SIDE BY SIDE · FACTS ONLY

Axonius vs Qualys: asset inventory facts side by side

SHORT ANSWER

Axonius describes 3 of the five approaches on the pages we read and Qualys describes 4; they differ on CAASM aggregation, Agent-based inventory, External attack surface management and Exposure management. On collection, Axonius works without new agents and Qualys relies on its own agent. Many estates run two of these approaches together, so the question is often which pair, not which one; we do not score either.

By The Inventory Desk · CAASM Finder · Published 2026-10-11

Desk research from public vendor pages read on 27 September and 11 October 2026. Profiles follow our published method; we did not run the products.

How do their approaches compare?

Top bar: Axonius
Lower bar, lighter: Qualys CSAM

Full bar: described on the vendor's pages we read
Hatched bar: described with a condition (another product, a higher tier, or part of the approach)
Stub: not in our sources (it may exist; we did not find it)

The bars show what each vendor's own pages describe, or how your answers weigh the five approaches. They are not a measure of how well a product works.

What are the facts, side by side?

From each vendor's own pages. Differs marks rows where the recorded status or check value differs.
Fact	Axonius	Qualys CSAM
Positioning	Axonius grew out of cyber asset attack surface management (CAASM) into a broader asset intelligence platform. Axonius describes the Axonius Asset Cloud: it connects to the tools a company already runs through adapters (its directory lists 1,306), correlates what each one reports into one record per asset, and acts on gaps through workflows and bi-directional integrations.	Qualys's Cybersecurity Asset Management product, which Qualys describes as one platform and one view of cyber risk for unknown assets across the attack surface.
Deployment	Hosted SaaS, or self-managed on-premises or in your own cloud. The hosted option runs on an AWS EC2 instance separated from other customers' environments. Source: Axonius pricing · Read 11 Oct 2026	Uses the Qualys agent, which can also act as a passive sensor; deployment options are not detailed on the page we read. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
CAASM aggregationDiffers	Described Its adapter directory lists 1,306 adapters to security and IT tools; correlating what each reports into one record per asset is the core of the product. Source: Axonius adapter directory · Read 11 Oct 2026	Not in our sources Not described on the pages we read.
Agent-based inventoryDiffers	Not in our sources Not described on the pages we read.	Described Collects through the Qualys agent, which can also act as a passive sensor. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
External attack surface managementDiffers	Not in our sources Not described on the pages we read.	With a condition The product page links to Qualys EASM; we did not read that page. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
CMDB-centred inventory	With a condition Works alongside a CMDB rather than replacing it: the ServiceNow adapter fetches CMDB tables for reconciliation, and enforcement actions create, update or remove ServiceNow assets. Source: Axonius docs: ServiceNow adapter · Read 11 Oct 2026	With a condition Syncs with ServiceNow and BMC ITSM tools rather than acting as a CMDB. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Exposure managementDiffers	Described A smart prioritization engine and single or multi-step workflows sit on the correlated inventory; prioritization draws on findings from the tools you connect. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	With a condition Describes one platform and one view of cyber risk; the detail is not on the page we read. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Servers and network devicesDiffers	Partly Network devices are covered through adapters to network tools; a native network scanner is not described. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Cloud workloadsDiffers	Matches Cloud is a listed asset type. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
SaaS applicationsDiffers	Matches Discovers sanctioned, unsanctioned and unmanaged SaaS, including shadow apps, OAuth tokens and risky extensions. Source: Axonius: SaaS applications · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Identities as assetsDiffers	Matches Human and non-human identities, including service accounts, API keys and automation identities. Source: Axonius: identities · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Off-network laptopsDiffers	Partly Devices are collected through the endpoint and management tools you connect, such as Microsoft Intune or CrowdStrike Falcon; no Axonius agent is described. Source: Axonius docs: Microsoft Intune adapter · Read 11 Oct 2026	Not in our sources
OT and IoT devicesDiffers	Matches IoT and OT are listed asset types. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Internet-facing discoveryDiffers	Not in our sources	Partly Qualys EASM is linked from the product page; not read. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Offers its own agentDiffers	Not in our sources	Matches Qualys agent, usable as a passive sensor. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Works without new agentsDiffers	Matches Collects through adapters (API connections) to tools you already run; the pages we read describe no Axonius endpoint agent. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Merges records from several sourcesDiffers	Matches Correlates data from every connected adapter into one record per asset. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Feeds or updates a CMDB	Matches Enforcement actions create, update, and disable or remove assets in ServiceNow, and can create ServiceNow incidents. Source: Axonius docs: ServiceNow adapter · Read 11 Oct 2026	Matches Syncs with ServiceNow and BMC ITSM tools. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Cross-source queries and reportsDiffers	Matches Query Wizard for questions across all connected sources. Source: Axonius documentation · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Workflows, tickets or actionsDiffers	Matches Workflows run single actions or multi-step sequences with ticket tracking; enforcement sets live in the Action Center. Source: Axonius platform · Read 27 Sep 2026	Not in our sources
Price or pricing basis publishedDiffers	Matches Device-based pricing is published: the pricing page shows a starting rate of $8.55 per asset for 15,000 to 24,999 assets, and each device seen by several tools counts once. Source: Axonius pricing · Read 11 Oct 2026	Not in our sources
Free tier or trialDiffers	Not in our sources	Matches Free trial offered. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Platform it is part of	None	None
Integrations	1,306 adapters in its adapter directory, including documented adapters for CrowdStrike Falcon, Tenable Vulnerability Management, Rapid7 Nexpose and InsightVM, Microsoft Intune and Entra ID, and ServiceNow. We did not reproduce the full list. Source: Axonius adapter directory · Read 11 Oct 2026	ServiceNow and BMC ITSM sync; other integrations are not listed on the page we read. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026
Price	Published: device-based pricing on unique, correlated devices, with tiers from under 500 devices to 10M+ and volume discounts in every tier. The pricing page shows "Starting at $8.55 per asset for 15,000-24,999 assets"; the billing period is not stated in what we read. AWS Marketplace listing: 500 assets for $90,625 on a 12-month contract. Source: Axonius pricing · Read 11 Oct 2026	Not published Not published. A free trial is offered. Source: Qualys Cybersecurity Asset Management · Read 11 Oct 2026

Where do they differ?

CAASM aggregation: Axonius describes it; Qualys is not in our sources.
Agent-based inventory: Axonius is not in our sources; Qualys describes it.
External attack surface management: Axonius is not in our sources; Qualys describes it with a condition.
Exposure management: Axonius describes it; Qualys describes it with a condition.
Servers and network devices: Axonius partly matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Cloud workloads: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
SaaS applications: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Identities as assets: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Off-network laptops: Axonius partly matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
OT and IoT devices: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Internet-facing discovery: Axonius is not in our sources; Qualys partly matches.
Offers its own agent: Axonius is not in our sources; Qualys matches.
Works without new agents: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Merges records from several sources: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Cross-source queries and reports: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Workflows, tickets or actions: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Price or pricing basis published: Axonius matches; Qualys is not in our sources.
Free tier or trial: Axonius is not in our sources; Qualys matches.

Can they work together?

Neither vendor's pages we read name the other as an integration. That does not mean they cannot work together; ask both vendors.

Choose Axonius if

You already run many security and IT tools and they disagree about what exists
You need SaaS apps and identities in the same inventory as devices, with workflows to close gaps

Choose Qualys if

You already run the Qualys agent and want asset management from the same data
You need sync with ServiceNow or BMC

Which limits should you check?

Axonius

Coverage depends on the tools you connect: each adapter needs API access and credentials, and no agent or native network scanner of its own is described.
External (internet-facing) discovery is not described on the pages we read.
No free tier or trial is listed on the pages we read, and the AWS Marketplace listing prices 500 assets at $90,625 for 12 months.

Qualys

No price published.
Which third-party sources it reads, and its SaaS, identity and OT coverage, are not described on the page we read.

Put Axonius and Qualys in the asset census with others Run the finder

Questions people ask

Is Axonius or Qualys better?

Neither is scored on this site. Axonius describes 3 of five approaches and Qualys 4 on the pages we read, and they differ on 18 recorded facts. Which fits depends on where your assets live, whether you can install agents, your CMDB and your tools; the finder checks those.

Do Axonius and Qualys work with a CMDB?

Axonius: Matches. Enforcement actions create, update, and disable or remove assets in ServiceNow, and can create ServiceNow incidents. Qualys: Matches. Syncs with ServiceNow and BMC ITSM tools.

Do Axonius or Qualys publish prices?

Axonius: Published: device-based pricing on unique, correlated devices, with tiers from under 500 devices to 10M+ and volume discounts in every tier. The pricing page shows "Starting at $8.55 per asset for 15,000-24,999 assets"; the billing period is not stated in what we read. AWS Marketplace listing: 500 assets for $90,625 on a 12-month contract. Qualys: Not published. A free trial is offered.