Penetration Testing Cost in 2026: What Firms Actually Publish

Starting prices, checked on each firm’s own page on October 24, 2026; the last column is Blaze’s planning range, a vendor estimate. Your quote depends on scope. To compare the firms themselves, see our ranking of penetration testing services.

Why penetration test quotes differ so much

Penetration test quotes differ for three reasons: who does the testing, how the scope is counted, and how deep the test goes.

1. Who tests. AI-led web app tests cost $3,500 at Cobalt, $4,000 at Intruder and $4,181 at Synack. Human-led tests start at $4,999, and Synack’s researcher-led standard test starts at $10,283.
2. Scope unit. Firms price per application, per IP range, per endpoint or per tester-day. Cobalt sells credits, where one credit equals 8 hours of testing. Blaze says firms commonly charge $250–$300 an hour.
3. Depth. A black-box test with no logins costs less than a white-box test with source code. Software Secured’s secure code review alone starts at $9,300.

Blaze’s planning range for a standard commercial engagement is $10,000–$35,000, a vendor estimate rather than a price.

Penetration testing cost by pricing model

Penetration testing is sold five ways, and the model changes what the headline number includes.

What a penetration testing quote should include

A good penetration testing quote names the scope, the retests and the report you get. Check these lines:

• Retests. Software Secured includes three rounds over 12 months on most web, API and mobile tests; Intruder offers unlimited retesting; SecurityMetrics includes retesting in its quote.
• Platform fees. Synack’s platform is a separate line item on top of its test prices.
• Report and attestation. An executive summary, technical findings and a letter your SOC 2 auditor or PCI assessor can use; the test is one line in a first-year SOC 2 budget.
• Rules of engagement. Written authorization, test windows and emergency contacts.

The cost a quote leaves out is your team’s time to fix what the test finds.

How often you need a pentest, and the yearly cost

PCI DSS v4.0 requires internal and external penetration tests at least once every 12 months and after any significant infrastructure or application change, so a card-handling business budgets at least one test a year plus extras after big changes. Two human-led web app tests a year at Blaze’s starting price come to $9,998 (our sum of published prices). Four AI-led tests from Intruder cost $12,000 as a pack.

Is a cheap pentest a real pentest?

A cheap pentest can be real, but ask what you’re buying. SecurityMetrics says any “pentest” listed for less than $4,000 is likely not a real penetration test; that is a vendor’s view, and AI-led tests from Cobalt, Intruder and Synack now sell for $3,500 to $4,181. Defense.com’s $995 yearly application plan is automated scanning that confirms what it finds, by its own description; our list of free penetration testing tools covers scanners you can run yourself.

Ask any firm three questions: does a person review every finding, does the report show how each issue was exploited, and will your auditor or customer accept it?