Suggestions appear as you type. Use the up and down arrows to choose one and Enter to open it.

This page's audience our own tag's counts — open to see them
–Visits
–Page views
–Clicks to vendors
–Time on page
–Reading now
Clicks to vendors, by tool
  • –
Top countries
  • –
Devices
  • –

– · visits, page views and clicks counted by our own tag, which counts more than our checked analytics; every figure rounded down · how we count

Head-to-head · Web Application Firewall Software

Cloudflare WAF vs Wallarm WAAP

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 5 checks side by side
Higher score Cloudflare WAF #1 in Web Application Firewall Software 9.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 3 of 4 features Visit Cloudflare
Wallarm WAAP #3 in Web Application Firewall Software 9.1/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 4 features Visit Wallarm

Cloudflare WAF leads on 0 checks, Wallarm WAAP on 1, and 4 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 5 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreCloudflare WAF · 9.4/10
  • Free planboth
  • Most featuresWallarm WAAP · 4 of 4

Cloudflare WAF scores higher on our rubric for web application firewall software: 9.4 against 9.1 out of 10; our editors rank them #1 and #3.

On deployment model, Wallarm WAAP gives you Hybrid where Cloudflare WAF offers Edge. Wallarm WAAP offers bot management; Cloudflare WAF doesn't.

Cloudflare WAF is the better fit for teams wanting broad WAF coverage with a free plan. Wallarm WAAP is the better fit for API-heavy teams wanting a free security tier.

  • Cloudflare WAF fits best

    Teams wanting broad WAF coverage with a free plan

  • Wallarm WAAP fits best

    API-heavy teams wanting a free security tier

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Cloudflare WAF 9.4/10 Visit ↗ Wallarm WAAP 9.1/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 9.4 9.1
Ranking #1 in Web Application Firewall Software #3 in Web Application Firewall Software
Best for Teams wanting broad WAF coverage with a free plan API-heavy teams wanting a free security tier
Pricing model Free plan + paid Free plan + paid
Starting price $20/mo —
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms Web Web
Support Community, Tickets, Live chat, Phone, Docs Docs
Compliance ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR, PCI DSS SSO/SAML
Integrations 1 integrations 16 integrations
Built for Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Cloudflare WAF 3/4 · Wallarm WAAP 4/4
Managed rule sets ✓ ✓
API protection ✓ ✓
Bot management — ✓ (best)
Rate limiting ✓ ✓
Specs
Deployment model Edge Hybrid
Log retention 30 days Not checked yet
Our review
Pros
  • Free plan includes managed rules and one rate-limiting rule
  • Edge inspection covers web applications and APIs
  • Terraform management, analytics, and virtual patching support
  • Free tier supports up to 500,000 requests per month
  • Protects REST, GraphQL, gRPC, SOAP, and WebSocket APIs
  • Combines WAF, rate limiting, virtual patching, and DDoS controls
Cons
  • Bot management is a separate Cloudflare product
  • Paid managed rules begin with the Pro plan
  • Business pricing starts at $200 per month billed annually
  • Paid WAAP plans use contact-sales pricing
  • Advanced API security tools require a separate bundle
  • The broad deployment model may require architecture planning
Our verdict

Cloudflare WAF is a cloud-delivered web application firewall for websites and APIs. It inspects HTTP and HTTPS requests at Cloudflare’s edge, applying managed rulesets, custom rules, and protections for attacks such as SQL injection and…

Read the review →

Wallarm WAAP is a web application and API protection platform for organizations securing internet-facing and internal applications. It supports web, API, and self-hosted environments, with cloud, Kubernetes, edge, on-premises, and…

Read the review →
  1. Cloudflare WAFWeb Application Firewall Software 9.4Free plan
  2. Wallarm WAAPWeb Application Firewall Software 9.1Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Cloudflare WAF — where it wins

    • Free plan includes managed rules and one rate-limiting rule
    • Edge inspection covers web applications and APIs
    • Terraform management, analytics, and virtual patching support

    Where it doesn't

    • Bot management is a separate Cloudflare product
    • Paid managed rules begin with the Pro plan
    • Business pricing starts at $200 per month billed annually

  • Wallarm WAAP — where it wins

    • Free tier supports up to 500,000 requests per month
    • Protects REST, GraphQL, gRPC, SOAP, and WebSocket APIs
    • Combines WAF, rate limiting, virtual patching, and DDoS controls

    Where it doesn't

    • Paid WAAP plans use contact-sales pricing
    • Advanced API security tools require a separate bundle
    • The broad deployment model may require architecture planning

More comparisons

All web application firewall software comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update