# Empirical Security Platform vs Shodan: side-by-side comparison (2026)

[Empirical Security Platform](https://cybersectools.com/tools/empirical-security-platform) is a commercial [exposure management](https://cybersectools.com/categories/exposure-management) solution by [Empirical Security](https://cybersectools.com/companies/empirical-security). [Shodan](https://cybersectools.com/tools/shodan) is a free [external attack surface management](https://cybersectools.com/categories/external-asm) solution. Features, integrations, deployment and the company behind each one, side by side.

## Side-by-side comparison

| | Empirical Security Platform | Shodan |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Commercial | Free |
| Category | Exposure Management | External Attack Surface Management |
| Verified | No | No |
| Deployment type | Cloud | Cloud |
| Company size fit | SMB, Mid-Market, Enterprise | SMB, Mid-Market, Enterprise |
| Company | Empirical Security | – |
| Headquarters | – | – |

### Use cases and capabilities

| | Empirical Security Platform | Shodan |
|---|---|---|
| Vulnerability Prioritization | Yes | – |
| CVE | Yes | – |
| Vulnerability Intelligence | Yes | – |
| Threat Feed | Yes | – |
| Cyber Threat Intelligence | Yes | – |
| Vulnerability | Yes | – |
| MITRE ATT&CK | Yes | – |
| Triage | Yes | – |
| Patch Management | Yes | – |
| IOC | Yes | – |
| Network Monitoring | – | Yes |

### Core features

**Empirical Security Platform**

10 features listed. Sign in on the page to see them.

**Shodan**

No features listed.

### Integrations

**Empirical Security Platform**

9 integrations listed. Sign in on the page to see them.

**Shodan**

No integrations listed.

## Which one fits you

Based on what each listing shows: deployment, company size, price and open source.

- [Shodan](https://cybersectools.com/tools/shodan) fits if you need a free product.

## Empirical Security Platform vs Shodan FAQ

Common questions when comparing Empirical Security Platform vs Shodan for exposure management.

### What is the difference between Empirical Security Platform and Shodan?

**Empirical Security Platform**: ML-based platform that predicts vulnerability exploitation probability per environment. Built by Empirical Security.

**Shodan**: A search engine for the Internet of Things (IoT) that discovers and monitors devices connected to the internet.

The table above shows where their features, integrations, deployment and company size fit differ.

### Is Empirical Security Platform a good alternative to Shodan?

In part. Empirical Security Platform and Shodan are not in the same category on CybersecTools. Key differences: Empirical Security Platform is Commercial while Shodan is Free. Use the table above to see where features, deployment and company size fit differ.

## Related comparisons

- [Empirical Security Platform vs Mallory AI-Native Threat & Exposure Mgmt](https://cybersectools.com/compare/empirical-security-platform-vs-mallory-ai-native-threat-and-exposure-mgmt)
- [Empirical Security Platform vs ScruteX Platform](https://cybersectools.com/compare/empirical-security-platform-vs-scrutex-platform)
- [Empirical Security Platform vs Onit Security](https://cybersectools.com/compare/empirical-security-platform-vs-onit-security)
- [Shodan vs Mallory AI-Native Threat & Exposure Mgmt](https://cybersectools.com/compare/mallory-ai-native-threat-and-exposure-mgmt-vs-shodan)
- [Shodan vs ScruteX Platform](https://cybersectools.com/compare/scrutex-platform-vs-shodan)
- [Shodan vs Onit Security](https://cybersectools.com/compare/onit-security-vs-shodan)

## Alternatives to each

- [See all Empirical Security Platform alternatives](https://cybersectools.com/alternatives/empirical-security-platform)
- [See all Shodan alternatives](https://cybersectools.com/alternatives/shodan)

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Source: https://cybersectools.com/compare/empirical-security-platform-vs-shodan

For AI agents: each product above has its own Markdown page (add .md to its URL, for example https://cybersectools.com/tools/empirical-security-platform.md). Every CybersecTools shortlist is listed at https://cybersectools.com/shortlists.md.

More on Empirical Security Platform and Shodan: funding, momentum, hiring and news, plus the full product and company record, are available through the Mandos MCP Server (paid plans), which connects to AI assistants: https://mandos.io/mcp?utm_source=cybersectools.com&utm_medium=compare-md