# OWASP ZAP vs Acunetix: which do AI models recommend for DAST, October 2026

IT AI Recommendation Index, October 2026 Edition, Dynamic application security testing. Zero of fourteen models named OWASP ZAP first on the direct prompt; one named Acunetix. Page: https://it-ai-index.com/developer/dynamic-application-security-testing/owasp-zap-vs-acunetix/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OWASP ZAP | 29% | #1 of 11 | 30% | 54 | 14 of 14 |
| Acunetix | 12% | #3 of 11 | 13% | 39 | 13 of 14 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- GPT-5.4 mini: acunetix first (first choices: Acunetix, Invicti) (alternatives: Burp Suite)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Invicti) (alternatives: Acunetix, Intruder, OWASP ZAP, Rapid7 InsightAppSec)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither first, one named (first choices: Bright Security) (alternatives: Acunetix, Beagle Security, Detectify, Intruder)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: Intruder) (alternatives: Acunetix, Astra Security)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Intruder) (alternatives: Acunetix, Aikido Security, Invicti)
- Kimi K2: neither first, one named (first choices: Bright Security, StackHawk) (alternatives: Acunetix, Invicti)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither first, one named (first choices: StackHawk) (alternatives: OWASP ZAP, Rapid7 InsightAppSec)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither first, one named (first choices: Invicti) (alternatives: Acunetix, Aikido Security, Burp Suite, OWASP ZAP, Rapid7 InsightAppSec)
- Muse Glimmer 30B: neither first, one named (first choices: Invicti) (alternatives: Acunetix, Burp Suite, OWASP ZAP)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither named (first choices: Escape) (alternatives: Astra Security, Invicti, StackHawk)
- Mistral Small: neither named (first choices: Burp Suite Enterprise Edition, Intruder) (alternatives: Aikido Security)
- DeepSeek V4 Flash: neither named (first choices: StackHawk) (alternatives: Escape, Intruder, Invicti)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named (first choices: Burp Suite Enterprise Edition) (alternatives: Aikido Security, AppCheck, Intruder)
- GPT-6 Luna: neither named (first choices: Invicti) (alternatives: Burp Suite DAST, StackHawk)

## What the models said about OWASP ZAP

- "The Verdict: Avoid for CI/CD pipelines. Use only if you have dedicated in-house pentesters." (GLM 4.7 FlashX, negative prompt, hard negative)
- "High false positive rates require significant manual tuning and expertise... Avoid if: You're new to security testing or need low-maintenance automation." (Grok 4.1 Fast, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "While OWASP ZAP is excellent and free, mid-sized B2B companies typically: Lack dedicated security teams to tune and manage false positives" (Kimi K2, paraphrase prompt, soft negative)
- "For most small to medium-sized companies just starting with DAST, OWASP ZAP is typically the best choice due to its zero cost, robust features, and strong community support." (Claude Haiku 4.5, budget prompt, first choice)
- "the best DAST tool is usually OWASP ZAP because it is free, open-source, extensible, and widely recommended as the default starting point" (Perplexity Sonar, budget prompt, first choice)
- "OWASP ZAP (Zed Attack Proxy) is widely considered the best Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) tool available." (Qwen 3.7 Flash, budget prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about Acunetix

- "excellent for complex web applications with 12,000+ vulnerability types, but has a premium price and potential for false positives" (Claude Haiku 4.5, comparative prompt, soft negative)
- "The Verdict: Use with caution. It is a popular commercial tool, but it is notorious for being "noisy."" (GLM 4.7 FlashX, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "Legacy versions struggle with SPAs, CAPTCHAs, and complex auth, leading to shallow coverage and noise." (Grok 4.1 Fast, negative prompt, soft negative)
- "my recommendation is Acunetix if you want a strong balance of broad web scanning, automation, and mid-market fit" (Perplexity Sonar, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "For a B2B company specifically, I'd lean toward Acunetix due to its strong API security testing capabilities" (MiniMax M2.5, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "If you want one name: Acunetix by Invicti is the safest recommendation for most mid-market B2B companies." (GPT-5.4 mini, direct prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all fourteen models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.