Documented by Hadrian only: none.
Documented by IONIX only: OWNED and CONTAINED.
Documented by both: FOUND, PROVEN, ROUTED and RECHECKED.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Hadrian vs IONIX: which ASM tool takes an exposure further?
THE SHORT ANSWER
IONIX scores higher overall on our weights, 8.05 to 6.60. Hadrian scores higher on Proves exploitability, Closes the loop and Buying transparency; IONIX scores higher on Finds the unlisted estate, Routes to an owner, Contains before the patch and Fits the enterprise stack. The table below gives the reason for every score.
Hadrian
Rank 4 of 10
Best for: Teams replacing periodic external pentests with continuous, agent-based proof
IONIX
Rank 1 of 10
Best for: Large enterprises with many subsidiaries that want exposures contained and fixed, not only listed
Which tool scores higher on each criterion?
| Criterion | Hadrian | IONIX | Higher |
|---|---|---|---|
Finds the unlisted estate 15%WhyHadrian: Scans hourly or on events to keep the external inventory current; subsidiary mapping is not documented. IONIX: Recursive Connective Intelligence mapping with 13 discovery techniques reaches subsidiaries and third- and fourth-party suppliers. | 7 / 10 | 9 / 10 | IONIX |
Routes to an owner 10%WhyHadrian: Machine learning confirms whether an asset belongs to the organization. IONIX: Attributes each asset to the relevant subsidiary or business owner automatically; IONIX's claims about fewer false positives are its own. | 7 / 10 | 8 / 10 | IONIX |
Proves exploitability 20%WhyHadrian: Agentic AI exploits issues to prove impact; Hadrian states it proves exploitability within 15 minutes. IONIX: Non-intrusive exploit simulations, plus safe active testing of new CVEs in Live Exposure Defense; watchTowr, CyCognito and Hadrian document heavier attack-style testing. | 9 / 10 | 8 / 10 | Hadrian |
Contains before the patch 20%WhyHadrian: No edge rule, playbook or other compensating control is described. IONIX: Agentic mitigation "automatically invoke[s] compensating controls": WAF rules deployable through Akamai, Cloudflare and other WAFs within its 12-hour Live Exposure Defense SLA, plus Active Protection for dangling assets and DNS hijacking targets. | 2 / 10 | 9 / 10 | IONIX |
Closes the loop 15%WhyHadrian: Remediation guidance, automatic tickets and automatic regression testing after a fix. IONIX: Routes findings to Jira and ServiceNow, tracks each CVE from identified to resolved, and its homepage states "Instant re-validation of remediated items"; step-by-step fix guidance is described less fully than at CyCognito or Hadrian. | 9 / 10 | 8 / 10 | Hadrian |
Fits the enterprise stack 10%WhyHadrian: Names Jira, ServiceNow, GLPI, Slack, Microsoft Teams, SentinelOne, Datadog, Zendesk and HubSpot plus an API. IONIX: Names Jira, ServiceNow, Splunk, Microsoft Sentinel, Cortex XSOAR, Slack, Wiz and Prisma Cloud plus an API; a shorter list than the platform suites. | 6 / 10 | 7 / 10 | IONIX |
Buying transparency 10%WhyHadrian: NOVA pentests from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT, and ATLAS on AWS Marketplace at $50,000 per 12 months for up to 250 assets. IONIX: Lists three monthly plans on AWS Marketplace (Silver $25,000, Gold $35,000, Platinum $45,000 per month on a 1-month contract); no price on its own site and no free trial listed. | 7 / 10 | 6 / 10 | Hadrian |
Which steps does each tool document?
Hadrian
- FOUNDDocumented
Hourly or event-triggered external scanning.
- OWNEDPartial
Ownership confirmed by machine learning; subsidiary mapping not described.
- PROVENDocumented
Agentic exploitation; proof within 15 minutes, per Hadrian.
- CONTAINEDNot documented
No edge rule or compensating control described.
- ROUTEDDocumented
Automatic ticket creation.
- RECHECKEDDocumented
Automatic regression testing after fixes.
IONIX
- FOUNDDocumented
Recursive discovery with 13 techniques, including supply-chain assets.
- OWNEDDocumented
Assets attributed to subsidiary or business owner automatically.
- PROVENDocumented
Non-intrusive exploit simulations; safe active testing in Live Exposure Defense.
- CONTAINEDDocumented
Agentic mitigation invokes compensating controls: WAF rules within the 12-hour SLA; Active Protection reclaims hijackable assets.
- ROUTEDDocumented
Findings and rules delivered into remediation workflows; Jira and ServiceNow named.
- RECHECKEDDocumented
Homepage states "Instant re-validation of remediated items"; Live Exposure Defense tracks CVEs to resolved.
Partial counts as not documented for these three lines.
What do they cost?
Hadrian
NOVA agentic penetration test: from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT. ATLAS on AWS Marketplace: 250 assets (domains, IP addresses and certificates) $50,000 per 12 months.
To start: Not specified on the pages reviewed.
IONIX
AWS Marketplace, 1-month contract, cost per month: Silver Plan (monthly monitoring) $25,000; Gold Plan (weekly monitoring) $35,000; Platinum Plan (continuous monitoring) $45,000. 12-, 24- and 36-month contracts offered (24 months "save up to 10%", 36 months "save up to 20%"). No price on ionix.io.
To start: Not published on the pages reviewed. IONIX states "immediate time-to-value".
Which should you choose?
Choose Hadrian if
- it matters most to you that it proves exploitability (9/10)
- it matters most to you that it closes the loop (9/10)
Choose Hadrian if you want continuous, attack-based proof in place of periodic external pentests, with a price you can see. Look elsewhere if you need edge mitigation or attribution across many subsidiaries.
Choose IONIX if
- it matters most to you that it contains before the patch (9/10)
- it matters most to you that it finds the unlisted estate (9/10)
Choose IONIX if your estate spans many subsidiaries or acquisitions, you run WAFs from vendors such as Akamai or Cloudflare, and you want exploitable exposures blocked at the edge while owners patch. Look elsewhere if you need a price on the vendor's own site or a published integrations list.
Frequently asked questions
Which proves exploitability better, Hadrian or IONIX?
Hadrian scores higher on our proof criterion (Hadrian 9/10, IONIX 8/10). Hadrian: Agentic AI exploits issues to prove impact; Hadrian states it proves exploitability within 15 minutes. IONIX: Non-intrusive exploit simulations, plus safe active testing of new CVEs in Live Exposure Defense; watchTowr, CyCognito and Hadrian document heavier attack-style testing.
Can Hadrian or IONIX contain an exposure before the patch?
Hadrian: not documented on the pages reviewed IONIX documents one: Agentic mitigation invokes compensating controls: WAF rules within the 12-hour SLA; Active Protection reclaims hijackable assets. Contain scores: Hadrian 2/10, IONIX 9/10.
Which is easier to buy, Hadrian or IONIX?
Hadrian: NOVA agentic penetration test: from 1,250 euros per test excluding VAT. ATLAS on AWS Marketplace: 250 assets (domains, IP addresses and certificates) $50,000 per 12 months. IONIX: AWS Marketplace, 1-month contract, cost per month: Silver Plan (monthly monitoring) $25,000; Gold Plan (weekly monitoring) $35,000; Platinum Plan (continuous monitoring) $45,000. 12-, 24- and 36-month contracts offered (24 months "save up to 10%", 36 months "save up to 20%"). No price on ionix.io. Buying transparency scores: Hadrian 7/10, IONIX 6/10.
Read next
- Hadrian profile
Scores, sources and pricing
- IONIX profile
Scores, sources and pricing
- Beyond Hadrian: alternatives
Eight alternatives ranked
- Beyond IONIX: alternatives
Eight alternatives ranked
- Line them up
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