Wigle vs Censys Internet Map: 2026 Comparison
Wigle is a free external attack surface management tool. Censys Internet Map is a commercial external attack surface management tool by Censys. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best external attack surface management fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, company size fit, deployment model, here is our conclusion:
Penetration testers and red teamers should use WiGLE.net to map wireless attack surfaces before engagements; its 1.3 billion indexed networks give you historical and current WiFi footprints that save hours of site reconnaissance. The dataset includes signal strength, GPS coordinates, and network types, turning passive reconnaissance into a structured intelligence gathering step. Skip this if your mandate is active network testing or remediation; WiGLE is intelligence layer only, not an exploitation or continuous monitoring tool.
Enterprise security teams managing complex attack surfaces across subsidiaries, cloud environments, and critical infrastructure should pick Censys Internet Map for its ability to discover assets an organization doesn't know it owns, which is where most breaches actually start. The platform covers asset discovery and continuous monitoring across ID.AM and DE.CM in NIST CSF 2.0, and its internet-wide scanning capability surfaces shadow IT and unknown exposures that traditional vulnerability scanners simply cannot reach. Skip this if your primary need is incident response or forensics; Censys is built for prevention and reconnaissance, not post-breach analysis.
