AccessData FTK Imager vs Acquire: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)
Features, pricing, ratings, and pros & cons — compared head-to-head.
AccessData FTK Imager is a free digital forensics and incident response tool. Acquire is a free digital forensics and incident response tool. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best digital forensics and incident response fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of available product data, here is our conclusion:
Forensic examiners and incident response teams handling disk imaging and evidence preservation should start here; FTK Imager is free and handles the core imaging job without licensing friction that kills adoption in mid-sized shops. It's NIST-validated for forensic acquisition and integrates cleanly with EnCase workflows if you're already in that ecosystem. Skip it if you need integrated timeline analysis or automated artifact parsing; those belong in the paid tier (Forensic Toolkit), and trying to build that workflow in Imager alone wastes investigator time.
Forensic analysts and incident responders who need fast triage on suspicious systems should use Acquire to pull artifacts into a single lightweight container without the overhead of full disk imaging. The tool is free and runs on both live systems and disk images, making it accessible to resource-constrained teams doing initial evidence gathering before deeper investigation. Skip this if you need cross-platform mobile forensics or expect to process hundreds of endpoints in parallel; Acquire prioritizes speed and simplicity over breadth.
