# Shadow Workers vs Tolmo: side-by-side comparison (2026)

[Shadow Workers](https://cybersectools.com/tools/shadow-workers) is a free [red-team & adversary emulation](https://cybersectools.com/categories/offensive-security) solution. [Tolmo](https://cybersectools.com/tools/tolmo) is a commercial [penetration testing](https://cybersectools.com/categories/pentesting-tools) solution by [Tolmo](https://cybersectools.com/companies/tolmo). Features, integrations, deployment and the company behind each one, side by side.

## Side-by-side comparison

| | Shadow Workers | Tolmo |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free | Commercial |
| Category | Red-Team & Adversary Emulation | Penetration Testing |
| Verified | No | No |
| Deployment type | On-Premises | Cloud |
| Company size fit | Mid-Market, Enterprise | Mid-Market, SMB |
| GitHub stars | 236 | – |
| Last commit | Oct 2023 | – |
| Company | – | Tolmo |
| Headquarters | – | – |

### Use cases and capabilities

| | Shadow Workers | Tolmo |
|---|---|---|
| C2 | Yes | – |
| Proxy | Yes | – |
| Open Source | Yes | – |
| XSS | Yes | – |
| AI Pentesting | – | Yes |
| Agentic AI Security | – | Yes |
| Graph | – | Yes |
| Attack Paths | – | Yes |
| Vulnerability | – | Yes |
| CI/CD | – | Yes |
| Cloud Native | – | Yes |
| Reconnaissance | – | Yes |

### Core features

**Shadow Workers**

No features listed.

**Tolmo**

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

### Integrations

**Shadow Workers**

No integrations listed.

**Tolmo**

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

## Which one fits you

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

- [Shadow Workers](https://cybersectools.com/tools/shadow-workers) fits if you need to run it on your own servers, you are an enterprise, you need a free product and you want an open-source product.
- [Tolmo](https://cybersectools.com/tools/tolmo) fits if you want a cloud product and you are a small business.

## Shadow Workers vs Tolmo FAQ

Common questions when comparing Shadow Workers vs Tolmo for red-team & adversary emulation.

### What is the difference between Shadow Workers and Tolmo?

**Shadow Workers**: Shadow Workers is an open source C2 framework and proxy tool for penetration testers to exploit XSS vulnerabilities and malicious Service Workers.

**Tolmo**: Autonomous AI agent platform for pentesting, discovery, and remediation. Built by Tolmo.

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

### Who makes Shadow Workers and Tolmo?

**Shadow Workers** is open-source with 236 GitHub stars. **Tolmo** is made by Tolmo founded in 2026-01-01T00:00:00.000Z. The vendor behind a product decides its roadmap, support, and longevity, so check each company's profile before you commit.

### Is Shadow Workers a good alternative to Tolmo?

In part. Shadow Workers and Tolmo are not in the same category on CybersecTools. Key differences: Shadow Workers is Free while Tolmo is Commercial, Shadow Workers is open-source. Use the table above to see where features, deployment and company size fit differ.

## Related comparisons

- [Shadow Workers vs Red Specter Cheatsheet](https://cybersectools.com/compare/red-specter-cheatsheet-vs-shadow-workers)
- [Shadow Workers vs A Security](https://cybersectools.com/compare/a-security-vs-shadow-workers)
- [Shadow Workers vs KinoSec Hades](https://cybersectools.com/compare/kinosec-hades-vs-shadow-workers)
- [Tolmo vs Red Specter Cheatsheet](https://cybersectools.com/compare/red-specter-cheatsheet-vs-tolmo)
- [Tolmo vs A Security](https://cybersectools.com/compare/a-security-vs-tolmo)
- [Tolmo vs KinoSec Hades](https://cybersectools.com/compare/kinosec-hades-vs-tolmo)

## Alternatives to each

- [See all Shadow Workers alternatives](https://cybersectools.com/alternatives/shadow-workers)
- [See all Tolmo alternatives](https://cybersectools.com/alternatives/tolmo)

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Source: https://cybersectools.com/compare/shadow-workers-vs-tolmo

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

More on Shadow Workers and Tolmo: 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