weakest, and how you can remediate flaws for immediate protection.
Assessments can involve a variety of automated and manual checks and measures. We recommend businesses of all sizes that handle customer data to run regular vulnerability assessments—largely because threats and exploitation points are always evolving.
Average Cost of a Vulnerability Assessment in 2026
Typically, you can expect to pay between $1,000 and $5,000 for each vulnerability assessment, based on average 2025 figures.
Below, we’ll explore the main factors that can influence how costs for vulnerability scanning and assessments change. As you can imagine, you can typically expect basic or bare-minimum tools—or a limited scope test—to be on the cheaper end of the scale with more stringent, complex, and larger evaluations at the high end.
For example, a company that only needs basic vulnerability scanning may choose an automated tool that runs in the background, but which only covers a small area of their infrastructure. These tools may also cover just the surface of their systems' layout, meaning they could miss deeper issues under the radar. Assessments that use the bare-minimum approach are most likely to fall towards the $1,000-$2,000 end of the scale.
Most organizations spend between $2,000 and $4,000 on vulnerability scanning. Most entities perform internal and external network scanning, many require PCI DSS related scanning from an Approved Scanning vendor (ASV), and some require authenticated scans. Higher costs are to be expected for larger organizations, those that consume vast amounts of data, and those that need to follow many different compliance standards.
Companies that are likely to pay $5,000 or possibly more are those using manual, deep-dive investigations, combining a range of vulnerability scanning tools and penetration testing strategies. Generally, you can expect penetration testing pricing to cost between $5,000 and $30,000.
Crucially, the best way to find out how much a vulnerability assessment is likely to cost is to build a quote with a reliable expert. VikingCloud, for example, takes the time to create custom quotes and scanning projects with clients with transparent pricing and breakdowns of what’s included.
Factors That Influence Vulnerability Assessment Pricing
Major factors that influence vulnerability assessment costs include the size of your company, the scope of your review, the tools used, and the expertise of the team you’re working with.
However, that’s just a quick overview of what might make assessments cheaper or more expensive. Here’s a little more detail:
| Cost Factor | Why it Changes Assessment Pricing |
|---|---|
| Company Size | The larger the organization, the more complex the infrastructure. Larger companies with more departments also have more systems than most, and therefore, scanning and testing takes more time and effort, increasing costs. |
| Project Scope | Regardless of company size, the scope of your vulnerability assessment again affects costs based on time taken to carry it out, resources required, and any specialist expertise needed. |
| Tools Used | Some scanning and testing tools go more in-depth than others, take more time to work with, require specialist expertise to run, and use extensive energy and resources. All are factors that can increase costs. |
| Assessor Expertise | The more experienced your vulnerability assessor or cybersecurity specialist is, the more money they are likely to command for their time and effort. Paying more for expertise ensures testing and scanning are carried out to exceptional standards. |
| Remediation Requirements | Beyond basic scanning and reporting, some assessment providers and processes also include detailed remediation support, which can be as hands-on as end users require. However, the more remediation support is needed, the higher costs will be. |
| Compliance Demands | A company with extensive compliance needs (such as adherence to GDPR, PCI DSS, and HIPAA) will require deeper scanning and a variety of tools and techniques, all of which can affect costs. |
Pricing Models for Vulnerability Assessments
Vulnerability assessment providers use a range of pricing models to meet different business needs and project scopes. Understanding these models can help you better plan your cybersecurity budget and choose a provider that aligns with your goals.
Here are the most common pricing models used in 2025:
| Pricing Model | How It Works | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription or Platform-Based | Regular scanning is included in a monthly or annual subscription. | Businesses wanting continuous monitoring rather than one-off tests. |
| Per Asset | Costs are calculated based on the number of assets (devices, IPs, endpoints) scanned. | Medium-to-large organizations with broad digital footprints. |
| Per Project | A fixed cost for the entire assessment based on scope, depth, and tools. Usually ranges from $1,000 – $5,000. $5,000 – $10,000+ for manual validations and pen testing. | Companies with clearly defined assessment goals and timelines. |
| Per Hour | You’re charged based on the time the assessment team spends on your project. Rates typically range from $150–$500 per hour depending on expertise. | Projects with unclear scope or evolving needs. |
| Value-Based | Pricing is based on the value or potential risk reduction delivered, rather than the work time or tools used. | High-risk industries where security ROI is critical (e.g., finance, healthcare). |
| Custom Pricing | Tailored models combining any of the above, based on your business’s unique requirements. | Enterprises with complex infrastructure or compliance needs. |
Some providers also operate bounty-based models, where ethical hackers are rewarded for finding specific vulnerabilities. While more common in penetration testing or bug bounty programs, it’s occasionally used in niche assessment scenarios.
What’s Included in a Typical Vulnerability Assessment?
Typically, vulnerability assessments include automated or manual scanning of target areas, matching of potential weaknesses against threat databases, and detailed reports breaking down how to remediate the issues raised.
However, there’s no “typical” vulnerability assessment. For example, at VikingCloud, we specialize in several vulnerability scanning types to target specific systems and issues, based on individual client needs.
For example, a client may require scans that cover:
- Individual hosts and hardware
- Internal databases
- Cloud environments
- Internal and external networks
- Public-facing applications, application programming interfaces (APIs), and web services
Investigating these assets and environments can also involve different methodologies. For example, a client may wish to choose between internal or external scanning – the former, if they want to tighten up controls behind the scenes, and the latter if they’re concerned about hackers breaking into their web applications and forms.
Generally, we advise clients to use a blend of different scanning techniques and tools to cover as much ground as possible. You can never be too careful, especially considering that threats are evolving, and that costs of remediating hacks are increasing:
“4.4M (...) The global average cost of a data breach, in USD, a 9% decrease over last year—driven by faster identification and containment.”
IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report
The exact process for vulnerability assessments will vary, too. However, our clients can usually expect the following schedule:
- Detailed scoping discussions to analyze what to target and how to test them (not always necessary when using automated tools).
- After deciding on tools and scope, a comprehensive scan takes place—actively or passively (the former may affect your operational running, but dives deeper).
- An analysis of any weaknesses found after scanning takes place, during which experts outline potential solutions to then build into a report.
- The client then uses this report to determine the next steps to take, such as patching up software and running additional tests.
It’s always wise to lean into a customized approach to vulnerability assessments – particularly as you might not know what weaknesses, if any, lie beneath the surface!
How to Choose the Right Vulnerability Assessment Provider
Always prioritize choosing a vulnerability assessment provider that has provable expertise and certifications, that can offer customized solutions, and that provides simple, transparent advice in its reports.
Here’s a deeper breakdown of what we recommend you prioritize when looking for an assessment expert:
- Choose a responsible, professional vulnerability assessor with a proven track record. Check case studies, user reviews, certifications, and, where possible, take a tour of their resources and services.
- It’s also important to look for providers with specific expertise in your industry where possible. These experts can set up and run cybersecurity tests that directly benefit your customers’ data needs.
- Opt for providers that can build custom scanning and assessment runs – not necessarily a jack of all trades, but a team of experts that can build multiple solutions into customized packages to suit different needs.
- Always be on the lookout for clear language, transparent terms, and user-friendly reports and remediation support. Providers that hide behind walls of jargon may not always be upfront with what they do to test your systems—communication is vital!
- Don’t lean into cheap rates—it is often true that the cheaper the entry-level cost is, the cheaper the service will be. Look instead for great-value providers that cover all your needs without breaking your budget, or that are willing to work to your cost expectations.
FAQs
Let’s close our guide with some commonly asked questions about vulnerability assessments we help our customers with.
Is a vulnerability assessment a one-time cost, or recurring?
Vulnerability assessments incur recurring costs. For example, you may need to pay for software licensing to run automated tools, and you will need to pay experts for ad hoc testing and reports every time you engage with them. The same applies to deeper investigations such as penetration testing.
What should I look for in a vulnerability assessment quote?
You should make sure your vulnerability assessment quotes include pricing for the size of your company, the scope of tasks you wish to run, the types of tests taking place, and what you need to be delivered in a final report. The best vulnerability assessors will carefully itemize everything that is included in your quote before you sign any contracts.
What are the USPs of VikingCloud’s vulnerability assessment?
VikingCloud’s vulnerability scanning services goes deeper than any other, thanks to our unique Asgard Platform®, which helps us to analyze more than six billion online events every single day. We bring together an immense database of event data alongside custom scanning tools and exceptional insight from specialists with years in the industry.
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